Clearing Land Under Fire: Demining and Civilian Protection in Burma

Since graduating from Harvard Kennedy School in 2024, Jonathan Moss has been living and working in active conflict areas of Burma alongside displaced civilian communities affected by landmines and booby traps. This talk shares firsthand experience developing a community-led demining program in Karenni State, where explosive weapons are deliberately used to prevent civilian return and recovery. Moss will examine the human rights consequences of long-term explosive contamination, the realities of operating without formal mine action infrastructure, and how locally trained teams are reclaiming land through low-cost, community-driven clearance efforts—often under ongoing threat of attack. 

About the speaker: Jonathan Moss is a U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal Officer and Humanitarian Mine Action Lead with Free Burma Rangers. Since 2022, he has lived and worked in Burma, supporting civilians affected by landmines, displacement, and ongoing conflict. A 2024 graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School MPA program, Jonathan works with local partners to build community-led demining capacity in active war zones. He and his wife, a trauma therapist, live in Southeast Asia with their child and together support landmine survivors and displaced communities. 

Co-sponsored by Harvard University Asia Center

*Lunch will be served