In this inaugural posting in our Faces of Change series, we hear from Khun Yo Thar, one of the 2014 students at the EarthRights School Myanmar. Before working in human rights, Khun Yo Thar was a soldier in the Karenni Army; his story reveals his journey from a small orphanage to a life as an emerging civil society advocate.

Khun Yo Thar tells us: “To change the situation, it is important to improve your situation first. Then you try to help your family change, then your neighbors, and then your community. And then, step by step, the change will grow.”

We hope that by hearing and sharing these stories, we will all see our own reflection in the Faces of Change, and be inspired and compelled to join in the pursuit of a more just and sustainable world.