Marte Nilsen

Senior Researcher

Email: marnil@prio.org

Mobile phone: (+47) 988 79 323

X: @MarteNilsen

Interests and experience

Political and violent conflicts in Myanmar and Thailand
Civil society movements and societal transformation in peacebuilding and democratization
Religious and spiritual practices in politics and nation building
Popular culture and art in resistance movements
The politics of humanitarian aid and development schemes in violent conflicts
The Rohingya crisis and community strategies in forced displacement settings

Marte Nilsen is a Senior Researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). She is a Historian of Religions and holds a PhD from Lund University (Sweden). Her research focus is on political and violent conflicts in Southeast Asia, with a particular focus on Myanmar and Thailand, and on the Rohingya crisis.

In her current work, Nilsen investigates how opposition groups in Thailand and Myanmar use popular culture and art to challenge the legitimacy of the authoritarian state. The role of local cultures and religious and spiritual knowledge is of particular interest. In other projects, Nilsen conducts research on identity politics among Rohingya refugees and on the refugees' own humanitarian and political strategies.

Education

2022: Thai Language, level 3 (1 year), SOAS, University of London.

2012: Dr.philos., History of Religions, Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University.

2012: Burmese language course (1 week intensive), SOAS University of London.

2006 Chinese language (KIN 1110-1120, 1 year), University of Oslo.

2005: Cand.philol., History of Religions, Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages, University of Oslo.

2002: Cand.mag., History of Religions, Sociology, History, University of Oslo.

Positions of trust

2023 – present: Co-Director, PRIO Centre on Culture and Violent Conflict.

2020 – present: Coordiator, PRIO's FIWON Network.

2017 – present: Coordiator, PRIO's Religion research group.

2017 – 2021: Coordinator, Research School on Peace and Conflict.

2006 – 2008: President, Attac Norway.

2005-2006: University board member, University of Oslo.

Language skills

Fluent: Norwegian, English.

Intermediate: Thai, German.

Basic: Burmese, Chinese (Mandarin).

Dissemnination

Podcasts

"Myanmar med Marte Nilsen" 198 land med Einar Tørnquist

"Aung San Suu Kyi og Myanmar" Historier som endret verden

"Coup in Myanmar seven months later” PRIO’s Peace in a Pod 54

"Myanmar et halvt år etter militærkuppet” Verden og vi NCA

“Kuppet i Myanmar” Utviklingspoddensialet

“Myanmar after the Coup” The Nordic Asia Podcast NIAS

“Coup in Myanmar: Protest, Art Technology” PRIO’s Peace in a Pod 25

"Art, Conflict and Land rights in Myanmar” PRIO’s Peace in a Pod 18

Television and radio appearances (sample)

Myanmar Politics: Dagens, NRK P1, 19.06.2025

Myanmar Politics: Dagsnytt 18, NRK2, 01.08.2023

Myanmar Politics: Nyhetsmorgen, NRK P2, 01.08.2023

Thai Politics: Supernytt, NRK Super, 24.05.2023

Thai Politics: Dagsnytt 18, NRK2, 15.05.2023

Myanmar Politics: Studio 2, NRK P2, 20.09.2022

Myanmar Politics: Studio 2, NRK P2, 01.02.2022

Myanmar Politics: Dagsnytt 18, NRK2, 28.09.2021

Myanmar Politics: Studio 2, NRK P2, 01.02.2021

Thai Politics: Dagens, NRK P1, 15.10.2020

Thai Politics: Nyhetslunsj, NRK 06.05.2019

Thai Politics: TV2 Nyhetskanalen, 06.05.2019

Thai Politics: NRK Alltid Nyheter, 25.03.2019

Thai Politics: Urix på lørdag, NRK P2, 23.03.2019

Thai Politics: Studio 2, NRK P2, 06.03.2019

Myanmar Politics: Urix, NRK 2, 20.09.2017

Thai Politics: Ytring, NRK P2, 14.05.2017

Thai Politics: Norgesglasset, NRK P1, 13.10.2016

Thai Politics: Urix, NRK2, 12.10.2016

Thai Politics: Her og Nå, NRK P1, 12.08 2016

Thai Politics: Nyhetskanalen, 10pm. TV2 11.08.2016

Thai Politics: Nyhetsmorgen, NRK P2, 08.08.2016

Myanmar Politics: Urix, NRK2 15.02.2016

Thai Politics: Dagsrevyen, NRK1, 18.08.2015

Myanmar Politics: Urix NRK2, 15.03.2016

Myanmar Politics: Nyhetsettermiddag NRK P2, 11.05.2015

Thai Politics: Norgesglasset NRK P1, 23.05.2014

Thai Politics: Dagsnytt 18 NRK2, 22.05.2014

Thai Politics: Nyhetsmorgen P2, 03.02.2014

Myanmar Politics: Urix NRK2, 14.11.2012

Thai Politics: Aktuelt NRK2, 19.05.2010

Thai Politics: Dagsnytt 18 NRK2, 18.05.2010

Thai Politics: Dagsnytt 18 NRK2, 19.05.2010

Projects

All of Marte Nilsen projects

Jan 2022 –
Use of Ancient Belief System for Legitimacy and Struggle for Democracy during the Authoritarian Regime in Myanmar (1990-2010)

Jan 2012 –
Norwegian Centre for Humanitarian Studies

PRIO Fieldwork Network (FIWON)

PRIO Centre on Culture and Violent Conflict

May 2021 – Mar 2022
A Review of the Norwegian Sahel Strategy

Apr 2021 – Dec 2025
Pop Culture, Art, and Indigenous Ideas of Legitimacy in Struggles over Democratization and Peace (POPAGANDA)

Apr 2021 – Dec 2025
Stateless in the Bengali borderlands : New technologies and challenges for identity and identification

Sept 2020 – Dec 2021
Building peace along the Belt and Road? Chinese security assistance to Myanmar and The Philippines

Sept 2020 – Jun 2021
The Quest for Peace in Kawthoolei: The Strategies, Outcomes, and Sustainability of Peacebuilding in Southeast Myanmar, 2012-2020

Jan 2020 – Dec 2025
Inspirational Creative Practice: The Work of Artists after War and Violent Conflict (INSPIRE)

Latest publications

All of Marte Nilsen publications

Amara Thiha (2026)
The Ritual State: The Cultural Infrastructure of Political Authority in Myanmar

PhD thesis

Titipol Phakdeewanich & Marte Nilsen (2025)
Imagining Our Future: Reflections on a Contemporary Thai Cultural and Social Evolution

Amara Thiha (2024)
Rituals, Lore and Legitimacy in Post-Coup Myanmar

Journal article in Annali di Ca’ Foscari. Serie orientale

Marte Nilsen (2023)
Buddhist Violence and Religious Authority: A Tribute to the Work of Michael Jerryson

Book review in Journal of Buddhist Ethics

Tamar Groves & Marte Nilsen (2023)
Educación y Movilización Social en la Transición Española. ¿Propuestas para Otros Contextos?

Book chapter in MOVILIZACIÓN SOCIAL Y DEMOCRACIA EL DESAFÍO AUTONÓMICO ANDALUZ EN LA TRANSICIÓN ESPAÑOLA

Marte Nilsen (2023)
Skal UDI ha vetorett over norsk utviklingspolitikk

Latest news

All of Marte Nilsen news

Thursday, 18 Jun 2026
World Refugee Day: Funding gaps and policy questions

As World Refugee Day 2026 is being marked, it is worth pointing to the strong foundations that exist based on research, which can inform policy at a time when humanitarian needs are pressing, while border control practices lead to migrant deaths.

Friday, 29 May 2026
Looking for Horizon Europe partners? Explore PRIO’s new EU Matchmaking Guide

PRIO has developed a new EU Matchmaking Guide to support organisations preparing project proposals under Horizon Europe in identifying relevant researchers.

Tuesday, 19 May 2026
Amara Thiha successfully defended his doctoral thesis “The Ritual State”

On 18 May 2026, Amara Thiha successfully defended his doctoral thesis “The Ritual State: The Cultural Infrastructure of Political Authority in Myanmar” at the University of Coimbra.

Thursday, 14 Nov 2024
PhD level course on Culture, Conflict and Politics

As part of the Norhed project, Partnership for Peace: Better Higher Education for Resilient Societies, PRIO held the PhD level course Culture, Conflict and Politics: Introduction to interpretive theory and methodology, 29-31 October.

Monday, 26 Jun 2023
Beathe Øgård Successfully defends Master's Thesis

Beathe Øgård has succesfully defended her thesis "The Spring Revolution in Myanmar - Resisting a Closed Autocracy.

Thursday, 10 Feb 2022
New Book Chapter: “We Are Alive, but Have No Life”: Rohingya Refugees, Deprived of the Prospects for a Future

The new book chapter "We Are Alive, but Have No Life": Rohingya Refugees, Deprived of the Prospects for a Future written by Senior Researcher Marte Nilsen, explores some of the everyday strategies of survival that stateless, Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh make use of to navigate under the precarious conditions of being denied rights and recognition.

Tuesday, 29 Jun 2021
INSPIRE Seminar Series Autumn 2021

Please be invited and save the dates for the INSPIRE seminar series autumn 2021! The seminars will take place monthly, on Wednesdays from 12:00-13:00 CET, online, with invited researchers and artists.

Friday, 25 Jun 2021
Klo Kwe Moo Kham Successfully Defends Master's Thesis

Klo Kwe Moo Kham has successfully defended his thesis "The Quest for Peace in Kawthoolei: The Strategies, Outcomes, and Sustainability of Peacebuilding in Southeast Myanmar, 2012-2020".

Friday, 25 Jun 2021
New Online Exhibition from the TRANSFORM Project

In societies at war or facing severe repression, what motivates individuals to take action for social justice when doing so involves great risk and uncertainty? How do such small but often heroic everyday acts of common people inspire larger transformations? And what is the impact of storytelling about everyday acts that challenge inequalities and injustices in places like Myanmar, Somaliland and Syria?The TRANSFORM research team has grappled with these questions for four years, and you will ...

Monday, 14 Jun 2021
Artistic Encounters in War and Violent Conflict: New Platform for the INSPIRE Project Launched

On June 3rd 2021, the INSPIRE research platform was launched with a live performance by Faytinga and a presentation of artwork by Diala Brisly.

Latest events

All of Marte Nilsen events

Tuesday, 2 Jun 2026 09:00–10:30 UTC+02
The spirit of Thai democracy – present, past and yet to come

Saturday, 28 Mar 2026 12:00–15:00 UTC+01
Testimonies from Beyond

Monday, 8 Dec 2025 17:00–19:30 UTC+01
Film Seminar: Mr Nobody Against Putin

Wednesday, 27 Nov 2024 09:00–10:00 UTC+01
Education Under Siege: Protecting Learning in Palestine, Myanmar and Beyond

Monday, 22 Apr 2024 10:45–13:00 UTC+02
Myanmar Roundtable: Artistic Practices after the Coup

22–23 Apr 2024
INSPIRE Conference

Wednesday, 3 Apr 2024 08:30–09:45 UTC+02
Myanmar at a Tipping Point? International Strategies and Responses

Monday, 12 Feb 2024 13:00–14:30 UTC+01
Exhibition: "The Lost Tapes of A Peoples’ Tribunal, 1982"

Monday, 22 May 2023 13:00–14:30 UTC+02
Justifying Military Power in Myanmar and Thailand

Wednesday, 14 Dec 2022 13:00–15:00 UTC+01
Education for Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh: Community Initiatives, Humanitarian Aid and the Impact of COVID-19

Latest comments

All of Marte Nilsen comments

Tuesday, 6 Aug 2024
Victory for the Civilian Uprising in Bangladesh: What is Next for the ‘Second Independence’?

Thursday, 31 Aug 2023
Six Years as Refugees and Still No Refuge

Wednesday, 12 Jul 2023
Who Should Define the Norwegian Development Policies?

Wednesday, 15 Mar 2023
Monks and Militias in Myanmar

Thursday, 25 Aug 2022
Rohingya Refugees Still Desperate, Five Years after a Genocide

Monday, 16 Nov 2020
Myanmar: weak leadership is prompting grassroots activists to make a difference

Thursday, 30 Jul 2020
The Politics of Humanitarian Aid to Myanmar

Friday, 15 Nov 2019
Accountable to Whom? Reflecting on the ethics of doing migration research

Monday, 17 Oct 2016
No One can Fill King Bhumibol’s Shoes

Wednesday, 7 Sept 2016
Are We Nearing an End to Buddhist Extremism in Myanmar?

Multimedia
Inspirational Creative Practice: The Work of Artists after War and Violent Conflict (INSPIRE)

How do artistic expressions motivate social justice during and after conflict? How do artists unite during wars in Sudan and Myanmar, and among exiled artists? INSPIRE examines the role of art, artists, and creative practices in violent conflict and after.

Recorded event
Education Under Siege: Protecting Learning in Palestine, Myanmar and Beyond

Recorded event
Myanmar Roundtable: Artistic Practices after the Coup

Recorded event
Justifying Military Power in Myanmar and Thailand

Multimedia
Education is Our Only Hope for the Future

Rohingya refugees make films about their struggle for education.

Multimedia
Education Barriers for Rohingya Children

Rohingya refugees make films about their struggle for education.

Multimedia
Rohingya Girl's Education

Rohingya refugees make films about their struggle for education.

Multimedia
Our Dreams and Aspirations

Rohingya refugees make films about their struggle for education.

Recorded event
Inspiring Myanmar: Chuu Wai - An Artist with Baggage - INSPIRE Seminar Series

Multimedia
Societal Transformation in Conflict Contexts (TRANSFORM)

TRANSFORM examines how personal actions during times of significant uncertainty and change can motivate collective efforts or create new institutional practices that shape the path a society follows.

Podcast episode
54- Coup in Myanmar, Seven Months Later

Podcast episode
25- Coup in Myanmar: Protest, Art, Technology

Podcast episode
18- Art, Conflict, and Land Rights in Myanmar

Multimedia
Somaliland: Sweet Smelling Wind Before the Rain (Somali)

Sweet Smelling Wind Before the Rain: The Uffo Struggle for Justice tells the story of a group of heroic professionals in Somaliland during the war in the 1980s.

Multimedia
Somaliland: Sweet Smelling Wind Before the Rain (English)

Sweet Smelling Wind Before the Rain: The Uffo Struggle for Justice tells the story of a group of heroic professionals in Somaliland during the war in the 1980s.

Multimedia
Syria: A Future for Syria (Arabic)

A Future for Syria follows the experiences of one Syrian woman who dedicated her life to education.

Multimedia
Syria: A Future for Syria (English)

A Future for Syria follows the experiences of one Syrian woman who dedicated her life to education.

Multimedia
Myanmar: Fighting for Land, Dreaming of Peace (Burmese)

Fighting for Land, Dreaming of Peace tells the story of a Kachin land rights activist from Northern Myanmar, who has faced displacement, arrest and persecution by the Myanmar government for her commitment to fighting for the rights of ethnic minorities.

Multimedia
Myanmar: Fighting for Land, Dreaming of Peace (English)

In the media

August 2025

PRIO researcher Marte Nilsen was interviewed about the recent unrest and ceasefire agreement between Thailand and Cambodia, by Norway’s TV2 here and here, NRK, NRK TV Dagsnytt 18 (watch at 40mins 53secs), NRK TV Dagsrevyen (watch at 4mins 50secs), NRK Nyhetsmorgen radio (listen at 5mins), NRK Nyheter TV (watch at 2 mins 15secs), TV2 twice, Dagbladet and VG newspaper here, here and here.

August 2025

PRIO researcher Marte Nilsen was the focus of an article by the local Norwegian newspaper, Hallingdølen

July 2024

PRIO Researcher Marte Nilsen wrote an op-ed on the political crisis in Bangladesh, which was published by the Norwegian newspaper, Klassekampen.

September 2023

PRIO Researcher Marte Nielsen did two interviews on political developments in Myanmar. One was on Norway’s NRK radio, Nyhetsmorgen (listen at 1 hour 18 mins), and the other was on NRK’s main evening news programme, Dagsnytt 18.

September 2023

PRIO Researcher Marte Nilsen was interviewed about the closure of the Nordic Institute of Asian Studies in Copenhagen, by the Norwegian industry publication, Khrono.

July 2023

PRIO Researcher Marte Nilsen wrote an opinion piece on Norwegian development policy, which was published in the Norwegian newspaper, Aftenposten.

May 2023

PRIO Researcher Marte Nilsen appeared on the Norwegian state broadcaster nightly news show, Dagsnytt 18, discussing the results of Thailand’s general election (watch at 23 mins).

March 2023

PRIO Researchers Marte Nilsen and Amara Thiha co-authored an opinion piece on monks and militias in Myanmar, that was published on the East Asia Forum.

February 2023

PRIO Researcher Marte Nilsen was interviewed on the two-year marking of the coup in Myanmar, by Norway’s TV2.

January 2023

PRIO Researcher Marte Nilsen was quoted in an article on the military general ruling Myanmar, by Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten.

PRIO started listing media appearances on profiles in 2023. Earlier media appearances may not be listed.