Abstract
This chapter presents the journeys of two Indigenous entrepreneurs based in Thailand. Findings illustrate how the act of entrepreneurship and “being entrepreneuring” support aspirations for community self-determination and sustainable development. Influencing factors include access to transformational educational opportunities, being embedded in local culture, and embracing an Indigenous Innovative approach to project design and implementation. The ventures of these Indigenous entrepreneurs weave together the social capital found in community, respect for their natural ecosystem, and are grounded in an Indigenous worldview.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Anders, G. C., & Anders, K. K. (1986). Incompatible goals in unconventional organization: The politics of Alaska Native corporations. Organization Studies, 7(3), 213–233.
Anderson, R. B., Honig, B., & Peredo, A. M. (2006). Communities in the global economy: Where social and indigenous entrepreneurship meet. Entrepreneurship as Social Change, 5, 3.
Asian Rural Institute. (2023, July 19). Rural Leaders Training Program – Asian Rural Institute. https://ari.ac.jp/en/trainingprogram/
Baba, S., & Fortin-Lefebvre, E. (2021). Indigenous entrepreneurship, marginal ontologies and sustainable development goals. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71059-4_152-1
Banerjee, S. B. (2022). Decolonizing management theory: A critical perspective. Journal of Management Studies, 59(4), 1074–1087.
Barba-Sánchez, V., & Molina-Ramirez, E. (2016). Social entrepreneurship in Mexico. In R. Laratta (Ed.), Social enterprise—Context-dependent dynamics in a global perspective (pp. 59–78).
Barrett, M. J., Harmin, M., Maracle, B., Patterson, M., Thomson, C., Flowers, M., & Bors, K. (2017). Shifting relations with the more-than-human: Six threshold concepts for transformative sustainability learning. Environmental Education Research, 23(1), 131–143.
Bastien, F., Coraiola, D. M., & Foster, W. M. (2023). Indigenous peoples and organization studies. Organization Studies, 44(4), 659–675.
Bourgeois III, L. J. (1979). Toward a method of middle-range theorizing. Academy of Management Review, 4(3), 443–447.
Buergin, R. (2000). Hill tribes and forests: Minority policies and resource conflicts in Thailand. OAIster.
Cahn, M. (2008). Indigenous entrepreneurship, culture and microenterprise in the Pacific Islands: Case studies from Samoa. Entrepreneurship & Regional Development: An International Journal, 20(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/08985620701552413
Cajete, G. (2000). Native science: Natural laws of interdependence. Clear Light Publishers.
Chartrungruang, B., Wattanalaungarun, W., Sa-Ingthong, K., & Hanafiah, M. H. M., & Zamzuri, N. H. (2022). Factors of indigenous community tourism business success for the Mhong entrepreneurs in Thailand. Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Culinary Arts, 14(3), 152–164. ISSN 1985-8914; 2590-3837
Chouichom, S. (2021). Readiness of entrepreneurs towards group performance development of OTOP product: A case study in northeastern Thailand. In M. Behnassi, M. B. Baig, M. El Haiba, & M. R. Reed (Eds.), Emerging challenges to food production and security in Asia, Middle East, and Africa: Climate risks and resource scarcity (pp. 317–328). Springer.
Colbourne, R. (2017). Indigenous entrepreneurship and hybrid ventures. In A. Corbett & J. Katz (Eds.), Perspectives and approaches to blended value entrepreneurship: Advances in entrepreneurship, firm emergence and growth (Vol. 19). Emerald.
Colbourne, R., Peredo, A. M., & Henriques, I. (2023). Indigenous entrepreneurship? Setting the record straight. Business History, pp. 1–23.
Cooper, M. (2017, September 25). The Work that Reconnects—Global Ecovillage Network. Global Ecovillage Network. https://ecovillage.org/solution/the-work-that-reconnects/
Curry, J. & Donker, H. (2009). Development corporations in aboriginal communities: The Canadian experience. Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 14(1), 1–19.
Dana, L. P. (2007). Toward a multidisciplinary definition of indigenous entrepreneurship. In L. P. Dana & R. Anderson (Eds.), International handbook of research on indigenous entrepreneurship (pp. 3–7). Edward Elgar.
Dana, L. P. (2015). Indigenous entrepreneurship: An emerging field of research. International Journal of Globalisation and Small Business, 14(2), 158–169.
Dana, L. P., & Smyrnios, K. (2013). The push-pull of indigenous Sámi family reindeer herding enterprises: A metaphor for sustainable entrepreneurship. In Handbook of research on family business (2nd edn, pp. 588–606). Edward Elgar Publishing.
Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (2005). The sage handbook of qualitative research (3rd edn). Sage.
Filatotchev, I., Ireland, R. D., & Stahl, G. K. (2022). Contextualizing management research: An open systems perspective. Journal of Management Studies, 59(4), 1036–1056.
Forsyth, T., & Walker, A. (2008). Forest guardians, forest destroyers: The politics of environmental knowledge in northern Thailand. University of Washington Press.
Gregg, M. T., & Wishart, D. M. (2012). The price of Cherokee removal. Explorations in Economic History, 49(4), 423–442.
Groenland, E., & Dana, L. (2019). Qualitative methodologies and data collection methods: Toward increased rigour in management research. World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
Harris, L. D., & Wasilewski, J. (2004). Indigeneity, an alternative worldview: Four R’s (relationship, responsibility, reciprocity, redistribution) vs. two P’s (power and profit). Sharing the journey towards conscious evolution. System Research, 21, 489–503. https://doi.org/10.1002/sres.631
Henriques, I., Colbourne, R., Peredo, A. M., & Anderson, R. B. (2020). Relational and social aspects of Indigenous entrepreneurship: The hupacasath case. In Indigenous wellbeing and enterprise (pp. 313–340). Routledge.
Henry, E. Y., & Dana, L. P. (2016). Social and cultural capital: Enhancing emancipatory Indigenous entrepreneurship. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2016, No. 1, p. 14414). Briarcliff Manor, NY 10510: Academy of Management.
Hindle, K. (2005). Contrasting Indigenous entrepreneurship in Australia and Canada: How three applied research perspectives can improve policy and programs. Small Enterprise Research, 13(1), 92–106.
Hindle, K. (2010). How community context affects entrepreneurial process: A diagnostic framework. Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, 22(7/8), 599–647. https://doi-org.grenoble-em.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/08985626.2010.522057
Hunt-Perry, P., & Fine, L. (2000). All Buddhism is engaged: Thích Nhất Hạnh and the order of interbeing. In C. S. Queen (Ed.), Engaged Buddhism in the west (pp. 35–66). Wisdom Publications.
IMPECT (Inter Mountain Peoples Education and Culture in Thailand Association) & FPP (Forest Peoples Programme). (2006). Indigenous knowledge, customary use of natural resources and sustainable biodiversity management: Case study of Hmong and Karen communities in Thailand. Retrieved from Chiang Mai, Thailand: 224 http://www.forestpeoples.org/sites/fpp/files/publication/2010/08/10cthailandimpectjun06eng.pdf
Jack, S. & Anderson, A. R. (2002). The effects of embeddedness on the entrepreneurial process. Journal of Business Venturing, 17(5), 467–487.
Kenney, M. & Goe, W. R. (2004). The Role of social embeddedness in professorial entrepreneurship: A comparison of electrical engineering and computer science at UC Berkeley and Stanford. Research Policy, 33(5), 691–707.
Kingi, T. T., & Kompas, T. (2010). Rural reform and Fiji’s indigenous sugarcane growers: An application of stochastic frontier analysis. Pacific Economic Bulletin, 25, 42–61.
Kwame, A. (2017). Reflexivity and the insider/outsider discourse in indigenous research: My personal experiences. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples, 13(4), 218–225.
Mazzarol, T. (2007). Different strokes for different folks: Stimulating entrepreneurship in regional communities. In L.-P. Dana & R.B. Anderson (Eds.), International handbook of research on indigenous entrepreneurship (pp. 494–507). Edward Elgar.
Meza Bernal, I. (2012). Lengua y cosmovisión. Elementos de resistencia y comunalidad en tres comunidades mayas: macehuales de Quintana Roo. Cultura y representaciones sociales, 7(13), 96–153.
Mika, J. P. (2020). Indigenous entrepreneurship: How Indigenous knowing, being and doing shapes entrepreneurial practice. In D. Deakins & J. M. Scott (Eds.), Entrepreneurship: A contemporary & global approach (pp. 1–32). Sage.
Mika, J. P., & O’Sullivan, J. G. (2014). A Māori approach to management: Contrasting traditional and modern Māori management practices in Aotearoa New Zealand. Journal of Management & Organization, 20(5), 648–670.
Mika, J. P., Warren, L., Foley, D., & Palmer, F. R. (2017). Perspectives on indigenous entrepreneurship, innovation and enterprise. Journal of Management & Organization, 23(6), 767–773.
Mirvis, P. (2008). Executive development through consciousness-raising experiences. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 7(2), 173–188.
Mistry, J., & Berardi, A. (2016). Bridging indigenous and scientific knowledge. Science, 352(6291), 1274–1275.
Molina-Ramírez, E., & Barba-Sánchez, V. (2021). Embeddedness as a differentiating element of Indigenous entrepreneurship: Insights from Mexico. Sustainability, 13(4), 2117. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13042117
Moroz, P. W., Branzei, O., Parker, S. C., & Gamble, E. N. (2018). Imprinting with purpose: Prosocial opportunities and B Corp certification. Journal of Business Venturing, 33(2), 117–129.
Mouton, J. (2001). How to succeed in your Master’s and Doctoral studies: A South African guide and resource book. Van Schaick Publishers.
Mungmachon, M. R. (2012). Knowledge and local wisdom: Community treasure. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 2(13), 174–181.
Myers, M. D. (2009). Qualitative research in business and management. Sage.
Nandram, S. S. (2016). How do spirituality, intuition and entrepreneurship go together? Philosophy of Management, 15(1), 65–82. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40926-016-0029-7
Nardon, L., Hari, A., & Aarma, K. (2021). Reflective interviewing—Increasing social impact through research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 20, 16094069211065232.
Overall, J., Tapsell, P., & Woods, C. (2010). Governance and indigenous social entrepreneurship: When context counts. Social Enterprise Journal, 6(2), 146–161.
Padilla-Meléndez, A., Plaza-Angulo, J. J., Del-Aguila-Obra, A. R., & Ciruela-Lorenzo, A. M. (2022). Indigenous entrepreneurship. Current issues and future lines. Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, 34(1–2), 6–31.
Pangriya, R. (2019). Hidden aspects of social entrepreneurs’ life: A content analysis. Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, 9, 1–19.
Patton, M. Q. (1990). Qualitative evaluation and research methods. SAGE Publications, inc.
Peredo, A. M. & Anderson, R. (2006). Indigenous entrepreneurship research: Themes and variations. In C. S. Galbraith (Ed.), Developmental entrepreneurship: Adversity, risk, and isolation (Vol. 5, pp. 253–273). Emerald.
Peredo, A. M., & Chrisman, J. J. (2006). Toward a theory of community-based enterprise. Academy of Management Review, 31(2), 309–328.
Peredo, A. M., Anderson, R. B., Galbraith, C. S., Honig, B., & Dana, L. P. (2004). Towards a theory of indigenous entrepreneurship. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 1(1–2), 1–20.
Phiphatsērītham, K., & Yoshihara, K. (1983). Business groups in Thailand (Vol. 41). Institute of Southeast Asian.
Phongchiewboon, A. (2016). Livelihood strategies and environmental management practices in Northern Thailand National park communities. A dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Natural Resource Management at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand (Doctoral dissertation, Massey University). https://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/9901
Pio, E., Waddock, S., Mangaliso, M., McIntosh, M., Spiller, C., Takeda Ho, M., & Syed, J. (2013). Pipeline to the future? Seeking wisdom in indigenous, eastern and western traditions. In J. Neal (Ed.), Handbook of faith and spirituality in the workplace: Emerging research and practice (pp. 195–222). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-5233-1_13
Pirson, M. A., & Lawrence, P. R. (2010). Humanism in business–towards a paradigm shift? Journal of Business Ethics, 93, 553–565.
Poldner, K. A. (2020, April 16). Entrepreneuring a regenerative society: Introductory speech by Kim Poldner at The Hague University of Applied Sciences for the Research Group Circular Business. De Haagse Hogeschool.
Ponelis, S. R. (2015). Using interpretive qualitative case studies for exploratory research in doctoral studies: A case of Information Systems research in small and medium enterprises. International Journal of Doctoral Studies, 10, 535–550. http://ijds.org/Volume10/IJDSv10p535-550Ponelis0624.pdf
Ponting, S. S. A., Ponting, J., & Spilde, K. (2015). Develo** tribal casino employees as conduits for tribal government messaging. Journal of Business Research, 68(10), 2140–2145.
Pyles, L. (2005). Understanding the engaged Buddhist movement: Implications for social development practice. Critical Social Work, 6(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.22329/csw.v6i1.5721
Rindova, V., Barry, D., & Ketchen, D. J., Jr. (2009). Entrepreneuring as emancipation. Academy of Management Review, 34(3), 477–491.
Rural Leaders Training Program. Asian Rural Institute. (2023, July 19). https://ari.ac.jp/en/trainingprogram/
Salmón, E. (2000). Kincentric ecology: Indigenous perceptions of the human–nature relationship. Ecological Applications, 10(5), 1327–1332.
Salmon, E., Chavez, J. F., & Murphy, M. (2022). New perspectives and critical insights from Indigenous peoples’ research: A systematic review of Indigenous management and organization literature. Academy of Management Annals. https://doi.org/10.5465/annals.2021.0132
Santasombat, Y. (2004). Karen cultural capital and the political economy of symbolic power. Asian Ethnicity, 5(1), 105–120. https://doi.org/10.1080/1463136032000168925
Sanpa, P. (2020). Ethnic coffee: Ethnic entrepreneurization with cultural capital. PSDS Journal of Development Studies, 3(1), 95–137. https://so05.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/gvc-tu/article/view/246041
Seremani, T. W., & Clegg, S. (2016). Postcolonialism, organization, and management theory: The role of “epistemological third spaces”. Journal of Management Inquiry, 25(2), 171–183.
Sharma, A. (2021). Decolonizing international relations: Confronting erasures through Indigenous knowledge systems. International Studies, 58, 25–40.
Spiller, C., Pio, E., Erakovic, L., & Henare, M. (2011). Wise up: Creating organizational wisdom through an ethic of Kaitiakitanga. Journal of Business Ethics, 104(2), 223–235.
Stephen, L. (1991). Culture as a resource: Four cases of self-managed indigenous craft production in Latin America. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 40(1), 101–130.
Steyaert, C. (2005). Entrepreneurship: In between what? On the “frontier” as a discourse of entrepreneurship research. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2(1), 2–16.
Steyaert, C. (2007). ‘Entrepreneuring’ as a conceptual attractor? A review of process theories in 20 years of entrepreneurship studies. Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, 19(6), 453–477.
Swae (Siwakorn Odochao), Karen pgak’yau. (2017, November 11–17). Message from Lazyman. [Speaker Abstract, p. 23]. Economics of Happiness World Forum, Japan, Tokyo. https://www.localfutures.org/past-conference/economics-of-happiness-world-forum-tokyo-japan/
Swearer, D. K. (2009). Religion and globalization from the historical pespective of Thai Buddhism (pp. 1000–1018).
Swearer, D. (2014). Environmental ethics: Thai Buddhist perspectives. The Journal of Oriental Studies, 24, 49–55.
Swierczek, F. W., & Jatusripatak, S. (1994). Exploring entrepreneurship cultures in Southeast Asia. Journal of Enterprising Culture, 2(2), 687–708.
Taagepera, R. (2008). Making social sciences more scientific: The need for predictive models. Oxford University Press.
Tackney, C. T., Chappell, S., Harris, D., Pavlovich, K., Egel, E., Major, R., Finney, M., & Stoner, J. (2017). Management, spirituality, and religion (MSR) ways and means: A paper to encourage quality research. Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion, 14(3), 245–254.
Tengeh, R. K., Ojugbele, H. O., & Ogunlela, O. G. (2022). Towards a theory of Indigenous entrepreneurship: A classic? International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 45(1), 1–15.
Thomas, M., & Carvajal-Regidor, M. (2021). From “slow” to “being ‘lazy’ and slowing down” and the impact on student learning. Teaching and Learning Inquiry, 9(2). https://doi.org/10.20343/teachlearninqu.9.2.12
Tosey, P., Lawley, J., & Meese, R. (2014). Eliciting metaphor through clean language: An innovation in qualitative research. British Journal of Management, 25(3), 629–646. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12042
Tretiakov, A., Felzensztein, C., Zwerg, A. M., Mika, J. P., & Macpherson, W. G. (2020). Family, community, and globalization: Wayuu indigenous entrepreneurs as n-Culturals. Cross Cultural & Strategic Management, 27(2), 189–211.
Valente, M. (2012). Indigenous resource and institutional capital: The role of local context in embedding sustainable community development. Business & Society, 51(3), 409–449.
Walsham, G. (1995). Interpretive case studies in IS research: Nature and method. European Journal of Information Systems, 4(2), 74–81.
Walters, F., & Takamura, J. (2015). The decolonized quadruple bottom line: A framework for develo** indigenous innovation. Wicazo Sa Review, 30(2), 77–99.
Weatherbee, T. G., & Sears, D. (2024). Circuits of organizational stories: Wineries, history, and the performance of place. In A world scientific encyclopedia of business storytelling set 1. Corporate and Business Strategies of Business Storytelling Volume 2: History and Business Storytelling (pp. 1–27). https://doi.org/10.1142/13336-vol1
Weick, K. E. (1995). Sensemaking in organizations. Sage.
Welter, F. (2011). Contextualizing entrepreneurship—Conceptual challenges and ways forward. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 35(1), 165–184.
Welter, F., Baker, T., & Wirsching, K. (2019). Three waves and counting: The rising tide of contextualization in entrepreneurship research. Small Business Economics, 52, 319–330.
Wennecke, C. W., Jacobsen, R. B., & Ren, C. (2019). Motivations for Indigenous island entrepreneurship: Entrepreneurs and behavioral economics in Greenland. Island Studies Journal, 14(2), 43–60.
Whiteman, G., & Cooper, W. H. (2000). Ecological embeddedness. Academy of Management Journal, 43(6), 1265–1282.
Wuttunee, W. (2004). Living rhythms: Lessons in aboriginal economic resilience and vision (Vol. 37). McGill-Queen’s Press.
Acknowledgment
We would like to thank our brother Swae and sister Sunisa for manifesting the collective efforts of their human and non-human communities, and for contributing their knowledge and experiences in conversation with us. Their perseverance and continued work to heal the land, regenerate their ecosystems, and re/connect spirit, place, and people is inspiring. By doing so, we re/member and are forever grateful.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Culshaw, N., Limwatana, N., Ngo, T. (2024). Indigenous Entrepreneurship in Thailand: The Case of Gaia Ashram and Lazyman Coffee. In: Eijdenberg, E.L., K, T., Wang, P., Wong, C. (eds) Indigenous Entrepreneurship in Southeast Asia. Palgrave Studies in Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Indigenization in Business. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-54457-6_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-54457-6_8
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-54456-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-54457-6
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)