Dr Tual Sawn Khai is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Applied Social Sciences at Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). Furthermore, he is a Research Scholar with the Consortium for Social Change, Well-being, and Social Policy Studies, a collaborative initiative between Lingnan University’s Institute of Policy Studies and Hang Seng University of Hong Kong’s Centre for Public Policy. Additionally, he is a Research Affiliate at the Refugee Law Initiative at the University of London.


Prior to his role at PolyU, Dr Khai served as an RGC Postdoctoral Fellow at Lingnan University and has been a Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University, a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne, and a Visiting PhD Research Fellow at the United Nations University International Institute for Global Health (UNU-IIGH) in Malaysia. His research focuses on Myanmar affairs, forced migration, refugees, internally displaced persons, conflicts, humanitarian aid, statelessness, climate change, and the social determinants of health and well-being.  


Dr Khai has authored two books: "Irregular Migration in Southeast Asia: Contemporary Barriers to Regularization and Healthcare" (Routledge) and "Japan’s Humanitarian Aid toward Myanmar after the 2021 Coup: Exploring Four Channels amid the Weaponization of Assistance" (Springer Briefs in International Relations). His scholarly contributions have been published in several esteemed journals, including the Journal of Migration and Health, Frontiers in Public Health, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Clinical Psychology in Europe, Archives of Public Health, Discover Public Health, International Journal of Social Welfare, Journal of Burma Studies, and Vaccine: X, among others. Additionally, he has provided research consulting services to a range of organisations, including think tanks, nonprofit entities, and international institutions in Southeast Asia.

• Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology and Social Policy, Lingnan University

• Master in Social Services and Development, Asian Social Institute

• Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, Kalay University