Narumon Arunotai is an Associate Professor at Chulalongkorn University Social Research Institute.  She received her M.A. in anthropology from the University of Washington in Seattle, U.S.A. and Ph.D. in the same field from the University of  Hawaii at Manoa.  Her main research interest is indigenous sea people in Thailand and alternative development policy.  Her past research projects covered diverse issues ranging from labor, ethnicity, civil society, tourism, to cultural heritage conservation.
   

Having conducted continual research projects on the Chao Lay or sea people of southern Thailand enables her to help form a network on Chao Lay community rights and gave relevant policy recommendations.  This results in the 2010 Cabinet Resolution on the Revitalization of Chao Lay way of life, and Draft Act on the Protection and Promotion of the Way of life of Ethnic Groups (submitted to Thailand cabinet in 2021).  Narumon Arunotai received the National Distinguished Researcher Award from the National Research Council of Thailand in 2016 from her dedicated research work.