Trained as a scholar of Southeast Asian studies, Dr. Thun completed his PhD in History at the National University of Singapore (NUS) under the Joint Scholarship Program (JSP) with the Harvard-Yenching Institute (HYI) at Harvard University. He has held research fellowships at the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong, the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Kyoto University, and the International Institute for Asian Studies Leiden University. He is the 2025–26 recipient of the Lee Kong Chian NUS–Stanford Initiative on Southeast Asia, a joint program between NUS and Stanford University. Dr. Thun has also received several awards, including the 2019 Wang Gungwu Medal and Prize for the “Best PhD Thesis in the Social Sciences/Humanities,” an Honourable Mention for the 2026 Harry J. Benda Prize from the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), and the 2026 Early Career Book Prize from the Association of Mainland Southeast Asia Scholars (AMSEAS)—both for his book, Epistemology of the Past.

Dr. Thun’s research spans a wide range of themes, including intellectual and cultural history, ethnicity, Buddhism, war and violence, education, and digital history. His publications address these themes through historical and scholarly inquiry, while his applied research extends to public-facing educational and collaborative initiatives. He was a leading member of App-learning on Khmer Rouge History, a digital history project launched by the Bophana Audiovisual Research Center in Cambodia in 2018 to support inclusive education for Cambodian youth about the Khmer Rouge mass-killing regime (1975–1979). Since 2025, he has also collaborated with UNESCO’s Phnom Penh Office to evaluate, design, and strengthen peace education and public understanding of war and violence. He has also been actively involved in training and mentoring young researchers through trainings, as well as supporting their research projects and publications.

Dr. Thun’s current book project focuses on twentieth-century Buddhist intellectual traditions and monastic education. Centering on Khmer religious leaders who played a formidable role in advancing Buddhist monastic education between 1900 and 1975, the project explores their activities across overlapping spheres of political authority, transnational and transcultural exchange, and diverse epistemological frameworks.