The Korea Society

May 14, 2020 - Dr. Jung H. Pak discusses her new book - Becoming Kim Jong Un - on the rise of North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, in conversation with Society President Tom Byrne. Pak, a Brookings Institution Senior Fellow and former CIA analyst, provides a behind-the-scenes look at Kim’s character and motivations and chronicles his nuclear ambitions and summitry with President Trump. The book is available for purchase at Penguin Random House. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1395-becoming-kim-jong-un-with-jung-pak

May 8, 2020 - What are the challenges a chef faces when she decides to open a restaurant? How do you break the stereotype that “women make good cooks, but men make better chefs”? And how do you not only survive but thrive in the hyper-competitive restaurant kitchens and food scene in New York and London? And what do you cook when you have to stay home, due to the unprecedented world-wide pandemic? Meet two inspirational chefs - who happen to be female Korean Americans - who are doing all that and more: Chef Esther Choi and Judy Joo, chef, television personality, and the author of Korean Soul Food. Listen and join in on their conversation. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/arts-culture/item/1362-a-conversation-between-chefs-esther-choi-judy-joo

April 30, 2020 - A chef known for defining Korean food in America brings a powerful culinary legacy into your kitchen. Hooni Kim, chef/owner of Danji and Hanjan, will discuss his eagerly-anticipated cookbook, My Korea: Traditional Flavors, Modern Recipes, his insight and deep knowledge on Korean cuisine, and the challenges he faces as a restaurateur in New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moderated by Andrew Friedman. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/arts-culture/item/1377-chef-hooni-kim-with-andrew-friedman

April 17, 2020 - Stanford University Professor Gi-Wook Shin joins Korea Society Senior Director Stephen Noerper for a timely breakdown of the April 15 Korean legislative elections. Professor Shin, Director of the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center, Director of Korean Studies, and William J. Perry Professor of Contemporary Korea, examines the voice of the electorate and impact of the National Assembly election results for the Moon administration and Korean politics. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1360-korean-election-analysis

April 16, 2020 - South Korea’s coronavirus response has been lauded for its integration of new technologies and aggressive trace-and-test measures. To help the international community understand this approach, a crowd-sourced team has translated Korea’s coronavirus playbook, a 90 page set of instructions made by the Korea Center for Disease Control advising local public health officials to plan for an array of contingencies. In this special podcast interview with Korea Society policy director Jonathan Corrado, translation team leaders Alex Bae, Sehyo Yune, and Jungmin Hwang discuss the project and the insights gained from it. The document is available to view at the team’s website here. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1383-podcast-translating-korea-s-coronavirus-response-playbook

April 14, 2020 - Learn how South Korea managed to bring COVID-19 under control in this recorded interview between the Korea Society’s President, Thomas Byrne, and Professor of Infectious Diseases at Korea University Guro Hospital, Dr. Kim Woo Joo. Deemed by the media as South Korea’s “most prominent coronavirus expert”, Dr. Kim explains how he and the country learned from past epidemics to mobilize the public and private sectors to combat the novel coronavirus. Tune in to learn what lessons the U.S. and other countries can glean from South Korea’s successes. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1379-covid-19-lessons-from-south-korea-a-conversation-between-korea-s-top-coronavirus-expert-dr-kim-woo-joo-and-korea-society-president-thomas-byrne

April 10, 2020 - Council on Foreign Relations Senior Fellow for Japan Studies Dr. Sheila Smith and Korea Society Senior Director Dr. Stephen Noerper examine the political impact of the coronavirus outbreak in Japan and Korea, in conversation with Japan Society President and CEO Dr. Joshua W. Walker and with an introduction by Korea Society President Thomas Byrne. In this live webcast program, co-hosted by the Japan Society and the Korea Society, the three discuss the domestic responses and impact of COVID-19 to date and regional implications, to include relations between the two states, Tokyo 2020 Olympics and evolving domestic realities. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1378-geopolitics-of-coronavirus-japan-and-korea

April 3, 2020 - Orville Schell, Arthur Ross Director of the Center on US-China Relations at the Asia Society, examines developments in China’s foreign policy toward the Korean Peninsula in conversation with senior director Stephen Noerper. Schell discusses China’s commitment to denuclearization, orientation toward Pyongyang and Seoul, views on Korean unification, and the current news cycle, to include the geopolitics of the coronavirus response. For more information, please visit the link beow: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1354-china-s-foreign-policy-and-relations-on-the-korean-peninsula

March 26, 2020 - CSIS Korea Chair Victor Cha and George W. Bush Presidential Center Director of Human Freedom Lindsay Lloyd discuss Cha's new report, Regaining Lost Ground in the North Korean Human Rights Movement in conversation with Korea Society Senior Director Stephen Noerper. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1376-regaining-lost-ground-in-the-north-korean-human-rights-movement-with-victor-cha-and-lindsay-lloyd

February 27, 2020 - Three of the most acclaimed restaurateurs in New York talk about the past, present and future of “Korean” restaurants in the city and beyond: Simon Kim of Cote; Jenny Kwak of Haenyeo; and Ellia Park of Atoboy & Atomix. Moderated by Matt Rodbard. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/arts-culture/item/1349-beyond-32nd-street-korean-restaurants-of-the-moment

January 30, 2020 - This public roundtable dialogue explores recent changes and pathways for reform in the North Korean economy, with special focus on transitions and lessons learned in Cuba. Jaime Reusche, Vice President and Senior Credit Officer for the Sovereign Risk Group at Moody’s Investors Service and Peter Ward, Ph.D. candidate at the University of Vienna and NK Pro analyst, join Korea Society President Tom Byrne to share insights and analyses. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1344-changes-in-the-north-korean-economy-roundtable

Long before he swept the Oscars with Parasite, Director Bong Joon-Ho visited The Korea Society to talk about his career and films in February 2010. Listen to the highlights from his conversation with Michael Atkinson.

February 7, 2020 - University of Connecticut History Professor Alexis Dudden explores recent history and possible overtures in Korea-Japan relations in conversation with Korea Society Senior Director Stephen Noerper. Exploring trade and historical disputes, as well as well as Washington’s past and potential involvement, Dudden, author of Troubled Apologies Among Japan, Korea and the United States, as well as a recent New York Times piece, examines signs of progress, possible offramps and continuing challenges. With the kind participation of the Columbia University Center for Korean Research. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1345-korea-japan-relations-looking-back-looking-forward

January 30, 2020 - North Korea challenges reporters’ efforts at providing clarity and revealing hidden dynamics given information gaps and a lack of access. Korea Risk Group CEO Chad O’Carroll, NK News Podcast host Jacco Zwetsloot and freelance journalist and outgoing Asian American Journalist Association New York President Hannah Bae speak with Society Policy Director Jonathan Corrado on how reporters overcome these obstacles to gain credible and durable insight. For more information, please visit the links below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1343-covering-north-korea https://www.nknews.org/category/north-korea-news-podcast/latest

December 5, 2019 - John Park, Korea Project Director at Harvard’s Kennedy School, joins Society Senior Director Stephen Noerper for a discussion on Korea’s current relations with Japan, China and the United States. Concluding a year that saw discord between Seoul and Tokyo and a pause in Washington-Pyongyang dialogue, Dr. Park addresses next-steps on the Peninsula and prospects for dialogue, denuclearization and enhanced regional relations. This program enjoys the support of Columbia University's Center for Korean Research (CKR). For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1329-korea-s-regional-relations

November 21, 2019 - Retired General Vincent Brooks, former Commander of US Forces Korea/Combined Forces Command/United Nations Command, revisits the Korea Society for a discussion of the security situation on the Korean Peninsula, to include the latest on the US-ROK alliance, North Korea’s nuclear and missile development, dialogue efforts, and confidence building. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1328-korea-security-update

November 15, 2019 - North Korea has warned that it will pursue a so-called “new path” if substantive progress isn't made in negotiations with the United States by the end of the year. But what's behind this deadline, and what should we expect in the coming months? To find out, Korea Society Policy Director Jonathan Corrado sits down with two experienced analysts for insights on timelines, sequencing, and the art of diplomacy. Dr. Jung Pak is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution Center for East Asia Policy Studies. She previously held senior positions at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). Annika Betancourt is a visiting fellow at Brookings and has experience with diverse aspects of the North Korea portfolio, including human rights, humanitarian aid and diplomacy from her time with the U.S. State Department.

October 30, 2019 - History plays a role in shaping current events all over our the world -- but it seems to be especially alive in Korea. Scholars and practitioners that work on the Korean Peninsula can all agree on the importance of learning lessons from the past, but that is where the consensus stops. Dr. Ramon Pacheco Pardo is an Associate Professor in International Relations at King's College London and author of the book US-North Korea Relations from Kim Jong Il to Kim Jong Un. In this discussion with Korea Society Policy Director Jonathan Corrado, Pardo attempts to “see through the cycle” and attribute rational explanations to Pyongyang’s mercurial behavior, asserting that North Korea’s has used brinkmanship and bargaining to achieve its main goal, which he considers to be diplomatic normalization with the US.

October 24, 2019 - Author Seth Berkman discusses the release of his new book on South Korea’s women’s hockey team at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics. In conversation with Society Policy Director Jonathan Corrado, Berkman, whose work has appeared in The New Yorker and SPIN and on ESPN, chronicles the tale of a group of young women who brought the Koreas closer in new ways. This program enjoys the support of Columbia University's Center for Korean Research (CKR). For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1324-a-team-of-their-own-how-an-international-sisterhood-made-olympic-history

October 17, 2019 - New generation scholars from Korea and China join Society Senior Director Stephen Noerper for a discussion on developments in regional politics and security, North Korea’s denuclearization, and visions for the Korean Peninsula. This National Committee on American Foreign Policy event offers unique insights from young professionals for members and media. Speakers include: Dr. Jihwan Hwang from the University of Seoul, Dr. Jina Kim from the Korea Institute for Defense Analysis (KIDA), Dr. Xiaoyu Pu from the University of Nevada, Reno, and Nan Li from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of American Studies. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1322-new-thinking-from-korea-and-china