The Korea Society The Korea Society

May 8, 2024 - With the ever-growing need to understand ourselves and humanity as a whole, it is necessary to examine the concepts of morality, ethics and universal values as guiding principles of the human condition. With generous support from Y.T. Hwang Family Foundation, The Korea Society presents a Series on Ethics and Common Values.

This series promotes the understanding of central themes of our human existence - morality, ethics, personal responsibility, compassion and civility - through a series of lectures by distinguished speakers and conversation with extraordinary individuals who exemplify the universal values in line with the mission of Y. T. Hwang Family Foundation and The Korea Society.

The Korea Society and Y. T. Hwang Family Foundation is proud to present Min Jin Lee in a conversation with Kyung B. Yoon.
Min Jin Lee is the author of Free Food for Millionaires and Pachinko, a finalist for the National Book Award. Lee is the recipient of the 2022 Manhae Grand Prize for Literature, the Bucheon Diaspora Literary Award, and the Samsung Happiness for Tomorrow Award for Creativity. She has received fellowships in Fiction from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Radcliffe Institute of Advanced Study at Harvard, and the New York Foundation for the Arts. Lee has been inducted into the Hall of Fame for the New York Foundation for the Arts, New York State Writers, and the Bronx High School of Science. She has been honored by the Columbia University Weatherhead East Asian Institute, the Asian American Journalists Association, the Korean American Community Foundation, the Council of Korean Americans, the Queens Public Library, and the Korean Community Center. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, The New York Review of Books, The Chosun Ilbo, Vogue, and Food & Wine. She has introduced the Penguin Classics edition of The Great Gatsby. In 2023, Lee served as the Editor of the The Best American Shorts Stories. She is at work on her third novel, American Hagwon and a nonfiction work, Name Recognition. She is a Writer-in-Residence at Amherst College and serves as a trustee of PEN America and a director of the Authors Guild. Lee lives in Harlem with her family.
Kyung B. Yoon is the President and CEO (as well as co-founder) of the Korean American Community Foundation (KACF), the first and largest philanthropic organization in the U.S. dedicated to strengthening Korean American communities. Her career in poverty alleviation, development economics, and media encompasses her roles as the Executive Producer of Television at the World Bank Institute and a correspondent for WNYW-Fox Channel 5 where she made history as the first Korean American broadcast reporter in NYC. Kyung is currently a contributing reporter to CUNY-TV’s Asian American Life, which is broadcast nationally on PBS stations and for which she received an Emmy nomination. She has previously served as the board chair of Philanthropy New York and Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy, as a trustee of the New York Foundation, and as a board member of the United Way of New York City.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/arts-culture/item/1817-y-t-hwang-family-foundation-series-on-ethics-common-values-a-conversation-with-min-jin-lee

May 2, 2024 - Given heightened tensions and strategic competition in the Indo Pacific, how is South Korea navigating its diplomatic, economic, and security relationships with the US, China, and Taiwan? In a 2023 Joint Statement, US President Joseph Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol “reiterated the importance of preserving peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait [and] strongly opposed any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific…” thereby underscoring an uptick in Korean interest and attention to the Taiwan question. Join us for this conversation with Dr. Dean Chen, Professor of Political Science at Ramapo College of New Jersey, and Sean King, Senior Vice President of Park Strategies, moderated by Korea Society policy director Jonathan Corrado.
For more information, please visit the link below: https://koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1819-quick-take-changes-in-us-korea-china-taiwan-relations-with-dr-seong-hyon-lee-sean-king-and-dr-dean-chen

April 25, 2024 - In 2024, North Korea’s leadership has made a number of striking changes to its foreign policy, including abandoning its goal of unification and declaring South Korea its “principal enemy.” Pyongyang has also doubled down on its relationship with Moscow, shipping artillery and missiles off to Russia for use on the battlefields of Ukraine. Speculation has also risen that Kim Jong Un may have made the strategic decision to go to war, or to engage in provocations against the US-ROK Alliance. What is motivating these policies and what does the future hold? Join us for an analytic perspective from Dr. Soo Kim, Principal Technical Advisor at LMI Consulting and formerly the Central Intelligence Agency and RAND Corporation, in conversation with policy director Jonathan Corrado.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1815-quick-take-north-korea-s-new-posture-with-dr-soo-kim

April 19, 2024 - This program examines shifts in South Korea’s foreign policy posture, featuring insights and analysis from Dr. Kuyoun Chung, Assistant professor of the Department of Political Science at the Kangwon National University. The Yoon Suk Yeol administration aims to transform Korea into a “Global Pivotal State.” How has Seoul pursued this objective despite complex geopolitical and economic challenges? How does Korea navigate diplomatic relations in a tense region that is increasingly impacted by strategic competition between autocracies and democracies? Using survey data, Dr. Chung reveals how the South Korean public understands their country’s place in the world, including its allies, threats, and opportunities, in conversation with policy program officer Chelsie Alexandre.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1811-quick-take-south-korea-s-new-foreign-policy-and-public-opinion-with-dr-kuyoun-chung

April 18, 2024 - Join us for a book talk with authors Professor Victor Cha and Professor Ramon Pacheco Pardo, who discuss their new book, Korea: A New History of South and North with policy director Jonathan Corrado. The Korea Society is proud to be a stop on the famous pink book tour! This important new work of history draws on “decades of research to explore the history of modern Korea, from the late nineteenth century, Japanese occupation, and Cold War division to the present day. This comprehensive history sheds light on the evolving identities of the two Koreas, explaining the sharp differences between North and South, and prospects for unification."
You can purchase the book here. 
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1761-korea-new-history-of-south-and-north-with-victor-cha-and-ramon-pacheco-pardo

April 11, 2024 - Join us for a rapid reaction analysis of the Republic of Korea’s high stakes 2024 legislative election, held in South Korea one day prior on April 10. This election could shift the control of power in the National Assembly, resulting in an emboldened electoral mandate for President Yoon Suk Yeol, or else creating a new challenge for his administration’s agenda. In this conversation with Korea Society policy program officer Chelsie Alexandre, Stanford University’s Professor Dr. Gi-Wook Shin explores the implications of the election for: Korea’s political, economic, and social policy; its relations with its Alliance partner the United States, and regional states, such as North Korea, China, and Japan. 
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1772-rapid-reaction-unpacking-the-korean-election