Description: With the enemy hot on his heels, Admiral J. Robert Lunney helped board 14,000 North Korean refugees onto the SS Meredith Victory as part of one of the most audacious humanitarian evacuations in history. Ultimately, 98,100 civilians were saved. There are over one million descendants of the Heungnam evacuees living in South Korea today. Among them, South Korean President Moon Jae-in, whose parents and sister were aboard the SS Meredith Victoria in 1950.
Last Ship in the Harbor
The Korea Society hosts annually the Sherman Family Emerging Scholar Lecture Series, which encourages new American thought leadership on Korea. The inaugural awardee in 2017 was Dr. Katrin Katz, who completed a dissertation at Northwestern University and spoke on Korean nationalism and maritime issues.
The 2018 recipient is Dongsei Kim, Assistant Professor at the School of Architecture and Design at the New York Institute of Technology. He holds a Master in Design Studies with Distinction from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design and a Master of Science in Architecture and Urban Design from Columbia University, and a professional Bachelor of Architecture with honors from Victoria University in Wellington.
Professor Kim’s ongoing research examines how spatial practices construct plural understandings of the divided Korean Peninsula. His research offers an alternative way of thinking about nation state borders through spatial practices. Professor Kim speaks at the Korea Society in September 2018 on Imagining the Impossible: The DMZ as a Productive Territory. His lecture explores how the discipline of architecture and landscape architecture investigates the demilitarized zone, like most borders often portrayed as an exclusionary zone, a tensional space. He suggests that architecture and landscape architecture (spatial design) radically reformulate and transform regressive exclusionary border conditions into inclusive spaces that become synergistic and productive for all involved parties–especially relevant to recent improvements in inter-Korean relations.
The Korea Society opens competition from mid-December to mid-March, with a single awardee addressing the Society prior to its annual gala. Emerging scholars hail from academe, think tanks, research or analysis and from across disciplines. Applicants must be US-based. The award provides travel, hotel, and a $2500 lecture honorarium. The award is named for the Sherman family and Philip Sherman, who served as Citi representative in Korea in the 1970s.
The featured lecture streams live and is available on audio podcast and video.
North Korean cyber attacks are hitting the headlines on nearly a daily basis as the regime demonstrates an increased ability to innovate and expand the scope of cyber operations. Korea Society talks to AlienVault threat analyst Chris Doman, who teaches us about the North’s largest hacking group and Pyongyang’s latest foray – hacking cryptocurrency systems.
Music courtesy of Elias Schutzman and Adam Bufano.
Innovate and Attack: North Korea Doubles Down on Cyber
with Chris Doman
Friday, March 9, 2018
Does the announcement of North Korea’s willingness to negotiate with the US represent a breakthrough? Did the maximum pressure campaign of sanctions and deterrence move Pyongyang to the announced inter-Korean summit and possibly the negotiation table with the Americans? Is there more at play or is this part of the strategy of North Korea Inc.? Are Seoul and Washington in alignment in dealing with North Korea Inc.?
Harvard University Kennedy School’s Korea Working Group Director, Dr. John Park, addresses media, members and other supporters on the breaking headlines, as well as on the evolution (and devolution) of North Korea’s external trade and commercial ties, notably with China. Dr. Park joins in dialogue with Dr. Stephen Noerper, senior director for policy at the Korea Society and adjunct professor at Columbia University.
In the event of a snow emergency and closing of New York Public Schools, this event will be rescheduled to 12-1 PM on Thursday, March 8. For this event, please arrive fifteen minutes in advance of the noon session and provide building security with a government issued photo ID on arrival at 350 Madison Avenue prior to going to Fl. 24. Arrive early for prime seating. Media may contact associate director jonathan.corrado@koreasociety.org
North Korea, Inc.: A Breakthrough?
A Rapid Reaction Conversation
featuring John Park
Wednesday, March 7, 2018 | 12 PM
Join an intimate conversation with defector Seongmin Lee, who escaped North Korea in 2009. Hailing from the border town of Hyesan, Lee witnessed the tumultuous social and economic change in the wake of the 1990s famine. Lee converses with associate policy director Jonathan Corrado in this event marking the fourth anniversary of the release of the UN Commission of Inquiry Report on North Korea human rights.
Dialogue with a North Korean Defector
featuring Seongmin Lee
Thursday, February 22, 2018 | 6 PM
Marking thirty years since the shift from authoritarianism to democracy in South Korea, the Korea Society hosts analysts and experts for an intimate discussion of the transition then, the flowering of democracy since, to include the Candlelight Movement, and the state of Korea’s democracy today. This is a small-group, special recording session.
PART 2
Celebrate Lunar New Year at The Korea Society’s Annual Membership Party. Enjoy Korean food and toast with beer, makgeolli (courtesy of NY Saeng Mak), and soju (courtesy of West 32 Soju). Participate in silent auctions and raffles for a chance to win unique prizes. Cheers to the Year of the Dog!
The Korea Society
350 Madison Avenue, 24th Floor, NYC
Attire: Festive
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Welcome the new year with an exclusive membership at The Korea Society! Sign up or renew one year membership and we will gift you with three additional months. Become a member of the Society today!
For more information, please contact Kloe Byun or 212-759-7525 (ext. 321).
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IN-KIND DONORS
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West 32 Soju
Politics, Policy, and PyeongChang 2018
with
Scott Snyder and Patrick Cronin
Of Interest:
Why Kim Jong Un Won’t Try to Upend the Olympics: Analysis
Lessons of Seoul Games’ triumph over terror 30 years ago – NBC News
Against the backdrop of China’s mounting influence and North Korea’s growing nuclear capability and expanding missile arsenal, South Korea faces a set of strategic choices that will shape its economic prospects and national security. In South Korea at the Crossroads, Scott A. Snyder examines the trajectory of fifty years of South Korean foreign policy and offers predictions—and a prescription—for the future. Pairing a historical perspective with a shrewd understanding of today’s political landscape, Scott Snyder contends that South Korea’s best strategy remains investing in a robust alliance with the United States.
This event has been rescheduled from Wednesday, January 31 at 4 PM. It will now be held on Thursday, February 1 at 6 PM. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.
South Korea at the Crossroads
with
Scott Snyder
Free for Korea Society Fellow, Patron, and Corporate members with RSVP
Forecasting Korean Politics and Security
with
Sue Mi Terry
Free for Korea Society Fellow, Patron, and Corporate members with RSVP
