Korea, South

For the first Korean Kontext podcast of 2017, five members of the KEI staff sat down with host Jenna Gibson for a chat about the volitility of 2016 and what…

For many people who visit Korea for the first time, one of the things that stands out the most is the country's clean, reliable, and efficient public transportation. This was…

More than 100 million Americans cast their ballots on November 8, and we have a new president-elect. The Trump victory came as a surprise to most, with polls and pundits…

Samsung's Galaxy Note 7 woes have hit a crescendo in recent weeks, with the company officially halting production and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officially banning the devices from all…

On May 4th, Agricultural Minister nominee Chung Hwang-keun announced that he will push to end dog meat consumption. This culinary practice has been in place for centuries in Korea, creating a widespread discussion on whether the possible ban would be appropriate. While older generations and traditionalists oppose the ban, younger generations and animal rights activists…

The landmark 1973 case Roe v. Wade legalized abortion in the United States, protecting women’s rights to choose without government restriction. Just as reproductive rights are under threat in the United States, they are just beginning to find footing in South Korea. South Korea instated a blanket ban in 1953, with a 1973 revision allowing…

South Korea’s strong economy is a significant pull factor for foreign workers, but despite a declining workforce and a need for foreign workers, Seoul implements some of the strictest immigration controls among the OECD countries. Prior to immigration reform initiated in 2004, South Korea maintained exclusionary practices towards long-term immigration for foreign workers through “side-door”…

Spring recently became the season of presidential elections in South Korea after Park Geun-hye’s impeachment in 2017 forced elections to be moved up from December. But throughout the country’s twentieth-century political history, spring was a time for another political ritual: democracy protests. In particular, two dates stand above the rest in significance: April 19 and…

Please join KEI and KIEP for a discussion about the first 10 years of KORUS and the future of the U.S.-Korea economic relationship.