The Korea Society

November 10, 2026 - In Korean pop culture, as in Korean life, food plays a starring role. From Instagram-ready dalgona coffee to cheese-filled, sugar-sprinkled corndogs, Korean trends are taking over, both on-screen and in the kitchen. The groundbreaking global sensation KPop Demon Hunters dethroned the captivating survival drama Squid Game as Netflix's most-watched title ever, with the film colla...

November 5, 2026 - Join us for a timely discussion with a bipartisan pair of former Members of Congress analyzing America's 2026 midterm election results and their implications for U.S. domestic politics, foreign policy, economics, and America's dynamic relationship with South Korea. Q&A and audience participation are encouraged! The conversation features Former Representative John Katko (R-NY, 20...

October 26, 2026 - The Korea Society's Business & Economics team, together with co-hosts Association of State Offices of Korea (ASOK) and Korean Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) , hosted a special webinar, "The New U.S.-Korea Trade Risk Landscape: Recent Trends in Tariffs, Export Controls and Sanctions for Korean Companies," discussing how changing U.S. trade rules affect Korean companies...

October 28, 2026 - The Korea Society is pleased to announce that the winner of the 2026 Sherman Family Korea Emerging Scholar Lecture Competition is Dr. Jae Yeon Kim , Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Fellow at the Civic Power Lab at Harvard Kennedy School, and Better Government Lab Fellow at the University of Michigan's Ford School of Policy...

October 27, 2026 - We all know cooks whose fingertips seem to infuse every meal with deliciousness. In Korean, that magic touch is called sohn-mat, or "hand taste"―but you don't have to be born with it. Esther Choi picked hers up from her halmoni, or grandmother, who used her hands for everything from smearing cabbage with pepper paste to make kimchi to crumbling tofu for mandu (dumpling) filling...

October 22, 2026 - " What Stacy Kim understands, and what took me too long to appreciate myself, is that our darkest emotions often shed the most light. ENVY makes a rigorous, wise, and compassionate case that the feeling high achievers are most ashamed to admit may offer one of the clearest signals of what they truly want." — Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times bestselling author of THE POWER OF RE...

October 20, 2026 - Mountains, rivers, trees, flowers, the dark, a cat, a train. In the elemental forms and figures of our world, Lee Seong-bok finds repositories for thought, sounding boards against which he can test his reflections. Again and again, in sequences, he probes his subjects—five "Mountain Path" poems, three "River" poems, three commentaries on the I Ching— not to solicit answers, like...

October 6, 2026 - Delve into the frontlines of humanitarian aid in North Korea. Join us for a special discussion with seasoned experts Kathi Zellweger , Mike Chinoy , and Jerome Sauvage as they share first-hand insights from years of experience on the ground inside North Korea. In Miss Kathi: Saving Lives in North Korea , Swiss aid worker Kathi Zellweger collaborates with veteran journalist and au...

September 1, 2026 - Join The Korea Society for a rapid reaction discussion exploring recent shifts in Korean Peninsula security and diplomacy. Featuring Ambassador (ret.)  Joseph Yun , this program will examine President Donald Trump's decision to modify joint military exercises with South Korea and his revelation of ongoing communication with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The program is modera...

June 17, 2026 - Join us for a conversation with Dr. Jonathan Brewer , Visiting Professor at King's College, London, on the differences, similarities, and trajectories of international sanctions on North Korea and Iran. In conversation with policy director Jonathan Corrado , Dr. Brewer discusses evolving UN Security Council sanctions, their utility within larger diplomatic frameworks, their impleme...

June 10, 2026 - Join us for a virtual program exploring new thinking on Korea's aging, shrinking society with Dr.  Youngtae Cho , Director of the Population Policy Research Center and professor of demography at the School of Public Health at Seoul National University (SNU). Although South Korea's total fertility rate rebounded slightly to reach 0.8 babies per woman, it remains the lowest in the wo...

May 14, 2026 - Join us for a discussion with Dr.  Russell Burge , author of "The Promised Republic: Developmental Society and the Making of Modern Seoul." In conversation with policy program officer  Chelsie Alexandre , Burge delves into the hidden histories of South Korea's rapid urban transformation during South Korea's developmental period under Park Chung Hee. Drawing from a rich archive of me...

May 7, 2026 - Join us for a discussion with  Sarah Laderman , Senior Analyst for Open Nuclear Network, a PAX sapiens programme, on the rollout of a recent series of reports examining North Korea's nuclear program. In conversation with policy director  Jonathan Corrado , Laderman discusses a myriad of findings on North Korea's nuclear fuel cycle and weaponisation capabilities, including the researc...

May 7, 2026 - Join us for a discussion with Dr.  Jieun Baek , author of " Privileged but Powerless: How North Korean Elite Grievances Reveal the Regime's Greatest Weakness ." In conversation with policy director  Jonathan Corrado , Baek reveals a world of forbidden information, simmering resentment, and survival-driven masks, based on hundreds of hours of interviews with high-level escapees. Baek...

April 23, 2026 - Join us for a discussion with  Mark Christopher , author of the new book:  America's Taiwan Dilemma: Allies' Reactions and the Stakes for US Reputation . In conversation with policy director  Jonathan Corrado , Cristopher unpacks the findings from his rigorous open-source analysis of how America's key allies—South Korea, Japan, and Australia—would respond to US intervention or ina...

April 21, 2026 - Across Languages: New Voices in Korean Poetry  brings together acclaimed South Korean poets  Lee Jenny ,  Yoo Heekyung ,  Oh Eun , and  Shin Hae-uk  with award-winning literary translators  Archana Madhavan  and  Stine An , for a Korean–English bilingual reading and conversation to share the dynamism and innovations of language in Korean poetry culture. Through poetry and discussi...

April 13, 2026 - Join us for a book talk with  Jonathan Cheng , author of the new history book  Korean Messiah , which explores "the rise of the Kim dynasty and its surprising ties to American Christianity." In the book, Cheng, who is  The Wall Street Journal 's current China bureau chief and former Korea bureau chief, documents the profusion and lasting impact of Christianity in North Korea's cur...

Recorded April 2, 2026 - As part of our commitment to building the next generation of founders, The Korea Society is bringing  Startup Scene  to Yale Ventures – connecting one of the world's most dynamic consumer technology investors with Yale's entrepreneurial community. We are honored to welcome  Eric Kim , Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Goodwater Capital and Yale University alumnus, for a f...

April 8, 2026 - Join us for a virtual tour of archival resources about Korea and U.S.-Korea relations available for virtual and U.S.-based researchers. This discussion highlights a diverse array of both longstanding and emerging collections, providing a wide survey of available historical resources. How can educators, researchers, historians, writers, and students best take advantage of this treas...

March 31, 2026 - The Korea Society and Y. T. Hwang Family Foundation is proud to present  Rabbi Angela Buchdahl  in a conversation with  Kyung Yoon . 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 Fo...

February 12, 2026 - K-pop fandom's practices and activities are a primary productive force, instrumental in shaping the genre's immense global appeal, as well as its cultural influence, politics, and future potential. Over the last thirty years, the K-pop fandom has grown, intensified, and diversified, while its activities have taken on new social, technological, and economic manifestations, some...

February 3, 2026 - Join us for a program examining prospects for relations with North Korea, including US-Republic of Korea (ROK) alliance coordination, inter-Korean relations, the impact of North Korea's close relations with China and Russia, security concerns, and diplomatic opportunities. It is expected that North Korea's Workers' Party of Korea will hold its Ninth Party Congress in January or...

January 28, 2026 - Learning the Korean language opens the doors into a completely new depth of understanding Korean culture, and perhaps a career you never imagined having. Join acclaimed media figures  Tyler Rasch  and  Nidhi Agrawal —familiar faces from major Korean broadcast networks including JTBC, KBS, and MBC—for a reflection on their personal journeys living in Korea and learning Korean, an...

January 28, 2026 - Join us for a virtual program examining the geopolitical impact of South Korea's development of nuclear submarines. When Republic of Korea (ROK) President Lee Jae Myung hosted US President Donald Trump for a State Visit in Gyeongju, South Korea in October of last year, the allies committed to developing the maritime and nuclear relationship. A  Fact Sheet  published after the su...

January 23, 2026 - The Korea Society is calling for entries for "Startup Scene: 2026 Emerging Design Competition." The competition is a part of Startup Scene: Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow (hereinafter Startup Scene), a program initiative dedicated to empower the startup entrepreneurial community that encompasses the US and South Korean economic landscape. This is proudly supported by Hanwha Life excl...