The Korean Studies Research Network (KoRN), an International Programs affinity group at the University of Iowa, will host two virtual lectures this academic year that examine how memory, identity, and representation shape understanding of Korea’s landscapes and its people.
The first lecture, “Entangled Ecologies: Memory, Place, and the Camellia Forests of Jeju,” will take place during International Education Month on Thursday, November 13, 2025, from 5 - 6:30 p.m. (CST).
Drawing on ethnographic research with Jeju villagers, conservationists, and environmental activists, Dr. Jeongsu Shin, LB Korean studies postdoctoral associate in the East Asia Program at Cornell University, will explore how memory, ecology, and place intertwine in Jeju’s Giving Forest. Once a site of violence during the April 3rd Uprising and later transformed through afforestation and tourism, the Giving Forest has become a living archive of layered histories and ecological regeneration.
Register to attend Entangled Ecologies
KoRN’s spring lecture, “Post-border Poetics: North Korean Refugees and Politics of Narratives,” will take place on Thursday, February 5, 2026, from 5 - 6:30 p.m. (CST).
Dr. Eun Ah Cho, assistant professor of Korean language and culture in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Kansas, will examine North Korean female refugees’ narratives against the established images and stereotypical stories that have shaped their representation. She juxtaposes autobiographical accounts—both written and spoken—by well-known North Korean female refugees with recently published short stories and works of science fiction written by North Korean female defector authors. Through this comparison, Cho discusses how these fictional counter-narratives perform a kind of literary vengeance on the solidified imagination of readers.
Register to attend Post-border Poetics
“These two lectures reflect KoRN’s commitment to fostering nuanced, interdisciplinary discussions of Korean society—whether through environmental memory on Jeju Island or the narrative politics of refugee life,” said Hyaeweol Choi, C. Maxwell and Elizabeth M. Stanley Family and Korea Foundation Chair; professor of Korean studies; and director of the Korean Studies Research Network at the University of Iowa.
Both lectures are free, virtual, and open to the public.
The Korean Studies Research Network (KoRN) aims to bring together scholars whose research focuses on Korea-related topics and to provide mentoring to emerging scholars. It serves as a platform for collaborative and interdisciplinary research among scholars and graduate students at the University of Iowa and other institutions across the Midwest through seminars, speaker series, and workshops.
These events are made possible through generous support from International Programs and The Stanley-University of Iowa Foundation Support Organization at the University of Iowa.
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Dr. Jeongsu Shin is the LB Korean studies postdoctoral associate in the East Asia Program at Cornell University. An ethnographer of Korea, her work bridges environmental studies, Asian studies, and science and technology studies. Her book project, Worldly Ecologies: Landscape, History, and Decolonial Environmentalism on Jeju Island, explores how environmental movements and ecological research in Jeju, South Korea, have shaped new understandings of Jeju identity and autonomy, tracing their roots through colonialism, the Cold War, and neoliberal development to the present.
Dr. Eun Ah Cho is the assistant professor of Korean language and culture in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Kansas. Her work explores literary, cinematic, and media representations of marginalized individuals, with a focus on how discourses of (ab)normalcy are constructed in Korean society. She is currently completing her book project, Post-Border Poetics: North Korean Refugees and Politics of Narratives, which examines the political, economic, and cultural dimensions of North Korean refugee life with an emphasis on gender. Her second project explores the intersection of sexuality and disability in aging bodies. Her work has appeared in Positions: Asia Critique, Situations, and CrossCurrents, among other journals.
Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all University of Iowa-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, please contact Daniel Vorwerk in advance at daniel-vorwerk@uiowa.edu or 319-467-1619.
International Programs (IP) at the University of Iowa (UI) is committed to enriching the global experience of UI students, faculty, staff, and the general public by leading efforts to promote internationally oriented teaching, research, creative work, and community engagement. IP provides support for international students and scholars, administers scholarships and assistance for students who study, intern, or do research abroad, and provides funding opportunities and grant-writing assistance for faculty engaged in international research. IP shares their stories through various media, and by hosting multiple public engagement activities each year.