WK Planning Committee Members
Research, writing, and public education on international issues, with a current focus on Jeju 4·3
We offer dedicated student programs designed to help young people engage with international issues through research, writing, and public education. Walden Korea recruits its Planning Committee from emerging leaders in South Korea and the United States.
At present, our primary focus is the Jeju 4·3 Uprising and Massacre, a major tragedy in modern Korean history in which more than 30,000 civilians on Jeju Island were killed, many after being falsely labeled as communists. It is estimated that roughly one ninth of Jeju’s population was lost during this period.
Walden Korea’s first Planning Committee members will study Jeju 4·3 and contribute to the preparation of forums and the publication of journals. Committee members will also become familiar with Walden Korea’s curriculum and may continue to participate in content development and public education programs after the International Strategy Forum concludes.
Walden Korea recruits new Planning Committee members on a regular basis.
Personal Experience
Jeong Hyun Kim, Kyunghee University
My name is Jeong Hyun Kim, and I am a student at Kyunghee University. Last year, I joined Walden Korea as a Planning Committee member at my professor’s recommendation. I participated in the September Strategic Forum and, as a personal project, wrote a short story about the Jeju 4·3 Incident.
Although Walden Korea’s activities lasted only a few months, the experience fundamentally changed how I understand history. Until then, history often felt like something confined to textbooks, distant from daily life. Through this project, I encountered the victims and bereaved families of the Jeju 4·3 Incident not as abstract figures, but as people whose lives and pain remain present.
To research my project, I traveled to Jeju. I visited historical sites and spoke with local residents and merchants about their perspectives on Jeju 4·3. For three days, I conducted research in the mornings and wrote in the afternoons. Over time, I felt as though I was becoming a small part of the history I was studying. I began to empathize from the depths of my heart and to understand, with my whole being, that Jeju 4·3 is not simply a closed chapter of the past. It is an ongoing history that has not yet been fully revealed and therefore has not yet been fully completed.
Preparing for my forum presentation strengthened another conviction: the most significant shifts in history often become possible through individual commitment and collective action, united by a shared vision. While working on Walden Korea projects, I revisited the rapidly changing international environment of the last century and tried to consider who led major transformations and to what ends. At the same time, I realized that as an observer removed from the most turbulent events of the past, I could never fully grasp their consequences without engaging more directly with the human realities behind them.
I hope that others, especially those of us living through the uncertainties and pressures of our own era, will learn to ride the waves together rather than be shaken by them. Becoming a member of Walden Korea’s Planning Committee can be a meaningful and fulfilling experience, one that allows you to learn, contribute, and move forward in solidarity with others.
Hyungjin Kim
Northeastern University
As a Korean living outside Korea, I have come to feel, firsthand, how sensitive and far-reaching international affairs can be. What appears to be a domestic issue is often inseparable from international dynamics. For example, I knew there had been a massacre in Jeju, but I was not aware of the extent of U.S. involvement. We live in a world where international affairs are unavoidable, and I recognize how much narratives and public understanding matter.
I also understand the current landscape of bringing Korean narratives to a global audience, and I strongly empathize with the need for our stories to be told clearly, credibly, and with moral force. I believe I have relevant experience to contribute to that work. I am a founding member and a board member of a human rights organization dedicated to the “comfort women” victims, and for years we have worked to advance an accurate and just narrative in the United States. Within the organization, I lead a research project group that focuses on education and public engagement.
In addition, I have research experience through a faculty-led project, and I have co-authored an academic article scheduled for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. I feel that Walden Korea and I share a meaningful path, and I am confident that I can contribute to the mission and values Walden Korea advances.
Catherine Yang
Boston College
I learned about the Jeju 4·3 Uprising a few times through my father, but it wasn’t until I took a solo trip to Jeju Island that I discovered my great-grandfather was killed in the massacre. Since then, I have wanted to help raise awareness of this tragedy and, just as importantly, to grow through the work of remembering painful history and advocating not only for justice, but also for a form of globalization grounded in fairness and equality.
As a project leader and an executive board member of my campus Public Health Club, I am excited to contribute to this committee using the skills I have developed through my academic and leadership experience. I also hope to learn more about other victims’ stories and narratives through this opportunity.
Sohee Yang
Sogang University
The National Assembly of the Republic of Korea
Hello, I am currently working at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea as a spokesperson for the political party Transition Korea. While serving in this legislative setting, I also participated in a prolonged protest alongside other Jeju residents outside my workplace, urging the National Assembly to pass the Jeju 4·3 Special Act. That experience of solidarity strongly reaffirmed my identity and my duty as a descendant of those who were oppressed.
Following the example set by my father and his colleagues, I hope to contribute to raising awareness of the Jeju 4·3 Uprising and to helping build a path toward truth, accountability, and reconciliation.
An Hye An
Johns Hopkins University
I have always been especially interested in Jeju-related history and culture, and I take pride in being a Jeju resident. That is why I attended haenyeo school and trained to become a certified haenyeo. I also took six-hour bus trips on my own to visit multiple Jeju 4·3 sites and see them with my own eyes.
I filmed my visits and submitted the video to a contest, and I was grateful to receive third place. It was a great honor not only to be recognized, but also to share the film and the emotions I experienced with others.
Joseph Lim
The Fletcher School at Tufts University
My name is Joseph Lim, and I am a senior at Tufts University majoring in International Relations and Economics. My primary academic interests are international law and the geopolitics of the Korean Peninsula.
Previously, I worked as a research intern at the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, where I helped raise awareness of North Korean human rights issues by creating social media content. Through Walden Korea, I hope to develop a more nuanced understanding of the Jeju April 3 Incident and to contribute to public awareness of this tragic chapter in Korean history.
Doyeong Jung
Graduate student of The Fletcher School at Tufts University
My name is Doyeong Jung, and I am a second-year master’s student at The Fletcher School at Tufts University. My primary research interests are the geopolitics of the Korean Peninsula, with a particular focus on nuclear deterrence.
At Fletcher, I serve as a co-chair of the North Korea Working Group, a student-led organization that promotes informed discussion of key policy questions related to North Korea. I have also worked as a research intern at the Belfer Center’s Korea Project, Pacific Forum, and the Council on Foreign Relations.
Having spent three years of high school in Jeju, issues related to Jeju remain one of my core interests. Through my work with Walden Korea, I hope to deepen my understanding of the Jeju April 3 Incident and contribute to raising awareness of this modern historical atrocity.