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 collaborating with Nongshim Shin Ramyun to release limited-edition instant noodles inspired by its characters. Watching idols savor their favorite dishes or drama characters gather around sizzling stews and late-night snacks stirs a craving—not just to taste the food, but to bring the dishes into your own kitchen and relive the moment bite by bite. From jjajangmyeon shared over office lunches to fiery tteokbokki eaten on street corners and the now-famous jjapaguri from Parasite, the food in these stories has become just as unforgettable as the characters themselves, sparking the same reaction from viewers everywhere: what is that, and where can I get it?
In MUJKA: LET'S EAT!: Fan-Favorite Recipes from K-Pop, K-Dramas & More, chef, restaurateur, television personality, and Korean cuisine expert Judy Joo recreates the dishes viewers keep spotting across Korean dramas, films, and the world of K-pop. With more than 80 recipes, Joo shows how to cook the foods they have been seeing on screen, from late-night noodle dishes and street food favorites to comforting stews, sizzling barbecue, and café sweets. Along the way, she opens up the building blocks of Korean cooking, introducing the ingredients and techniques that give these dishes their distinctive flavor, including staples like gochujang, doenjang, sesame oil, and kimchi. And MUJKA: LET'S EAT! is more than a collection of beloved, sought-after dishes: Judy brings the perspective of a chef who has spent her career championing Korean cuisine, guiding readers through the flavors, traditions, and everyday cooking that sit behind the scenes of the meals audiences keep noticing on screen and give rich cultural context to the food trends taking the world by storm. It's a cookbook, yes, but it's also a way into the meals that have become one of the most memorable parts of the Korean Wave.
In her conversation with Juju Chang, an Emmy® Award-winning co-anchor of ABC News' "Nightline," Judy Joo will discuss her career and the latest book.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/arts-culture/mukja-lets-eat/

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, 2015-2023) and Former Representative Kathy Manning (D-NC, 2021-2025), and is moderated by Professor Emeritus at American University Mr. Leonard Steinhorn. Drawing from their distinguished legislative careers and firsthand experiences traveling to South Korea with FMC as current or former Members, Katko and Manning will explore how the election results will shape America's politics, foreign policy, and economic outlook in the leadup to the 2028 presidential and congressional elections, including impacts on the U.S.-ROK Alliance, the U.S.-Korea trade and investment relationship, and regional geopolitics.
This program is presented in collaboration between The Korea Society, FMC's Congressional Study Group on Korea (CSGK), and The APEC Study Center at Columbia University. This program is made possible by the generous support of our individual and corporate members and the Korea Foundation.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/geopolitical-affairs/unpacking-the-2026-midterm-elections-implications-for-the-us-korea/

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 operating in or investing in the United States.
The panelists examined how tariffs, export controls, and sanctions, once separate areas of compliance, increasingly overlap. They covered what is changing, where the risks are, and what companies can do to prepare. The program is presented in part of the Korea Society's U.S.-ROK New Economic Paradigm series.
Some highlights of the webinar include:
Clinton Yu (Partner & Co-Chair, Arnall Golden Gregory LLP) covered tariff and customs developments. He highlighted the shift from the 15% IEEPA tariff under the late-2025 U.S.–Korea agreement to a 12.5% net Section 301 tariff, and the Section 301 "structural excess capacity" investigation that names Korea among 16 economies. He also flagged the USMCA review and the June 3 executive order on customs enforcement, which could raise the bar for who qualifies as an importer of record.
Katie Hilferty (Partner & Practice Lead, Morgan Lewis) walked through changes to semiconductor export controls and U.S. sanctions programs. She noted the gap between rules on the books and rules being enforced, and how foreign companies can still fall under U.S. controls. She also discussed the expanded outbound investment program, which now covers biotechnology, supercomputing, and hypersonic systems.
Moderated by Chris Kim (Managing Director, Stout) the panel reviewed recent enforcement actions as lessons for companies of every size. Drawing from previous day-to-day compliance cases, Korean companies were advised to structure a regular monitoring process that tracks developments from the Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), and other relevant agencies.
Speakers described how U.S. agencies are using AI for enforcement, and advised small and mid-sized companies to rely on official sources, verify AI-generated advice, and build a trusted support network.
The webinar drew a transatlantic audience of U.S.-based professionals and Korean company officials, reflecting the cross-border nature of developing trade and compliance regulations to both U.S. and Korean companies.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/business-economics/the-new-u-s-korea-trade-risk-landscape/

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.
Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming public administration and public policy, but all too often, the discussion is dominated by the latest technological breakthroughs, rather than their potential utility in serving the public. To this point, Dr. Kim argues that the primary challenges facing AI in government are human and organizational rather than technological. Longstanding barriers to public services—such as administrative burdens, complex paperwork, and unequal access—predate artificial intelligence. Without intentional institutional changes, adopting automated systems risks digitizing and accelerating existing inefficiencies rather than resolving them.
Drawing on research in civic technology, policy implementation, and digital service delivery across South Korea and the United States, Dr. Kim outlines a framework for human-centered government. He examines how South Korea—a recognized global leader in e-government—can advance beyond basic automation. By prioritizing citizen needs through human-centered design, civic data, and participatory governance, public institutions can ensure AI reduces administrative friction and expands democratic access for everyone, particularly marginalized communities and future generations who will live longest with these technologies.
Key Points
Human and Organizational Dynamics – The main hurdles facing public sector AI are organizational and institutional. AI risks automating pre-existing administrative burdens if core public institutions do not adapt.
Human-Centered Civic Data Infrastructure – Human-centered design, civic data, and participatory governance can modernize public services, strengthen democratic access, and empower citizens to help govern public AI.
Real-World AI Governance – Public procurement, service delivery, and back-end infrastructure shape citizen experiences just as significantly as frontier AI models.

About the Sherman Family Korea Emerging Lecture Award
The primary goal of the award is to encourage U.S. thought leadership on Korea among a new generation. The award is presented to emerging thought leaders from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds working in the U.S. Prior awardees have explored topics in the arts, architecture, history, industrial policy, political science, and technology and have included Ph.D. candidates, junior professors (tenure and non-tenure track), researchers and professionals. Click here to view presentations of former award winners.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/general/how-can-ai-serve-all-people-in-korea-and-the-us/

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 and tossing vibrantly flavored noodles for japchae.

Hand taste starts with seasoning but ultimately describes a way of cooking rooted in heritage, intuition, and heart. In her hotly anticipated debut cookbook Hand Taste: Cook Like a Korean Grandmother Choi offers delicious entry points to Korean and Korean-American cuisine, with foundational techniques alongside quick weeknight recipes and show-stopping traditional spreads.

In her conversation with Eric Kim, Esther Choi will discuss her career and her debut cookbook.

Order your copy of Hand Taste: Cook Like a Korean Grandmother here.
For more information, please visit the link below:
https://www.koreasociety.org/arts-culture/cuisine/hand-taste/