My name is Bunly EK, a third semester Graduate student at Yonsei Graduate School of International Studies with a focus on International Security & Foreign Policy and East Asia. I have a keen interest in learning about East Asia, particularly the relations and implications between Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia – as the two regions shared centuries of history and culture. Specifically, I am passionate about the Korean Peninsula security issues.

That interest was amplified with my fortunate opportunity to be accepted to the 2024 Summer Internship at the East Asia Institute (EAI). For ten weeks, I had the chance and privilege to work hand-in-hand with the talented and hardworking EAI staff on EAI projects. Through this fortuity, I have developed a great interest in the Global NK Zoom & Connect, which is an English-based website that presents readers with articles from experts related to North Korea. The first thing I always did when I arrived at EAI was checking the Global NK website to read new articles, each of them was interesting and gave me thought-provoking information on the current implications of the peninsula.

Despite only ten weeks, I was able to assist EAI staff with work, not limited to research, such as copyediting, proofreading, translating, and participating in EAI important events – such as the “Unification of the Korean Peninsula: International Cooperation and Strategy for the Future” – which have imparted even further understanding on the future of the Korean Peninsula. Moreover, I was also given the opportunity to conduct research on my own with constant support and advice from Dr. Kim Yang Gyu, Ms. Park Jisoo, and Mr. Park Hansu which enabled my studies to be more in-depth before I completed it by the end of the internship.

Knowledge did not exist only during the internship hours, I was also able to learn interesting and fun, often time surprising, history about Korean dishes during the lunch hour with the EAI Staff. For instance, it would not have come to my knowledge at all, if it weren’t because of the lunch hour with the EAI staff, that Budae Jjigae (부대찌개) has an interesting history, that dates back to the Korean War in the 1950s. During that time, with food scarcity, Koreans started using surplus ingredients from the U.S. military such as spam, sausages, baked beans, and noodles, combined with Korean traditional ingredients like kimchi, gochujang, tofu, and vegetables turning scarcity into a delicious meal. Such history revealed a symbol of resilience and adaptability that I don’t usually come across when I study about the Korean peninsula.

I am grateful for the opportunity to intern at one of Korea’s famous think tanks and the chance to work closely with EAI researchers and learn from them. The skills and ideas that I have gained during this internship will be a good trajectory for my professional career in Northeast Asia. For that, I am extremely thankful to have been selected to participate in this internship.