Conversations in Conflict Studies- Promoting Understanding through Science: A Workshop with North Korean Academics

Stuart Thorson, Donald P. and Margaret Curry Gregg professor in the Maxwell School and Eric Horvath, MPA student at the Maxwell School, will describe their experiences working with twenty North Korean academics during a three-week scientific English workshop held this past summer in Dalian, China. The North Korean participants came from a variety of disciplines and fields, as did the instructional team, which consisted of four faculty members from Syracuse University and one from the University of Kansas and five recent college graduates from the U.S. who served as teaching assistants. The workshop was the most recent of a series of meetings sponsored by the U.S.-DPRK Scientific Engagement Consortium. Through this presentation, they hope to evince the role academic science can play in catalyzing cooperation even in the face of difficult political relations, as well as provide insights into the lives and personalities of North Koreans not featured on the nightly news.
Conversations in Conflict Studies is sponsored by PARCC - Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration. Follow us @PARCCatMaxwell, tweet #ConvoInConflict