On Wednesday, May 13, at 2:00 PM, the Foundation held a lecture to share the research outcomes of Research Fellows Kim In-hee and Park Sun-mi, who were selected as the Foundation’s overseas dispatched researchers for 2024 and 2025. The event took place in the conference hall on the 11th floor of the Foundation building.

The Foundation’s overseas dispatch program aims to strengthen capabilities in addressing historical issues involving Korea, China, and Japan through overseas field investigations and research. It also seeks to identify the latest research trends among related think tanks, academic circles, and opinion leaders in host countries, while building networks with relevant individuals and institutions. Reflecting the purpose of the overseas dispatch program, the lecture was organized to share the research achievements and experiences accumulated abroad within the Foundation and to utilize them in future research projects and international academic exchanges.

The lecture consisted of two sessions.

In the first session, Research Fellow Kim In-hee presented on the topic, “Diary of Traveling to the United States: Impressions of the United States, Korea, and China from Times Square.” Based on Kim’s experience living in the United States, the presentation comparatively analyzed the social and cultural images of the United States, Korea, and China as observed through the symbolic space of Times Square. Kim described the United States as “a nation of self-evident truths and freedom,” Korea as “a flower blooming from ruins,” and China as “exiles in sorrowful New York,” explaining how impressions of each country are formed and how national identities in the international community relate to the history of democracy.

In the second session, Research Fellow Park Sun-mi delivered a presentation titled “Similarity of Remote Material Cultures: Beyond Quantitative and Stylistic Variations.” Park argued that similarities in remote material cultures should not remain limited to simple morphological comparisons or quantitative variations, but instead should be interpreted from a comparative cultural perspective. In particular, the presentation introduced research findings centered on the relationship between material culture and identity, as well as the existence and roles of political, economic, and ritual elites within Iron Age social structures, proposing an analytical framework for understanding ancient exchanges and cultural transmission in a multidimensional way.

The lecture served as an opportunity to confirm that overseas research dispatch programs go beyond individual academic activities by contributing to the Foundation’s scholarly research and capacity to respond to historical issues through local data collection, analysis of research trends, and international network building. The Foundation plans to continue sharing the outcomes of overseas research programs across departments and actively utilize them in research projects, policy reports, international academic exchanges, and follow-up research planning.