Being present at the moment and having genuine empathy for others has helped to be a better communicator, and it even shifted gears on my point of view in life. I cannot forget my experiences working as an empowerment program coordinator at an international NGO called Liberty in North Korea (LiNK). LiNK was a powerful organization for me to partner with, because they considered North Korean defectors as agents of change and encourage younger generations from all around the world to engage with the issue with clear messages and impactful branding. I managed two programs, the Study Abroad & Career Development and Young Leaders Program to provide solid step-stone for high potential North Koreans from beginning to end which include designing a curriculum, recruiting/selecting fellows, preparing/leading bi-weekly workshops, and hosting a graduation ceremony. The programs were all about helping fellows to develop transferable skills, soft skills, and hard skills and aiming to improve their self-reflection ability, communication skills, problem-solving skills, and career navigation and preparation skills. I wasn’t only involved in designing curriculum and leading workshops, but I built long-lasting relationships with the fellows. I paid close attention to each fellow and tried to get to know them in person to figure out what their strengths were, and what was missing to enhance their experiences over the course of six months. It eventually moved their minds to take a more proactive approach, and made this program more successful. During the graduation ceremony, one of our fellows shared, “to have a person like her in my life, unconditionally supporting me, has given me confidence in myself and the will to take on new challenges in life” I realized that in-depth, genuine communication can have a positive impact on a person’s life and make it more meaningful. I would also like to utilize these skills and experiences to enrich people’s lives within my range of capacity. 

I have engaged and participated in interesting side projects that have had positive impact. I produced an informative booklet for an impact business company, HGI, to promote the Seoungsu-dong community, which is now leading the national trend of people engaging in social innovation and bridging the divide between potential partners in New York and Las Vegas and the business community. I also had the privilege to be a part of LiNK’s campaign video, Meet an Aspiring Florist from North Korea, to feature empowerment programs. I participated in this project both as a translator and a program coordinator to narrate the whole process during filming. When completing my Master’s thesis, I organized and reviewed more than 160 academic research papers. I was able to hone the skill of applying various research methodologies to my work while pinpointing relationships between past researches. 

Other than conceiving and creating two programs from the scratch at LiNK, I have co-founded a social venture, Dotween, which produces leather products that engrave a personal message that is converted into braille. I oversaw all brand strategy, social impact, marketing, managing online and offline shops, and day-to-day operations including product and customer related tasks. I often met with domestic and foreign buyers as a brand communicator to expand businesses. I feel comfortable with setting a system in a new environment and I focused on flexibility and adaptability as a way to challenge myself as well as overcome difficult situations under any unpleasant circumstance. Some brilliant experiences of running a business came from tough situations when I never gave up. 

Before I joined LiNK, I assisted in developing and administering research on the correlation between life threatening events and brain function, and examined over 300 resettled North Korean refugees when I was working towards my Master’s degree on Brain & Cognitive Science at Ewha University in Seoul, South Korea. I had an opportunity to hear their personal stories about life in North Korea, the journey through China and other countries in Southeast Asia, and life in South Korea. It was hard to believe that flagrant violations of human rights exists not only in North Korea, but in the global community as well. Through this exposure, I was able to understand the intricacies of the life and struggles of North Korean people. These experiences led me to volunteer at Hanawon, an institute under the Ministry of Unification for newly resettled North Korean defectors, who stay at the institute for the first three month of arrival. The more I interacted with them, it only motivated me to further establish a fair environment for people and make a positive impact in our society. I found inspiration in the North Korean people’s bravery, and drew strength from the endurance the people had to live to fight seemingly endless days of hardship and struggle. 

I expect to have more challenges and adventures in my future but with these new experiences I am confident that I, too, can grow with resilience. I would like to further enhance my impact on the world by working with passionate colleagues to inspire each other and the communities from all around the world.