October 12-13, 2020
9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. (ET)
Virtual Event via Zoom
Event Description
North Korea has been considered as a ‘hard target’ by analysts because of the country’s lack of transparency and accessibility. Its economy is no exception. With the dynamic marketization North Korea watchers have difficulty in collecting the economic data and relevant information. Sources and methods themselves are often main debate topics. In this context, the second part of our second North Korea Economic Forum Annual Conference will examine sources, methods and pitfalls of researching North Korea in the areas of interview techniques, official economic data satellite imagery analysis, maritime monitoring, illicit finance networks, and unclassified commercial data.
Schedule
Monday, October 12 (9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.)
Session I. Traditional Methodology: Researching a Hard Target
Moderator: William Newcomb (Fellow, Center for Advanced Defense Studies)
Speakers:
Sandra Fahy (Associate Professor of Anthropology, Sophia University)
Interview Techniques for Qualitative Research
Stephen Haggard (Krause Distinguished Professor, School of Global Policy and Strategy, UCSD)
Liuya Zhang (PhD Candidate, Ohio State University)
Researching a Hard Target: The Use of Official Economic Data
Jenny Town (Fellow, Stimson Center and Deputy Director of 38 North)
Eyes In the Sky: How Satellite Imagery Can Enhance Understanding of North Korea
Discussants:
Barbra Demick (Janice B. and Milford D. Gerton Fellow, New York Public Library’s Cullman Center)
Nicholas Eberstadt (Henry Wendt Chair in Political Economy, American Enterprise Institute)
Melissa Hanham (Deputy Director of Open Nuclear Network, One Earth Future Foundation)
Tuesday, October 13 (9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.)
Session II. Cutting Edge: Researching a Hard Target
Moderator: John Park (Director of Korea Project, Harvard Kennedy School)
Speakers:
Neil Watts (Former Member UN Panel of Experts for North Korea)
Watching Through the Lens of a Long Telescope: Monitoring North Korean Sanctions Evasion in the Maritime Domain
Andrea Mihailescu (Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council and Adjunct Faculty, Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy)
Using Open Source to Help Banks and Regulators do Due Diligence
David Asher (Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute)
Disrupting North Korea’s Regime Using Unclassified Commercial Data as Intelligence
Discussants:
Hamish MacDonald (Associate Fellow, Royal United Services Institute)
Jason Arterburn (Program Director of Counterproliferation Cell, Center for Advanced Defense Studies)
Markus Garlauskas (Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council)
Background
The North Korea Economic Forum (NKEF) is part of policy program at the George Washington University’s Institute for Korean Studies (GWIKS). The Forum aims to promote the understanding of North Korean economic issues, distribute the well-balanced, deeply touched, and multi-dimensionally explored pictures of North Korean economy and to expand the network among the various North Korean economy watchers. The Forum is mostly a closed and off-the-record meeting where participants can freely and seriously discuss the critical issues. Mr. Daniel Wertz is currently the chair of the NKEF and is leading the meetings. It also organizes special conferences made public throughout the academic year. The Forum is made possible by a generous grant provided by the KDI School of Public Policy and Management.
As a part of the 2nd Annual Conference, a separate webinar on “Current Development Trends in North Korea” is to be held on October 5, 2020.
This event is on the record and open to the public.
