face2face on GFN: Recent Episodes
Arlo Matisz, Kim Miyoung, Jang Mirang
A talk-show based in South Korea, face2face airs on GFN Gwangju Foreign language Network at 98.7FM in Gwangju and 93.7FM in Yeosu. On the show, Arlo interviews interesting members of the community as well as visitors to the city, spanning different professions and lifestyles.
Vita Juknevičienė is a professor at Vilnius University who was teaching a summer session at Chonnam University. She discusses her home country of Lithuania, her education and research in the fields of public innovation and administration, and specific topics in e-leadership as well as corruption.
The hospitality industry was one of the hardest hit by the COVID19 pandemic. Now that hotels are getting back on their feet, they rely more than ever on making a greet impression on visitors who are forming new travel experiences. How do they do this? With excellent staff, of course. The executive chef and the converge manager of one of Gwangju’s finest hotels explain their training and job experience, how they entered the industry, and how they deal with different challenges in their roles at the hotel.
As an artist and the office manager of the International Biennial Association, Jen Lee's life and career are based in art. She discusses how she became inspired as an artist, what kind of work she has done including her own comic strip, and how she became involved with the IBA.
In one of the most exciting areas of medical advance, tiny robots can be used to deliver targeted drugs inside the human body. It is possible to guide, activate, and retrieve this microbots, which provides a significant advantage over invasive surgery or non-targeted treatment like chemotherapy. Bobby Aditya Darmawan uses his background in engineering to design, create, and improve these microbots in his PhD studies at Chonnam University.
On May 19th, Doctor Cynthia Maung was interviewed for GFN’s face2face. Dr. Maung had just been awarded the 2022 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights for her work providing health services to displaced persons and migrant workers at the Mae Tao clinic, which she founded in 1988. She has dedicated her life to the treatment of displaced and marginalized persons from Myanmar and Thailand.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cynthia_Maung
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mae_Tao_Clinic
Costa Rica is a modern environmental success story in terms of how they have managed and protected their natural assets. Sebastian Benavides Vargas studied environmental management engineering, working with the government and with firms in Costa Rica. However, he became interested in Korea and decided to study at Chonnam University where he is doing a master's degree in Disaster Management. For this episode which first aired on World Environment Day, Sebastian will share some of the success of Costa Rica as well as explain the role that engineering plays in solving these important issues.
“Called by Another Name” is the title of David Lee Dolinger’s memoir of the Gwangju Uprising. It refers to Im Dae-oon, the Korean name he was given when he came to South Korea in 1978 with the Peace Corps. David was in Gwangju during the May 18th Gwangju Uprising, a protest for democracy which ended with a massacre at the hands of elite military forces. However, the 518 Gwangju Uprising was not the end of David’s time in Korea. After being forced out of the Peace Corps, he worked as a university instructor, and during this time participated in the dissident pipeline.
To know more about the interview : Ex-Peace Corps volunteer Dolinger recalls horrors of 1980 massacre in Gwangju - The Korea Times
Sherryl Sambo Ko is a very busy woman. On top of studying a PhD in Education and working as both an educator and a financial planner for a life insurance provider, she is heavily involved in the Filipino community in Gwangju and Korea. She shares her professional perspective on the unfairness of certain visa requirements for education positions, as well as explaining some of the complexities of the relationship Korea and the Philippines have.
To learn more about South Korea's Philippine community: Gwangju Philippine community comes together for Filipino Day (koreatimes.co.kr)
Unjusa is a beautiful temple in Hwasun, Jeollanamdo Province in South Korea, and 효명스님 (Hyo-myeong) is one of its monks. He explains what a monk's life is like at the monastery and how their teachings are interpreted in the modern world.
Jawid Ahmad Gulistani studied economics and worked in Afghanistan at a university as well as several government ministries and departments. However, the American withdrawal and subsequent takeover of his country by the Taliban, a radical Islamist organization which had previously ruled the country with an iron fist, necessitated fleeing with his family to Korea by way of Iran. He and his family now reside in Gwangju where he is studying his PhD.
Bangladesh is ranked as the eighth-most populated country in the world. Since 1973, Bangladesh and Korea have established a diplomatic relationship. In 2021, a total of 16,257 Bangladeshi migrants had been registered under various types of visas in Korea.
-Bangladeshi Students’ Association in Korea(BSAK)
Samuel Tolley is an American musician and music teacher who lives in Korea.
He discusses his music, his busking experiences in Korea, and appearing in Korean television to perform Korean music.
To check out more of his music: https://linktr.ee/samueltolleymusic
'Witnessing Gwangju' is an English radio play, celebrating the 42th anniversary of May 18 Democratic Movement in Gwangju, presented by GFN. Paul Matthews, originally from England, is a dramatist based in Seoul.
Also, we will speak over the phone with a special, guest, Paul Courtright who is the author of the memoir, 'Witnessing Gwangju,' and the protagonist of the play. As a member of the Peace Corps in 1980, he witnessed the events of 518.
Yeong Ju was working as a producer and reporter but wanted to do something different. Leaving to help his parents with farming, he created a new type of hybrid business model, media farming, by creating videos and promoting his products while sharing methods and advancements in agriculture. This channel has become very successful in Korea and internationally, and he now is visiting agricultural conferences in other countries to share his work and insights.
The link for his YouTube channel: 귀농의신 - YouTube
With funding from the May 18 Memorial Foundation, Chloe came to Gwangju to study her master's degree in NGOs. She interned at the Gwangju Trauma Center. She also presented “Challenges in Hong Kong and the Spirit of Democracy” at the Gwangju Asia Forum. She discusses her work with NGOs, their value and functions, and also discusses issues that some Hong Kong is currently facing.
The aviation industry was impacted greatly by the pandemic, with the number of global passengers decreasing drastically in 2020. Over 4.5 billion passengers traveled globally before the pandemic; this number fell to roughly 1.8 billion after the virus began to spread. Our guest is a flight attendant who had begun to work during this time. She will explain how she entered the highly competitive industry, her tips to success in becoming a flight attendant, and how her life and career have been affected by the pandemic.
South Korea is one of the few developed nations that have conscription, which means all able-bodied men are required to carry out military service, usually for around two years. But what happens when someone has an injury or other problem that keeps them from being able to meet the demands of armed service? Yongjin Jung, who was injured playing sports, explains the rules of this system and what kind of work he does instead.
-Aired on GFN radio on April 17, 2022-
In the 90s in Indonesia, a time of enormous political upheaval, an art collective was born. This collective, HONF, brought together many artists of many different backgrounds and experience. Founding member Irene Agravina and member Haryo Hutomo are participating in the artist residency program at Gwangju's ACC (Asian Culture Center). Their interdisciplinary exhibition, beginning on April 19th, shows the cultural and medical importance of garlic. Included in the cultural component is Korea's myth of Ungyeo(웅녀), the bear that became a woman by consuming garlic and mugwort in a cave.
Angela and Silvia are artists in love, and for this Valentine's Day episode, we discussed how they met and how they live and work together. As residency guests at the Gwangju Asian Culture Center, they created a performance based on the work of their art collective, Biloura, which is based in Italy. This performance focused on social issues involved with sex work. They discuss how they research this work and what they hope their art can inspire. The interview was recorded April 17, 2022.
The mass popularization of Korean media, often referred to as Hallyu or the Korean Wave, was made possible partially because of accurate translation of its language content. This makes it accessible to foreign audiences, creating synergies with adjacent industries within the K-sphere. But how do these translations get made? David Kwon is a translation editor. His is not only correcting translations, but also ‘regionalizing’ the content so that the expressions and vernacular are accessible to the target audience. He discusses this fascinating job, how his studies prepared him for it, and how he successfully navigates the competitive world of media freelancing. He also explains some of the challenges of living in Korea as a Gyopo, a Korean from abroad.
As a lawyer, Hyoung Ray Jo (조형래 변호사님 ) works on a lot of different types of cases in both criminal and civil trials. He explains some of the differences between them, some aspects of the Korean legal system, and some cases he has worked on. He also discusses how he became a lawyer and his own thoughts on the reputation and purpose of his profession.
Michael had been living as a teacher for some time in Korea, but being a father to twins was quite a new experience. He decided to record his experiences 'raising the creatures,' and then used the material to write a book. He contracted a skilled illustrator, and the rest is history!
Roberto Santaguida is a Canadian film director. His numerous films include some very interesting documentaries. His works have been shown at hundreds of film festivals around the world. Roberto explains his background in film, his past projects, and what he is working on now in Gwangju.
Oleksii Omelianovych is doing his postgrad in Daejeon after completing his Master's Degree and PhD there in Energy and Chemical Engineering. He discusses what brought him to Korea and his success as a researcher here. He then gives some background on the history of Ukraine, the Russian misinformation about their shared history, and describes some of the previous attempts by Russia to destroy Ukraine. He also discusses the recent bombing of a children's hospital in Mariupol.
Aswin Krishnaswamy discusses what brought him from India to Korea and his reasons for studying in Gwangju. He also explains how he learned Korean to successfully integrate into both his academic and nightlife communities, and his tips for success in the Korean academic environment. He also discusses his PhD thesis work in AI welding and some of its applications to Korean industries. In addition, he talks a bit about his hobby of mixology, a hobby which has made him quite popular in the city.
Before becoming an elementary school teacher in Gwangju, Kim AhSol (김아솔) studied film in Toronto. He incorporates his work as an elementary school teacher into the independent films that he directs. He describes how he uses participation in filmmaking to help students that struggle in class. One of his recent films appeared at the 10th Gwangju Independent Film Festival.
Hong JeonYeon (홍정연) decided to write a book about her relationship with her father, who passed away. She wanted to describe the hard work that her father had done for their family and their relationship. She originally self-published her book, but it drew the attention of a publisher's CEO, who made an offer to publish her book. In this interview, she describes her family, how they stayed close, and gives some advice to building and maintaining a relationship with family. She gives some suggestions about appreciating the efforts and sacrifices that parents make for their children. She also reads some sections of her book.