Category: Profile

Profile

Gwangju Mayor for Tomorrow: An Exclusive Interview with the Hon. Kang Gi-Jung

Gwangju News

Mayor Kang’s economic map, which will include new growth for AI and the manufacturing industries, hopes to make Gwangju a strong city that can lead in the industries of tomorrow. He wants his administration to be a creative one through which Gwangju can provide more opportunities to its citizens to grow and develop for their “tomorrow.” With these visions in mind, the Gwangju News was keen to meet with the mayor and sit down to ask him about additional plans he might have for the “City of Light.”

Profile

A Doctor for the Weak and Displaced: Interview with Dr. Cynthia Maung, Winner of the 2022 May 18 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights 

Gwangju News

On May 19, 2022, Doctor Cynthia Maung was interviewed for GFN’s face2face program. Dr. Maung had just been awarded the May 18 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights award by the May 18 Memorial Foundation for her work providing health services to displaced persons and migrant workers at the Mae Tao Clinic, which she founded in 1988. The clinic is located in a refugee camp on the border of Myanmar and Thailand to provide medical assistance to Myanmar refugees who fled to the Thai border due to the oppression of the Myanmar military. Here is our interview with her.

May 18 Profile

Called by Another Name: A David Dolinger Memoir of 5.18

Gwangju News

When David Dolinger came to Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer in 1978, the situation was very different. In his incredible book Called by Another Name, which was co-authored by Matt Vanvolkenburg, he recounts how his experiences treating tuberculosis patients in rural Yeongam and witnessing the brutality of the 5.18 uprising changed the course of his life. While speaking with Dolinger (who holds a PhD in microbiology and immunology) during his recent trip to Gwangju, it quickly became apparent how the events surrounding 5.18 laid the foundation for his considerable scientific achievements as well as his lifelong commitment to helping those that are marginalized.

May 18 Profile

Interview with Song Seon-tae: Head of the May 18 Democratization Movement Truth Commission

Gwangju News

The indebtedness of the survivors of May 18 should not be trapped by inaction but rather spurred into action to give back. The dedication of the survivors has managed to reveal the truth of the uprising with the help of national and international organizations, as well as activists and even non-activists.

Profile

Making Filmmaking Personal: An Interview with Roberto Santaguida

Gwangju News

Roberto Santaguida is a Canadian filmmaker working extensively in the field of documentary and experimental films. He completed his studies in film production at Concordia University, and his work has been screened at more than 400 international festivals, some of which are the Tampere Film Festival in Finland, the CPH:DOX in Denmark, the Contemporary Art Festival Sesc_Videobrasil in Brazil, Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival in the United States, and Message to Man in Russia.

Jeolla History Profile

Focus on Jeong Yak-yong: The “Heart” Behind the Great Thinker

Gwangju News

“Joseon Korea was repeatedly laid to waste, expos[ing] long-accepted abuses of power and privilege, gross inequities in society, and the inefficiency of established institutions.”

Profile

Painting the Co-existence of Contradictions: Interview with Lee Doohwan

Gwangju News

“Living an isolated life with little interaction with others, I painted dark self-portraits of me trapped in loneliness.”

Profile

NINE: An Interview with Its Author J.D. Wabe

Gwangju News

“This is a metaphorical reflection of how I see the metamorphosis of my life.”