American media is gushing at the possibility that Hillary Rodham Clinton is gearing up for another run to become the first woman president of the United States in 2016.The former U.S. secretary of state said last week she hoped to see a woman president in her life, though did not name herself specifically.“Hypothetically speaking, I really do hope that we have a woman president in my lifetime,” the Democrat said at a private women’s lecture series in Toronto on Friday, before being interrupted b

Politics June 23, 2013

This is the first in a two-part follow-up series to one which was published in the Expat Living section on March 6 and 13 and covered the ongoing native English teacher phaseouts in certain regions nationwide. This series further assesses the native English teacher program as well as the Teaching English in English initiative for Korean teachers of English in primary and secondary public schools. Intern reporters Choi In-jeong, Lee Sang-ju and Suh Hye-rim contributed to this series. ― Ed.The num

National May 1, 2013

While Koreans’ rising presence on the global stage is hard to ignore, how to do business with them as a non-Korean is an increasingly tricky area little covered in English-language literature. Don Southerton explores the niche with his recently published book “Korea Facing: Secrets for Success in Korean Global Business,” which picks apart how to work with a Korean conglomerate from the ground up, for non-Koreans working in Korean branches overseas.“Over the years I witnessed firsthand cross-cult

Business April 8, 2013

The scene is a memory that will be etched into the minds of people worldwide for a generation. But for those who were there, it will take a generation more to recover.The world watched the catastrophe unfold as a 9.0-magnitude earthquake sent tsunamis up to 45 meters high toward Japan on March 11, 2011, drowning coastal towns and crippling the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. The natural disaster left some 16,000 dead, 2,700 missing and 315,00

International March 11, 2013

The following is the fifth article in a series featuring support and networking systems for foreigner-owned businesses in Korea. Intern reporter Lee Sang-ju contributed to this report. ― Ed.Yoon Hyeong-seok believes that helping others before helping oneself is not only a mantra for daily living, but for better business.“If you really know the joys of giving, it could transform your life,” said Yoon, director of the Korean chapter of Business Network International.It’s this philosophy on which B

Industry March 11, 2013

This is the first in a two-part series on the native English teacher phaseouts in public schools. The second, featuring native English teachers’ further assessments of the program, will be published next week. Intern reporter Lee Sang-ju contributed to this series. ― Ed.As more than 500 students at Jungwon Middle School in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, gear up for another school year this week, their teacher Zenas Hubbard has cleaned out his classroom and already said goodbye.“The last week of sch

Expat Living March 5, 2013

The following is the fourth article in a series featuring support and networking systems for foreigner-owned businesses in Korea. ― Ed.Under the bright fluorescent lights of a seminar room in a quiet dental laboratory in Geumcheon, southwestern Seoul, on a Saturday afternoon, people stand in pairs with handwritten name tags hanging from their necks. The basic questions float in the air: Where are you from? What do you do? What brought you to Korea? They lead some pairs to boisterous banter, busi

Jan. 28, 2013

The following is the third article in a series featuring support and networking systems for foreign-owned businesses in Korea. ― Ed.When Gyeonggi Province opened up its first industrial complexes in the early 1990s for production centers owned by foreign companies, it looked forward to a boom in employment opportunities for local residents, an inflow of foreign investment and a boost to the provincial economy’s growth.What it didn’t anticipate, however, was the myriad of unique logistical, labor

Dec. 24, 2012

The following is the second in a series of stories featuring support and networking systems for foreigner-owned businesses in Korea. ― Ed.With the eighth-most business-friendly environment in the world ― so said the World Bank in October ― along with free government-provided services in English, Japanese and Chinese at the Seoul Global Business Center, free economic zones scattered across the country and various foreign direct investment incentives, there’s something to be said about Korea’s ini

Dec. 10, 2012

Since China’s Hu Jintao handed over power Thursday to his vice president Xi Jinping, the world may be hearing a new song in the communist country’s austere halls of power ― not from Xi, but from his wife.Peng Liyuan, endearingly nicknamed the “Peony Fairy,” rose to prominence as the sweet soprano at the forefront of the People’s Liberation Army with nationalistic folk songs like “People from our Village” and “On the Plains of Hope.” After enlisting as a regular soldier at age 18, her morale-boos

International Nov. 18, 2012

The following is the first in a series of stories featuring support and networking systems for foreigner-owned businesses in Korea. ― Ed.Lia Iovenitti, president of market entry assistance company Conselit, put it like this:“The more you’re successful, the more money you earn, the more taxes you pay, the more Korean employees you employ. So the more successful we are, the better it goes for the Seoul Metropolitan Government and for the business situation. It’s a win-win situation for us to becom

Nov. 12, 2012

The illustrious career of one of the most widely respected military leaders in modern U.S. history came crashing down over the weekend as David Petraeus abruptly offered his resignation as CIA chief, citing “poor judgment” in engaging in an extramarital affair.The 60-year-old former army commander had been the trusty ground man for two presidents, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, owing to his military reputation for strategy, to lead the 2007 “surge” in Iraq and 2010 operations in Afghanistan. I

International Nov. 11, 2012

Public and private sectors boost entrepreneurial support to tackle nation’s unemployment problemIn an effort to tackle youth unemployment and boost young people’s enthusiasm for starting their own businesses in a conglomerate-dominated economy, the public and private sectors alike are boosting their entrepreneurship programs for ambitious new university graduates.Chung Ju-yung Entrepreneurship Competition The latest of these programs is the Asan Nanum Foundation’s Chung Ju-yung Entrepreneurship

Oct. 2, 2012

Friends of two Korea-based English teachers who died due to unknown causes while backpacking in Vietnam are holding a party in Itaewon on Friday to raise funds for the girls’ families.American Karin Bowerman, 27, and Canadian Cathy Huynh, 26, had been visiting the coastal town of Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa Province, during a week-long vacation when they suddenly fell ill and passed away on July 30 and Aug. 2, respectively.  The two had been vomiting and Bowerman had trouble breathing when they were ad

Expat Living Sept. 11, 2012

Mismatch remains in views of what small exporters needAhn Yong-joon opened his auto frame manufacturing company TLtek in 2000, using former business connections to form contracts with car companies in Japan. Looking beyond doing business locally, he set his sights abroad from the start. “There is no other choice than to export,” Ahn said, considering the limited size of the local market.A decade later, nearly 60 percent of his $26.4 million in sales in 2011 came from exporting to Japan, Europe a

Aug. 23, 2012

Two Korea-based English teachers died while backpacking in Vietnam last week, according to Vietnamese newspaper Tuoi Tre News.Cathy Huynh, 26, of Ontario, Canada, and Karin Bowerman, 27, of Illinois, U.S., were visiting the coastal city of Nha Trang during their week-long vacation from teaching in Korea when the two suddenly became ill on July 30, vomiting several times. They went via taxi from their hotel to a nearby military hospital. Dr. Ngo Thi Thanh Tam, vice head of Khanh Hoa Military Hosp

Expat Living Aug. 7, 2012

One year has passed since the much-lauded Korea-EU Free Trade Agreement went into effect on July 1 last year.However, high expectations that the tariff-cutting pact would give Korea’s exporters a boost into the European market have been lowered over the year as the sovereign debt crisis in the eurozone continues to weaken the region’s overall demand, said an economist.While 13.8 percent of Korea’s exports were sent to the EU in 2008, that share actually slid to 9.4 percent this year amid the eur

June 28, 2012