Board Members and Officers
Board Members
Mr. Dong-Bin Shin, Chairman
Dong-Bin Shin is the Chairman of LOTTE Group. Prior to Joining Lotte Group in 1988, Mr. Shin spent six years as Executive Director at Nomura International LTD in London where he served in the institutional Research and Sales department. With his insight and interest in the Asian economy, he serves as Vice-Chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, Vice-Chairman of the Korea-Japan Economic Association, Board Member of the Asia Business Council, and Co-Chairman of the Korea-Indonesia Partnership Council.
He also participates as a Global Trustee of Asia Society, and a member of the Board of Overseas Columbia University Business School. He also participates as a Global Trustee of Asia Society, and a member of the Board of Overseas Columbia University Business School.
Mr. Shin has also co-authored a Korean-language volume "Learning Retail Leads You to be CEO" introducing the innovation strategy of convenience stores.
His expertise and contribution to society were well recognized; he has been honored with the Order of Civil Merit of Moran Medal by the President of the Republic of Korea in 2005, Knight First Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland in 2006, Officier de la Légion d’Honneur by the President of France in 2007, the Commander of the British Empire (CBE) by the Queen of the United Kingdom in 2014, the Order of Friendship by the President of Russia in 2015, and the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Isabel La Catolica in 2016.
He earned an MBA from Columbia Business School in 1981 after graduating from Aoyama Gakuin University in Japan with a B.A. in economics.
Read more about Chairman Shin and LOTTE Corporation here.
Dr. Hong-Koo Lee, Honorary Chairman
Dr. Hong-Koo Lee, former Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the United States, has a distinguished career in academia, government, and politics. From 1994 to 1995, he served as Prime Minister of Korea under President Kim Young Sam’s government. Until his posting in Washington in 1998, he served as Chairman of the then-ruling New Korea Party and a member of the Korean National Assembly. Prior to 1994, his government service included appointments as Minister of National Unification in 1988 and Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1911 to 1993.
Dr. Lee is a graduate of Emory University and received his Doctorate in Political Science from Yale University. He also studied at Seoul National University’s College of Law.
Before entering government service, Dr. Lee had a distinguished career in academia, as Professor of Political Science at Emory University in 1963, Case Western Reserve University from 1964 to 1967, Seoul National University from 1968 to 1988. He also served as President of the Korean Political Science Association from 1986 to 1988.
Dr. Lee was a member of the Commission on Global Governance which proposed a reform of the United Nations system in 1995. He was also Chairman of the World Cup Bidding Committee which successfully won the right to host the 2002 World Cup in Japan and Korea.
Dr. Lee is the Honorary Chairman of the Asia Society Korea in Seoul and Chairman of the Seoul Forum for International Affairs.
Read more about Chairman Lee and the Seoul Forum here.
Dr. SungJoo Han, Board Member
Dr. SungJoo Han is an Honorary Chairman of the Korean American Association, and the Chairman of the Asan Institute for Policy Studies. He also serves as President Emeritus of the Seoul Forum for International Affairs and is a Professor Emeritus at Korea University. Professor Han previously served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1993-94, UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Cyprus in 1996, a member of the UN Inquiry Commission on the 1994 Rwanda Genocide in 1999, Chairman of the East Asia Vision Group in 2000, and Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the United States in 2003-2005.
Dr. Han is a graduate of Seoul National University in 1962 and received a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1970. He has many publications in Korean, including Nam Gwa Puk, kurigo Sekye (The Two Koreas and the World) (2000). His three recent publications include: On the Brink: A Korean Diplomat’s Journey for Peace (Seoul: Ollim, 2018); Korea Triangles, 1945-2020: Treading a Tightrope (Seoul: The Asan Institute for Policy Studies, 2019); “Hanguke Oegyoga Itnunga [Does Korea Have Diplomacy?]” (In Korean) (Seoul: Ollim, 2021)
Read more about Dr. Han and the Asan Institute for Policy Studies here.
Mr. Young Joon Kim, Board Member
Mr. Young Joon (“Y.J.”) Kim is Chairman, Board of Directors, of Asian University for Women (AUW) Support Foundation. He retired as a partner in the Projects Energy & Infrastructure Finance Group of the international law firm of Milbank LLP, where he spent his entire professional career, having served in the firm’s offices in New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul, with a particular focus on the energy, petrochemical, infrastructure, semiconductor, telecom and aviation sectors.
A graduate of Yale College, B.A. (political science and economics), and Harvard Law School, J.D., Mr. Kim is a member of the New York State Bar and was a 2019 Harvard University Advanced Leadership Initiative (ALI) Fellow. He is currently serving as: Member, Harvard University Board of Overseers’ Visiting Committee for the Law School; President, Harvard Law School Association of Korea; President, Yale Club of Korea; Board Member, GongGam Human Rights Law Foundation; and Trustee & Secretary of the Board of Trustees of Asian University for Women (AUW).
Read more about Mr. Kim and the Asian University for Women here.
Mr. Mark Tetto, Board Member
Mr. Mark Tetto is Co-CEO of TCK, in charge of investor relations and investment strategies review. Mark brings 14 years of finance experience spanning investment banking, corporate M&A, private equity, and venture capital investing. Prior to TCK, Mark was at Samsung Electronics’ corporate M&A team, where he spent four years successfully acquiring companies and building the firm’s M&A practice. Previously, Mark was with Morgan Stanley, working in New York and London on M&A and corporate finance, raising funding for clients in excess of $1Bn.
Mark holds a BA in Chemistry from Princeton University, and an MBA from The Wharton School, with a concentration in Finance.
Officers and Staff Members
Ms. Yvonne Yoon-Hee Kim, Executive Director
Yvonne Kim is currently the Executive Director of Asia Society Korea Center, having been with the inaugural Seoul-based branch of the Global Asia Society since its startup stages in 2008. A member of the Asian Women Empowered (AWE) Global Advisory Council, Ms. Kim has brought Asia Society and the presence of international businesses and embassies to the forefront of the Korean media through her extensive public relations network. By increasing overseas and local branding of Asia Society, she developed programming and financial planning for the prestigious and selective Asia 21 Young Leaders Program in Korea and Asia Society global fundraising. Ms. Kim is often sought after for her senior-level contacts in Korea’s public and private sectors, as well as in the international business community, to further global programming support, strategic planning, and public relations for global outreach.
Prior to joining Asia Society, Ms. Kim worked as the Manager of Special Events in Columbia University’s Office of the President for 3 years, where she developed and produced programs and VIP events for over 20,000 guests each academic year, including the World Leaders Forum and Heads of State visits during the United Nations General Assembly, with esteemed guests such as His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan, President Jalal Talabani of Iraq, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz of Pakistan, President Václav Havel of the Czech Republic, Zhang Yimou, Tan Dun, and the Honorable David Dinkins. Ms. Kim also held varying roles at Columbia University's financial management and administrative departments from 1998-2007, including the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Office of Administrative Planning and Financial Management, and the Graduate School of Journalism.
Ms. Kim is also noted for her contributions to news media. She has worked for Newsweek; WZRC-NY Radio Korea; and New York’s WMBC-TV Channel 63, where she interviewed Heads of State, governors, and former Mayor of New York Rudy Giuliani.
Ms. Kim was born in Seoul, Korea, and was educated in Hong Kong and in the United States. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Columbia University in East Asian Studies. She’s fluent in Korean and English.
Mr. Schoni Song, Program & Communications Manager
Schoni Song joined Asia Society Korea in November 2020. As Program & Communications Manager, he reports directly to the Executive Director in ensuring the effective implementation of programs through consistent messaging and planning. His primary responsibilities include developing programmatic blueprints and liaisoning with POCs of partner institutions to help the organization gain appropriate exposure. His most recent (and ongoing) work includes the Asia Society Korea Youth (ASK-Y) initiative.
Before joining Asia Society Korea, Schoni served as a Capstone Consultant at the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) where he assessed the baseline for maritime-related crimes in the South China Sea to better enable INL to better understand emerging trends and policy implications. In between his graduate studies, he completed multiple research internships at think tanks such as the Asia Society Policy Institute, East-West Institute's East Asia Program, and the Hudson Institute's Center for Political-Military Analysis. In South Korea, he was Program Assistant at the ROK National Assembly's International Affairs & Protocol Bureau and Army Translator at ROK Army's 2nd Operational Command.
Schoni received his BA in Political Science and International Relations from Yonsei University Underwood International College and Master of International Affairs from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs.
Ms. Seongju Ahn, Program Associate
Seongju Ahn is Program Associate of Asia Society Korea. She provides research, planning, and administration for multiple strands of the Center’s program. Her primary responsibilities include coordinating with diplomatic missions in Korea to facilitate the Ambassador Interview Series and Healthy Food of Asia among other in-house programs as well as keeping track of financial contributions of the Center's individual and corporate sponsors. She also manages publicity and marketing of the Center's web content on social media.
Prior to commencing her career at Asia Society Korea, Seongju obtained a Bachelor of Political Science and International Relations at Kyung Hee University in Seoul. She has developed her skills in research and analysis of policies and strong interests focused on international development cooperation, social responsibility, and ESG. She is passionate about understanding the strategies and roles of stakeholders, including international organizations, governments, and the private sector for sustainable development.
Contributors and Affiliates
Wesley Chang, Digital Contents Manager
Bernie Cho, President, DFSB Kollective
Matthew Fennell, Senior Contributor; Teaching Professor, Sookmyung TESOL Department
Nemo Kim, Contributing Writer
Dr. Mason Richey, Senior Contributor; Professor, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies