An international forum on North Korea was held in Palo Alto on October 26, 2010, in an effort to educate the public on reunifying the two Koreas. The San Francisco Chapter of the National Unification Advisory Council organized the forum. Approximately 150 audience members heard panelists speak about the economic, social, and political challenges that face South Korea today in its preparation for a peaceful reunification, as well as about their visions for the future of North Korea.

Gi-Wook Shin, the director of the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC), moderated the presentations and the panel discussion. The panel of four experts included John Everard, 2010-2011 Pantech Fellow at APARC and a former British ambassador to North Korea, speaking about diplomacy and security; Greg Scarlatoiu, director of public affairs and business issues at the Korea Economic Institute, on economic issues; Sang-Hun Choe, 2010-2011 Fellow in Korean Studies at APARC and a reporter at the International Herald Tribune, on factionalism; and Jung Kwan Lee, the South Korean Consul General in San Francisco, on South Korea's policy toward North Korea.

Everad analyzed North Korea's development during the Cold War of a diplomatic technique by which it repeatedly attempted to play one ally off against another in its relationships with the Soviet Union and China. While arguing that North Korea continues to make effective use of this technique against South Korea, the United States, and the European Union, Everad noted that North Korea's current political uncertainty, following the succession, and its ongoing economic concerns will together create a situation in which it may be very difficult for North Korea to maintain political solidarity.

Scarlatoiu, meanwhile, contended that North Korea's is a post-Stalinist, neo-patrimonial economy. Thus, with recent efforts such as the 2002 market reforms and the 2009 currency reform, the North Korean regime has found itself confronted with a major dilemma. According to Scarlatoiu, while economic reforms are necessary to the long-term survival of the regime, they could also lead to the regime's collapse. This predicament, he added, must be considered as the regime undergoes a leadership transition in the succession to Kim Jong-un.

Choe spoke on the process of succession to Kim Jong-un as well, pointing out that while Kim Jong-un is indisputably the heir to the leadership of North Korea, he has yet to prove his competency as North Korea's future leader. In addition, Choe emphasized that difficulties judging North Korea's intentions and anticipating its behavior stem from the outside world's inability to understand the North Korean leadership and the goals that it truly has in mind.

Finally, Lee stressed that the basic objectives of South Korea's policy on North Korea are to promote a common prosperity and to peacefully resolve North Korean nuclear issues. However, he also made it clear that the South Korean government is seeking to keep North Korean nuclear issues distinct from the issue of inter-Korean relations.

I promise that this program could change your mind and future.

-Daisuke Maeda

Daisuke Maeda, 2008-2009 Corporate Affiliates fellow, embraced the opportunity of being at Stanford University in order to actively engage with students, scholars, and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. Connecting in person in an environment of innovation and entrepreneurship informed Maeda's thinking about his work with the Sumitomo Corporation, both retrospectively and for the future.

Established in 1919 but with business roots extending back into the 17th century, Sumitomo Corporation is a Tokyo-based general trading company with approximately 200 offices and 800 subsidiaries worldwide, including such major global cities as Beijing, London, Madrid, Istanbul, Casablanca, Sao Paulo, and New York City. Sumitomo is divided into seven business units based on its wide diversification: metal products; transportation and construction systems; infrastructure; media, network, and lifestyle; mineral resources, energy, chemical, and electronics; general product and real estate; and financial and logistics. Some of its subsidiary companies include Discovery Japan, Inc.; Barneys Japan; and Pacific Summit Energy, LLC. The corporation's mission statement expresses a strong focus on social responsibility.

Before coming to Stanford, Maeda had the responsibility for overseeing the marketing strategy of one of Sumitomo's e-commerce companies and while at Stanford he then conducted research about the "long tail" statistical theory which emphasizes the strength of a vendor, such as Amazon, selling a wide array of specialty goods. Maeda looked at arguments for and against this theory and spoke with Stanford students and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs on this subject.  In addition to his research, Maeda met with local startup companies and offered advice on marketing their products in Japan.

Maeda is now a director in the mobile and internet department of Sumitomo's media, network, and lifestyle business unit, which is home to Japan's largest cable television provider, the biggest home shopping television channel, and a major households goods e-commerce website. His current work involves developing a Japan-focused online marketing strategy for Sumitomo's healthcare business offerings.

Maeda urges current fellows to seize the opportunity of being at Stanford, saying, "Don't hesitate. Time is limited." He explains that he actively sought out opportunities to enrich his own knowledge and potential, including meeting and talking with people. "I promise that this program could change your mind and future," he concludes.

Occupying the greater part of the United States Pacific coastline, California has long shared a relationship with Asia. Today, trade with China, Japan, and Korea accounts for nearly one-fourth of the state's overall $120 billion in exported goods, and an estimated one in seven California jobs is related to trade. In recognition of the crucial importance of this trade for the state's economic vitality, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and 100 business and government leaders embarked on September 9, 2010 for a six-day trade mission to Asia.

Forty representatives from the Bay Area, 40 from southern California, and 20 top government officials traveled with the mission, including leaders from California's agriculture, green technology (green tech), finance, and healthcare industries. Although intended to benefit the State of California, the trade mission also sought to leverage complimentary resources that would help nurture China's ever-growing innovation economy and to facilitate the continued exchange of people, technology, and capital. Marguerite Gong Hancock, associate director of the Stanford Program on Regions of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SPRIE), represented Stanford University and SPRIE on the delegation's visits to the cities of Shanghai and Hangzhou in China. This was the second and final Asia trade mission led by Governor Schwarzenegger during his tenure.

While in Shanghai and Hanghzou, Hancock engaged with policymakers, university officials, and private-sector business leaders. She took part in visits to several major companies, including the Hangzhou headquarters of Alibaba, China's e-commerce giant, during its "Alibaba Fest," an annual innovation conference. While there, Hancock and fellow mission members met with the company's president and learned about recent goods and services innovations, and about its global expansion strategies. In Shanghai, she visited the home of Zap-Jonway, the recently merged California electric vehicle manufacturer Zap and Shanghai electric motorcycle company Jonway. Zap-Jonway's CEO Steve Schneider plans for the company to develop electric vehicles for commercial fleets, such as taxicabs and trucks. "It is a really interesting example of California and Shanghai coming together, bringing technologies from both sides and then positioning themselves for market growth both in China and here in the United States," says Hancock.

SPRIE is at the forefront of research about factors that nurture innovation and entrepreneurship, and has engaged in the last two years in significant research about green tech. Hancock was frequently asked about how to build policies and industry strategies that foster the economic growth of green tech and about the possible implications for China, both in terms of collaboration and competition, in the shift in Silicon Valley's economy toward green tech.

During the Asia trade mission, Governor Schwarzenegger also made several important public announcements, including the news that California is going to formally bid to hold the 2020 World Expo at Moffett Field in Mountain View, which would be a major opportunity to showcase the best of the region's innovation and entrepreneurship to the world.

For more details about Governor Schwarzenegger's Asia trade mission, please visit the State of California's website.