Gangsim Eom is a PhD Candidate in Anthropology. Her research focuses on Korean migration to Indonesia from the Pacific War till the present time. She is especially interested in the historical development of Korean company towns in Indonesia and the Korean business strategy of “localization” (hyŏnjihwa) against the backdrop of Indonesia and Korea’s parallel histories in the 20th century Asia Pacific: Japanese colonial rule, postcolonialism, Cold War military dictatorships, anti-communist purges, developmental states, and transition to democracy through grassroots activism. Her research has been supported by various awards and grants including Frederick Sheldon Traveling Fellowship, Stanford University Hoover Institution Silas Palmer Fellowship in 2022-23; Harvard Weatherhead Center for International Affairs Dissertation Writing Grant and Harvard Mellon Urban Initiative Award in 2023-24.
Her research interests also include: semiotics, intercultural communication, alterity, ethnicity, K-wave, home, diaspora, urban studies, spatial analysis.
Currently, she is a visiting scholar at the University of Indonesia.