Democracy in South Korea has gone through four decades of transition and is finally at a consolidation stage. Democratic constitutionalism is slowly being accepted as a new guiding principle in the public life in the country which is still a predominantly collectivity- or person-oriented society. Democracy as a political ideal and institution came from the West and, is, by virtue of its origins, individualist in that the individual conscience is the ultimate source of decision about what is right and wrong (E.H. Carr). Will constitutionalism, then, eventually replace collectivism-personalism (which puts emphasis on group and person over and against the individual) and establish an individualist democracy in South Korea? Or, since the traditional collectivist-personalist ethic survived democratic encroachment and accommodated itself to the democratic polity, will there be a new form of democracy? If so, how different it will be from Western democracy? The aim of this paper is to explore these issues.

This program is free and open to the public. Lunch will be provided for those who RSVP before noon on Wednesday, February 6th to Okky Choi Tel: 650/724-8271 Email: okkychoi@Stanford.EDU According to other regions' experiences including those of the Mediterranean region in Europe, the existence of a regional leader (such as France in the Mediterranean region) can facilitate the cooperation needed to adequately address regional pollution problems. South Korea may be a likely candidate for such a leadership role in Northeast Asian environmental cooperation initiatives. South Korea has not only been active in various regional efforts, but has also been successful in developing its own environmental institutions at the domestic level. However, the unique geopolitical situation in Northeast Asia limits South Korea's ability to exert a true leadership role in the region. Instead, South Korea can be a "facilitator" of the regional initiatives in Northeast Asia where no state can play a similar role that France played in the Mediterranean region.

Professor Ho-Jin Kim, former Chairman of the Presidential Tripartite Commission for Labor, Management and Government, and former Minister of Labor in South Korea, will present a talk on overcoming economic crisis and reform policies in South Korea. He will specifically address Korea's labor and management issues, four major reforms that began after the country's financial crisis in late 1997, and strategies to strengthen national competitiveness and overcome unemployment.

In recent years, Korea has seen remarkable developments in the broadband Internet access business. This presentation looks into what Korea's broadband Internet usage is like now in comparison with other countries, and explains the major factors contributing to such development from three viewpoints: government, private sector, and social backgrounds. The seminar will also include discussing challenges that the Korean broadband Internet industry is facing: how to convert high usage of Internet to e-business, and strategic issues from a broadband Internet service provider's standpoint. This program is free and open to the public. Lunch will be provided for those who **RSVP before noon on Wednesday, March 6th** to Okky Choi. Tel: (650) 724-8271 or Email: okkychoi@stanford.edu

The recent decades have witnessed the rise of new scholarship in Korea, which tries to "rewrite" the modern Korean history between the late 1940s and the early 1950s. It seeks to challenge and overcome the so-called "revisionist" approaches to the modern Korean history, but it is definitely far from endorsing or returning to the previous "traditional" viewpoints. Claiming itself to be a "third wave" in the study of modern Korean history, this presentation re-examines the postwar U.S.-Korean policy in general, discusses the American governing of South Korea from practical points of view, and puts forth the social history of the modern Korea under the U.S. occupation and during the Korean war.

Korea achieved national health insurance coverage for the entire population in 1989, thirteen years after Korea adopted a national health insurance policy. Its success drew a lot of attention from other countries, including the US. This talk will explain the secrets of its success and also critique the pitfall of its national health insurance system. However, more recently, Korea has faced challenges from most parts of its health care system. The national health insurance corporation has been showing financial deficits. Also, the health care delivery sector has experienced a series of political battles among professional groups: physician vs. pharmacist, and oriental medical doctors vs. pharmacists. The seminar will analyze the reasons for these challenges, and discuss the direction for Korea's health care reforms. Those who have interests in the Korean national health insurance systems, please refer to Gerard Anderson (1989) "Universal Health Care Coverage in Korea." Health Affairs, Summer ,24-35. Miron Stano (1990) "Comparing US and Korean Health Care." Health Affairs, Summer, 237-238. Those who have interests in the political battles among professional groups, please refer to Hoy-Je Cho, (2000) "Traditional Medicine, Professional Monopoly and Structural Interests: a Korean Case." Social Science & Medicine, Vol 50, Issue 1, 123-135. These articles can be downloaded from the Stanford e-journal lists. This program is free and open to the public. Lunch will be provided for those who RSVP before noon on Wednesday, Novermber 28 to Okky Choi. Tel: (650) 724-8271 or Email: okkychoi@stanford.edu