Church of the Brethren in North Korea
hess@ozemail.com.au
8:36 AM (45 minutes ago)
to rowemorrow2450, Roger, me, Adrian, davidjswain, Rae, Wilma, sensa
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Dear Friends,
The Church of the Brethren (the German Baptist Brethren, not the Plymouth Brethren) is one of the three historic Peace churches (along with Mennonites and Quakers).
For five and a half years (eleven semesters) they had an agricultural program in North Korea with Robert and Linda Shank working at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. The university is the only privately-run university in the DPRK.
Their involvement in the program has now ended and the Church of the Brethren no longer has a presence in North Korea. Below is some information about their program and some warnings.
Linda and Robert Shank
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Greetings D,
This is Robert and we completed 11 semesters at PUST where I was appointed Dean of College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. This was to be mainly academic coordination with the DPRK partner dean. This consisted mainly in searching for faculty for all courses but DPRK filled in where none were found.
We thought that they would take over after some students attained their MS but the DPRK admin persisted in trying to find Western profs with current professional status. There were cases where old/out of date Profs were sent and the students were noticeably disappointed.
Another job of the Dean was supplying textbooks and soliciting funds for supplies. Students were fond of US texts even though I brought the 2nd most recent edition ($10-20 as opposed to $100-200).
But there was keen interest among MS students to do significant research including food crops. So I obtained recent germplasm of rice, corn, soybeans, s potato, winter hardy strawberry and raspberry.
[Germplasm are living genetic resources such as seeds or tissues that aremaintained for the purpose of animal and plant breeding, preservation, and other research uses. ... Germplasm collections can range from collections of wild species to elite, domesticated breeding lines that have undergone extensive human selection.]
But there was keen interest among MS students to do significant research including food crops. So I obtained recent germplasm of rice, corn, soybeans, s potato, winter hardy strawberry and raspberry.
[Germplasm are living genetic resources such as seeds or tissues that aremaintained for the purpose of animal and plant breeding, preservation, and other research uses. ... Germplasm collections can range from collections of wild species to elite, domesticated breeding lines that have undergone extensive human selection.]
Korean background ag profs would bring things from SK but they were less hardy and shorter season. I became the middle communicator for international rice nurseries since few NK scientists are allowed email addresses
so we introduced many cultivars for submergence, salt and drought tolerance by DNA marker selection. Even while I was there they planted field trials of Sub tol rice and salt tol soybeans.
so we introduced many cultivars for submergence, salt and drought tolerance by DNA marker selection. Even while I was there they planted field trials of Sub tol rice and salt tol soybeans.
You may want to contact Russel Reinke who now at CSIRO who visited our work.
Also my wife and I would say that it was the students that made all the work and sacrifice worthwhile. One student told my wife, "Grandpa cannot believe American enemies are our teacher and that we like them." We realized that most of our students were offspring of higher officials and that they are envied among the other colleagues when they return to gov jobs.
Finally we thought the students would jump at the opportunity for advanced study abroad. On the contrary, they are pressured to contribute most of the stipend to the gov and bring back gifts for relatives/cohorts. We cannot imagine the stress of credit/checking accounts, email addresses, ID cards not to mention required meetings with DPRK and local authorities.
I hope this gives you some appreciation of the work at PUST and our interaction with DPRK people. If I can help in other ways, please let me know.
Dr Robert Shank
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A later note:
Warning: I would be very wary of accepting a farm because that means you will be inundated with demands for inputs, maintenance and even construction of facilities. You will be responsible for the health and welfare of all the people associated with that farm, thousands of people, and what if a crop failure?
Also my wife and I would say that it was the students that made all the work and sacrifice worthwhile. One student told my wife, "Grandpa cannot believe American enemies are our teacher and that we like them." We realized that most of our students were offspring of higher officials and that they are envied among the other colleagues when they return to gov jobs.
Finally we thought the students would jump at the opportunity for advanced study abroad. On the contrary, they are pressured to contribute most of the stipend to the gov and bring back gifts for relatives/cohorts. We cannot imagine the stress of credit/checking accounts, email addresses, ID cards not to mention required meetings with DPRK and local authorities.
I hope this gives you some appreciation of the work at PUST and our interaction with DPRK people. If I can help in other ways, please let me know.
Dr Robert Shank
--
A later note:
Warning: I would be very wary of accepting a farm because that means you will be inundated with demands for inputs, maintenance and even construction of facilities. You will be responsible for the health and welfare of all the people associated with that farm, thousands of people, and what if a crop failure?
Pilju has extensive experience from 1995 of accepting 3-4 farms and the gov demanded they grow cotton, which they had to start in greenhouses and transplant to the field. She made sure that each farm had a tractor and some tillage equip but was still buying tires, fuel and spare parts 10 years later. Greenhouses require replacement plastic and insulated covers.
Make sure that there is no associated enterprises like a retirement home-hospital may be OK but political businesses may be "underground" like we had to support a "socialism building and greenhouse for Dear Leaders flowers".
You must remember she is devoted and has gone back, even when prohibited.
Her email may not be active if she is busy traveling.
But her US phone is 612-801-5701.
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And a note from Jay Wittmeyer, administrator of the program from the Church of the Brethren with an email address for Dr. Pilju Kim Joo.
Start here http://www.agglobeinternational.org/ and try pkjoo@worldnet.att.net
I hope you have very deep pockets. Dr. Kim had been responsible for three farms, I believe, with 17,000 individuals.
Here is a short video about Robert’s work posted in 2012 by the Church of the Brethren: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRbSLN0p2_8
The work of the Church of the Brethren in North Korea was initiated through Agglobal Services International :
http://www.agglobeinternational.org/
This appears to be a well-funded organisation committed to global food security. Most of the funding appears to come from church groups. The Church of the Brethren’s contact in Pyongyang was Dr Pilju Kim Joo, who was the Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. She is now based in the USA.
It was suggested to me that we should contact Dr. Pilju Kim Joo. I have not attempted to do this yet.
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Dr. Pilju Kim Joo has established Agglobe Services International, Inc. (ASii), a non-profit and non-government Humanitarian Aid Organization. The primary activity has been North Korean Food Security Improvement through agriculture including sustainable community development of cooperative farms and nationwide agricultural productivity improvement program through environmentally friendly sustainable agriculture, coordinating NGO Spring Barley Double Cropping Program as well as numerous crop productivity improvement research programs in North Korea. She played a major role in the successful introduction of new double cropping system in North Korea, which has since become a routine practice. She also introduced high-quality U.S. dairy and beef cattle semen and forage crops from the U.S. Midwest to Daean Dairy Farm, which was exceptionally successful.
You must remember she is devoted and has gone back, even when prohibited.
Her email may not be active if she is busy traveling.
But her US phone is 612-801-5701.
----
And a note from Jay Wittmeyer, administrator of the program from the Church of the Brethren with an email address for Dr. Pilju Kim Joo.
Start here http://www.agglobeinternational.org/ and try pkjoo@worldnet.att.net
I hope you have very deep pockets. Dr. Kim had been responsible for three farms, I believe, with 17,000 individuals.
Here is a short video about Robert’s work posted in 2012 by the Church of the Brethren: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRbSLN0p2_8
The work of the Church of the Brethren in North Korea was initiated through Agglobal Services International :
http://www.agglobeinternational.org/
This appears to be a well-funded organisation committed to global food security. Most of the funding appears to come from church groups. The Church of the Brethren’s contact in Pyongyang was Dr Pilju Kim Joo, who was the Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. She is now based in the USA.
It was suggested to me that we should contact Dr. Pilju Kim Joo. I have not attempted to do this yet.
---
Dr. Pilju Kim Joo has established Agglobe Services International, Inc. (ASii), a non-profit and non-government Humanitarian Aid Organization. The primary activity has been North Korean Food Security Improvement through agriculture including sustainable community development of cooperative farms and nationwide agricultural productivity improvement program through environmentally friendly sustainable agriculture, coordinating NGO Spring Barley Double Cropping Program as well as numerous crop productivity improvement research programs in North Korea. She played a major role in the successful introduction of new double cropping system in North Korea, which has since become a routine practice. She also introduced high-quality U.S. dairy and beef cattle semen and forage crops from the U.S. Midwest to Daean Dairy Farm, which was exceptionally successful.
She established a joint venture program with a North Korean partner to establish a model demonstration farm through agriculture. The Joint Venture originally leased 4 cooperative farms in Hwanghae Province and engaged in an Environmentally Friendly Sustainable Community Development Program. It has nearly 4,000 ha of arable land and over 20,000 people to feed, of which 7,500 are farm workers.
It is designed to introduce profitability to rural communities where cost efficiency was not achieved due to the dependency on government-provided inputs. The goal is eventually to bring a demonstration model farm of self-sufficient “Happy Village” that can be a model for all of North Korea and the global community. Previously, Dr. Kim Joo’s professional activities were geared around seed science research, agricultural development planning and investment feasibility studies, field and horticultural crop seed production system development in developing countries. She has been involved in new seed company establishment with seed production program including seed conditioning plant planning, design and construction. Project included field production and inspection, harvesting, conditioning, storage and seed quality assurance program management throughout six continents. Worldwide standardization network for seed testing and quality assurance program in developed and developing countries were main focus.
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Let me know your thoughts.
Blessings,
Dale
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University teaching in North Korea
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협동농장의 농업지도원들과 함께.
김필주씨는 '농학자의 입장에서 보면 올해 북한 식량 사정이 매우 어렵다'고 말했다. /전기병 기자
