• Date: June 16th, Tuesday, 2026, 12:00 – 14:00
• Location: Room 304, SNUAC (Bldg. 101)

Speaker: Valérie Gelézeau (Professor, EHESS, France)
Moderator: Baek Yung Kim (Seoul National University)
Discussant: Young-hoon Song (Kangwon National University)

French scholar of Korean studies Valérie Gelézeau recently published Marche et démarche à la frontière coréenne. The book explores the possibilities of spatial restoration and life in the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) more than seventy years after the division of the peninsula. Drawing on her experience of walking more than 500 kilometers along the DMZ Peace Trail, which was opened to the public in 2024, Professor Gelézeau investigates this complex borderland through firsthand observation. The DMZ presents a landscape of striking contrasts, where soldiers, modern cafés, distinctive wildlife, and alternative living projects coexist. It is a space in which the absurdities and resilience produced by conflict can be observed side by side. Appealing to both general readers and specialists in geography and Korean studies, the book offers a unique perspective on one of the world’s most unusual border regions. This colloquium will provide an opportunity to hear Professor Gelézeau share vivid accounts and insights from her field research in the DMZ.