This initiative seeks to build a bridge between the sciences and the humanities, supporting research on Korea and the interconnected challenges of our time. As technologies reach unprecedented levels of pervasiveness and complexity, the need for a cultural synthesis that encapsulates their substance, promise, and associated risks becomes increasingly urgent. Culture can also play a crucial role in influencing the development of technologies and scientific projects in ways that improve social and environmental problems, such as class inequities, climate crisis, and ecological degradation.
In collaboration with humanities and Science and Technology Studies (STS) research societies and institutes in South Korea, KSI organizes international conferences and workshops designed to foster interdisciplinary dialogue and promote innovative approaches to understanding the complex interplay between technoscience, environment, and culture.
Upcoming Events
Technoscience, Gender, and Cultural Transformations in Korea
February 13-14. 2026
Tutor Campus Center
This conference seeks to advance the growing interdisciplinary field of cultural studies of science and technology in Korea by examining the dynamic intersections of technoscience, gender, and culture. Notably, the number of South Korean women in STEM fields has more than tripled since the 1990s, a trend that underscores women’s expanding roles beyond traditional STEM careers, spanning science fiction writing, science communication, and other technology-based cultural innovations. Hosted by the Korean Studies Institute at the University of Southern California, the conference will foster dialogue across disciplines and methodologies to deepen our insights into both the gendered impacts of contemporary technoscientific developments and the ways in which embodied perspectives inform technoscientific practices and cultural imaginaries.
The full conference program will be available shortly.
Past Events
Friday, September 19, 10:00 AM – 4:30 PM
AHN House
Speculative storytelling – including science fiction and fantasy has taken on heightened significance in recent years amid accelerated technological change and the sociopolitical disruptions it is bringing about. These developments have intensified our ontological and epistemological uncertainties, renewing the urgency of speculating about possible futures, both technological and social. This workshop brought together six researchers from Australia, South Korea and the United States who work at the intersection of cultural studies and science and technology studies. Together, they reflected on the current state of scholarship at this nexus within Korean studies and explored new directions for critically engaging with emerging technologies and their cultural representations.
900 West 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90089
April 18, 2025 | 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm | SCA 110
KSI hosted filmmaker Danny Kim for an evening of discussion about recycling practices in South Korea, with a screening of the eco-documentary ZERO WASTE and a conversation to follow with experts in the field. Hosted in conjunction with environmental humanities scholars from across USC, this event aims to bring together all like-minded individuals who are concerned about the future of planet Earth and who want to know more about what human action can be taken to ensure a more sustainable future. Following the stories of artists, activists, and individuals in the South Korean context, ZERO WASTE provides a look into the way people are trying to address the waste problem in their national context, and it offers all viewers a chance to contemplate what actions they could be taking in their local communities to join the “zero waste” movement for a greener future.
Co-sponsored by the East Asian Studies Center, the Levan Institute for the Humanities, the Institute for Ecological Futures, and the Environmental Humanities Working Group.
Banner Image: Zero Waste by Dir. Danny Kim, 2023