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OSU Distinguished Alumn, President Kim.
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| Writer | KREI |
| Date | 2016.12.20 |
 President Chang-Gil Kim was announced as the OSU distinguished alumni in the Newsletter. The Following news was introduced in Cowbow Economist Fall 2016. (Newsletter Of Oklahoma State University, department of agricultural Economics) On June 3 of this year, agricultural economics alumnus Dr. Chang-Gil Kim (Ph.D., 1997) was appointed the 14th president of the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI), a national policy research institute. More information regarding KREI is available at www.krei.re.kr/web/eng. He was appointed for a three-year term by the National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences under the Korean Prime Minister’s Office. Prior to coming to OSU, Kim studied agricultural economics at the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign, where he received an MA degree in 1994. Before that, he attended Sung Kyun Kwan University, in Seoul, Korea (MA Agricultural Economics, 1985, and B.SC, Agriculture, 1983). Kim began work for KREI upon returning to Korea after graduating from OSU. KREI develops and evaluates agricultural and rural policies. According to Kim, “The institute has around 250 employees, including 80 Ph.D. recipients, and is Korea’s only national research institute in the field of agricultural economy.” As a KREI research director, he served as Natural Resources and Environmental Research Department Director and as Planning and Coordination Office Director General. He also worked as the Ministry of Strategy and Finance’s Medium-term Finance Council’s agriculture, forestry, and maritime department director and as a climate change and food security expert of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). As KREI President, Kim says he plans to, “Perform various activities to develop Korean agricultural policies and realize the vision of KREI as a hub of northeast Asia’s agricultural policy research.” He has presented the following tasks to carry out during his term: first, establishing a system for reliable national policy projects and field- centered research; second, enhancing the practicality of research results through client-oriented studies; third, domestic and international networking and actively diffusing outcomes as northeast Asia’s agricultural policy research hub; and fourth, concentrating capabilities and seeking new growth engines by improving the research environment and organizational culture. Kim credited the professors at OSU for preparing him for many of the projects he has worked on. He said, “I am always grateful to those professors for their excellent teaching and guidance. The professors taught me how to use analysis techniques useful for conducting a variety of projects as a researcher. The research projects and external activities I have carried out after returning to Korea are based on the knowledge that many of them taught me.” “Professor Arthur Stoecker taught me theories and methodologies for diagnosing resources and environmental impact and suggesting policies. Professor Brian Adam taught me how to analyze economic efficiency of agricultural markets. Professor Wade Brorsen taught me mathematical programming and analysis techniques, and theories and applications of applied econometrics. Professor Mike Dicks taught me diverse empirical methodologies for analyzing agricultural policies. I still benefit from all their useful lessons.” He remembered in particular a trip with his co-advising professors Stoecker and Joe Williams to the Oklahoma panhandle for a pig manure project. “This taught me methodology and the importance of field studies. It greatly helped my study, and I still vividly remember farmers who managed pig manure by using lagoons.” “When I completed the doctoral degree program, professor Brorsen advised me about how to submit papers to academic journals, and it has been great help when I prepare papers to be submitted to academic journals.” Dr. Brian Adam said he remembers Kim as a graduate student. “It was a pleasure to have Dr. Kim as part of our Ph.D. program in 1995-1997. He was very dedicated and a very hard worker. Even more importantly, he is a great person and was a great colleague to work with. Of course, he has gone on to have a very successful career at Korea Rural Economics Institute (KREI), with its key role in Korea’s food sector. More than that, though, he has shared his talents and abilities with younger professionals, helping them to achieve success – some of them have come to our program for graduate training. Dr. Kim has been the kind of alumnus we can point to when we’re talking with potential new students: someone who has used his training here to make a difference at so many levels – from the nation’s food sector to individuals’ lives and careers,” said Adam. Kim stated that the lessons from his doctoral program contributed to his promotion to the current president of KREI after working as a senior fellow in the field of environment and resources for about 20 years after completing his doctoral degree. “In particular,” he said, “They were a driving force for me to be elected Chair of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Committee on Agriculture and the Environment for the period from 2013 to next year.” Kim has participated in the OECD Joint Working Party on Agriculture and the Environment (JWPAE) as a Korean delegate since late 2000. He served as its vice-chair from 2007 to 2012, was appointed as its chair in 2013, and was reappointed in April 2016 to serve as chair until 2017. Established in 1993, the Joint Working Party on Agriculture and Environment is an OECD working body that discusses agricultural issues connected with environmental matters such as climate change, water resource management, and green growth. Kim said he also remembers the kindness of his professors outside of the classroom. “One Thanksgiving Day, professors invited students to Thanksgiving dinner and promoted friendly relations between teachers and students. Dr. Stoecker invited my family to Thanksgiving dinner. His son gave one of his favorite toys to my son, who was delighted.” “Dr. Adam also invited my family to dinner to enjoy delicious food together. It was a great joy that Professor Adam’s wife was Korean too and made friends with my wife. Professor Adam’s son, James, and my son had a pleasant time while playing together. “Professor Williams also invited my family to dinner and gave my son an opportunity to ride horses. My son still has good memories of riding horses there. Although I cannot remember the name of the horse my son rode, I think he was a magnificent American champion horse. I invited Professor Williams and his wife to dinner at my humble student apartment to have Korean food together around the time of completing my doctoral degree program. I still remember they loved jabchae which is a Korean dish made from sweet potato noodles.” Kim said that he chose to pursue a doctoral degree at OSU because he thinks, “The PhD programs at OSU are better than other universities in the fields of mathematical programming, applied econometrics, and experimental economics to allow actual application of agricultural economics as applied economics.” “Moreover,” he continued, “While it is necessary for students to use the scheduled interview time to see professors to ask questions and have a discussion, professors at OSU always left their doors open to students.” Kim said his motto in life is: “Do not complain about a given situation but always do your best.” “I applied this motto in my life after reading Jimmy Carter’s biography, ‘Why Not the Best?’, when I was a high school student.” “I think we can accomplish something we pursue while trying our best in a given situation with positive thinking and knowing the direction of our goals, rather than complaining. If the right time comes, we can reach even the top. My advice for international students is that everybody experiences difficulties when completing doctoral degree programs. You should not give up when facing difficulty, just do your best and believe in yourself. I hope you successfully complete your doctoral degree programs because a bright future is certainly waiting.” One of Kim’s hopes for the future is to “develop a close, formal partnership with OSU, which has produced key experts in Korean agricultural economics, through the signing of an MOU.” |
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