Self-introduction

Juyoung Lee is a Cold War historian of transnational East Asia whose research interest lies in the history of science and technology, diplomatic history, development studies, and labor history.
She is currently working on her first book manuscript, which examines the crucial yet often overlooked role of social and emotional labor carried out by non-state actors in shaping bureaucratic decision-making. Focusing on development cooperation between the US and East Asia during the post–World War II period, her study reveals how seemingly mundane interactions guided bureaucratic decisions and shaped large infrastructure projects. By analyzing personal letters, diaries, correspondence, and memoirs, she shows that the political and diplomatic interconnections behind the infrastructure projects of Cold War Korea and Taiwan—including their ties to the US and Japan—are visible only through investigating subtle networks not documented in official records.
Her research interests also extend to the history of agricultural technology. She has published on South Korean farmers’ “invisible” labor behind the use of chemical fertilizers in History of Science.

Education

• Ph.D. in History of Science, Johns Hopkins University
• Master of Science in Science and Technology Studies, Seoul National University

My Website

Resumé

• 2024-25　 Moon Family Postdoctoral Fellow, James Joo-Jin Kim Center for Korean Studies, University of Pennsylvania
• 2015-2018 Researcher, Science and Technology Policy Institute, South Korea

Academic honors

Research fields

• Cold War history; History of Modern East Asia; History of technology; Development studies; Labor history; Agricultural history

Research projects

Publications