Joy Yoon

With over ten years of experience living and working in the DPRK, Joy is uniquely qualified to write about life inside the country. From the northeast province to the capital city, she has traveled throughout the DPRK and experienced what it means to live in North Korea as a foreigner. Having spent her childhood in South Korea gives her a third-culture perspective and a deeper understanding of the North Korean people. She is known for her cross-cultural awareness and sensitivity and for her passion in bridging the gap between cultures. Joy and her husband, Stephen, serve as humanitarian workers in one of the most reclusive and misunderstood nations in the world primarily through medical work. With a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Biology and certification in Special Education and Educational Therapy, she has been able to blend science with education to serve children with developmental disabilities. Joy has initiated the first Educational Therapy Program for children with cerebral palsy, autism, and learning disabilities in the DPRK through their non-profit organization, IGNIS Community’s, Pyongyang Spine Rehabilitation Center (PYSRC). This is the first specialty center of its kind that trains doctors in this new graduate program while treating children with developmental disabilities.