Editor:
Erich Weingartner

Erich Weingartner

Erich Weingartner is an independent consultant on international and humanitarian affairs, specializing in the DPRK. He made his first visit to the DPRK in 1985. The following year, he organized the first encounter since the Korea War between delegations of North and South Korean churches. From 1997 to 1999 he lived and worked in Pyongyang, the first NGO representative and first Canadian to achieve residency status in the DPRK.

Managing Editor:
Miranda Weingartner

Miranda Weingartner

Miranda Weingartner's interest in the DPRK began during her first visit there in 1999. Upon her return, she completed her studies with Humber College's post-graduate program in International Project Management, with a special focus in public relations.

Website Design:
David Seguin

David Seguin

David Seguin lived in South Korea from 1996 to 2001, teaching in various middle and elementary schools. He currently lives in Toronto and runs a multimedia company at www.wetdogfur.com.

What is CanKor?

CanKor selects the most important news items from numerous sources on events and analyses related to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), and packages these in a convenient format that is e-mailed to subscribers on a weekly basis. This saves readers the time it takes to glean the same information from the many more comprehensive news services found on the internet.

Who reads CanKor?

CanKor is designed primarily for Canadians, although the content is of sufficiently broad interest to have attracted half of its current subscribers from outside Canada. Readers include church workers, academics, students, government officials, international civil servants, private sector executives, media professionals, and the staff of NGOs (non-governmental organizations).

What does CanKor contain?

Weekly CanKor editions are composed of current events, a focus, and occasional bulletins or research data.

  • Events
    Carefully selected news items are the staple of CanKor. Emphasis is placed on quality of information rather than quantity of items. Each week, CanKor editors and researchers scour the internet, print and broadcast media for articles, editorials and opinion pieces that best capture the currently unfolding history in North and South Korea.
  • Focus
    Inspired by the week's events, each edition of CanKor assembles a collection of stories, articles, interviews, reviews, and analyses to provide background and expand the reader's knowledge base on a particular subject.
  • The CanKor Interview
    Even the best resources available on the internet sometimes fail to provide the necessary tools for understanding DPRK reality. The CanKor Interview identifies prominent experts or personalities with interesting histories and perspectives. The questions asked (often generated by CanKor readers) try to delve beneath surface appearances in order to gain insight into the causes and processes that underlie evolving current events.
  • Bulletin
    Here is the section that has the most Canadian content, a place for subscriber-generated press releases, announcements, and updates on Canadian NGO, academic, private sector, or government activities related to the DPRK. CanKor is particularly interested in expanding its database on Canadian trade, entertainment, sports, and industrial activities related to the DPRK. Another area CanKor will pursue more rigorously is Korean-Canadian involvement.
  • Data Search
    Facts and figures on the DPRK are hard to come by. With the help of subscribers, CanKor collates quantitative data on aid flows, trade totals, diplomatic information, websites, and the like.
  • Feedback: Letters to the Editor
    CanKor encourages subscriber participation! News items, commentaries, anecdotes, opinions, papers, reports and book reviews are most welcome.