Yoon Jung Park

Dr. Yoon Jung Park serves as Program Director of the Africa-China Initiative at Georgetown University and maintains research affiliations with the Sociology Department at Rhodes University. A leading scholar in China/Africa studies, her work examines Chinese migrant communities in Africa, local African perceptions of these migrants, and socio-economic impacts—particularly in South Africa.

Born in Seoul and raised in Los Angeles, Dr. Park lived in Johannesburg and Nairobi from 1995-2010, with additional residences in Mexico, Costa Rica, and Boston. She is multilingual, fluent in English and Spanish, with functional Korean ("kitchen Korean") and basic proficiency in KiSwahili and IsiZulu.

Her research focuses on:

• Transnational migration patterns between China and Africa
• Socio-cultural dynamics of migrant communities
• Political economy of Sino-African engagement
• Identity formation in diaspora contexts
• Urban sociology of African cities

As head of the Africa-China Initiative, she directs research on evolving China-Africa relations through academic programming and interdisciplinary collaboration.