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Mike speaks to audiences worldwide including companies, universities, and organizations on five continents. He started at Barnes & Noble bookstores and from there transitioned to speaking to a variety of groups:
Universities: Helping students identify passion and values important to them through inspirational talks at a number of universities such as Harvard, Dartmouth, Columbia, Georgetown to name a few (including international locations such as Oxford, Cambridge, and the University of Toronto).
Associations/Conferences: Connecting with other movers and shakers through talks at places such as the Council on Foreign Relations and the Summit Series.
Companies/Organizations: Starting in the early days with a Google tour speaking at Authors@Google and at the Google Korea and Japan offices, he now shares about his perspective and diverse experience with business professionals (E.g. Deloitte and Department of Homeland Security All-Hands Keynote)
North Korea-China: A Modern Day Underground Railroad
Kim speaks with audiences worldwide about his experiences at the China-North Korea border and has now shared his stories of inspiration, courage, and hope on five continents. During his time in China, he learned of the hundreds of thousands of North Koreans fleeing to China through a 6,000-mile modern-day Underground Railroad (which runs from Pyongyang to Bangkok) in search of food and freedom.
In this riveting lecture, Kim tells the story of how he began to operate undercover as a student of North Korean taekwondo, training and competing under two famous North Korean masters from Pyongyang—eventually receiving a second-degree blackbelt—while leading North Korean refugees to China through the Underground Railroad. Upon his return to the U.S., he founded Crossing Borders, an actionable nonprofit dedicated to providing humanitarian assistance to North Korean refugees. He encourages students and professionals to follow their passions, suggesting that there's more room to bring our passions into our careers than we oftentimes think.
Reviews
"We enjoyed Mike Kim's visit to our campus. Despite all his achievements, he remains humble and serves as a role model for students. He was thoughtful, engaging, and engaged! Students, faculty, staff, and community members were inspired with his story and his passion. "
-Dartmouth College
"Mike's story, bravery and vision blew our staff away. He put us on a roller coaster of emotions and inspired us to act for the greater good"
-Founder & Managing Director of Arabella Advisors
"His intrepid effort to help four North Korean teenagers avoid arrest and repatriation on the journey from northern China to the British consulate in Shanghai is riveting, as is his insider knowledge of the perilous route refugees navigate across the borders of China, Laos and Thailand."
-Publishers Weekly