Youngnam (Ken) joined Freedom Speakers International (FSI) in 2015 as both a public speaker and English language student. He has been a featured speaker at numerous FSI events, including FSI’s 2019 Korean Reunification conference.
He was also a featured speaker at a conference at Princeton University in 2019.
He was the second North Korean refugee to serve on FSI’s board of directors.
He joined FSI’s North Korean Refugee Keynote Speakers Network when it was formed in late 2020.

youngnam escaped from North Korea in 2010 after serving a decade in the North Korean military. Youngnam is a rare graduate of both a North Korean University and a South Korean graduate school. He is a Class of 2000 graduate of a North Korean university with a rare degree in Railway Operations. In 2019, he graduated from Korea University with a master’s degree in Public Administration in South Korea. His graduate thesis was an analysis of North Korean refugee interaction with media.