Sangmin Shim is an assistant professor of international law at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA). Before joining KNDA in May 2016, he served as a visiting scholar at the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), a private think-tank that researches issues of international environmental law. Professor Shim’s legal educational background includes a J.S.D. degree at Stanford University, which was awarded in 2015 with his dissertation entitled, “Structuring Climate Policy in the Korean Electricity Sector: Politics, Institutions and Mitigative Capacity-Building.” He also holds a J.S.M degree from the same university and is a graduate of Seoul National University (B.A. & M.A. in law).
An expert on international environmental law and policy, Professor Shim is especially interested in global climate change issues, with a focus on designing economically viable, technologically feasible, and politically acceptable policy tools and strategies with significant emission reduction potentials. His academic interests extend to conventional international legal issues as well, such as peace and security in the United Nations system, law of the sea, nuclear non-proliferation, human rights in North Korea, and state responsibility.