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Press Release
Out of Eden Walk Begins New Chapter in South Korea
National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has departed China after spending more than two years walking through seven Chinese provinces
Map by Sam Guilford/National Geographic Society
Incheon, Korea JULY 09, 2024—National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has concluded his time in China by crossing the Yellow Sea and begins a new chapter in South Korea on behalf of the Out of Eden Walk. For the next few months, Salopek will be walking with local walking partners through South Korea beginning in Incheon and ending in Jeju Island.
Through the trek in South Korea, Salopek will look to share deep and meaningful dispatches on topics such as the country’s transformation to becoming one of the world’s largest economies, technological advancements and widespread internet access, climate crisis, cultural survival, and ongoing conflict with North Korea. Through the trek in South Korea, Salopek will look to share deep and meaningful dispatches with topics ranging from climate crisis, cultural survival and more. Walking partners will be invited to create lab talks bringing their unique experiences and perspectives to the project as well.
Salopek will be joined by walking partners including local South Korean ecologist and National Geographic Explorer Yikweon Jang who researches ecology and evolution of communication in insects, frogs, birds and mammals and photographer and local South Korean photographer and National Geographic Explorer Youngrae Kim who focuses on stories about the intersection of humans, culture and the environment.
For the first time, one of the walking partners, Junseok Lee, will accompany Salopek for a majority of his time in-country. Lee is a local South Korean writer who runs a magazine for Korean youth and will be a local guide to Salopek walking together.
Since beginning the walk in January 2013, Salopek has traversed 21 countries, six time zones and more than 15,000 miles. The Out of Eden Walk is a multiyear, 24,000-mile storytelling odyssey across the globe in the footsteps of our ancestors that began in Ethiopia—our evolutionary “Eden”— and will end at the southern tip of South America. When this journey ends, he will have pieced together a global mosaic of stories, faces, sounds and sights—an unparalleled archive of our shared humanity as seen from boot level.
“Walking across South Korea will be a highlight for the Out of Eden Walk,” said Paul Salopek, National Geographic Explorer, Out of Eden Walk founder and main contributor. “I look forward to meeting with local people, artists, academics, musicians, writers, scientists and others to share their stories and highlight why South Korea is a global powerhouse of culture.”
“The Out of Eden Walk has been at the forefront of documenting stories of the human experience by observing life at the speed of our footsteps,” said Kaitlin Yarnall, National Geographic Society Chief Storytelling Officer. “National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek and the Out of Eden walking partners have been able to share snippets of life from everyday and extraordinary moments. The National Geographic Society is a steadfast supporter of this incredible project and I am thrilled to see Paul continue walking through Asia to share more diverse perspectives.”
“When I first heard about the opportunity to join the Out of Eden Walk, I immediately said “No” to myself because it seemed too much of a transition from my daily life,” said Junseok Lee, Korean walking partner, educator and magazine publisher from Seoul, South Korea. “The last thing I would want was another change of course—a distraction—in the middle of what was already a struggle. Then I realized what Paul Salopek was doing was completely the opposite. It seemed like he was intentionally seeking uncertainties and taking chances as that is the inevitable nature of “moving forward.” Through the Walk, I plan to challenge myself to be more vulnerable and in need of help. If Paul, who speaks zero Korean could go up to a random Korean, I could probably do better. Strangely, this will be my first real try in inducing conversations with my fellow Koreans. I’m excitedly nervous and nervously excited.”
Salopek walked for more than two years through China and had unique access through Chinese regions that haven’t been visited by foreigners since World War II. In total, he walked 4,020 miles, which is the same distance from Chicago to Paris. During this time, more than 40 dispatches by Salopek and more than a dozen multimedia stories by walking partners were published. The Shanghai Media Group (SMG) in partnership with Disney produced the five part documentary series “Forever Walk China” which has been broadcasted in China on domestic television and National Geographic Channel across Asian markets reaching hundreds of millions of viewers.
“The walk deeply reconnected me with my home, Yunnan. Every day on the trail, my heart was filled with anticipation, wonder, and peace,” said Hongyi Zhang, Chinese documentary photographer from Kunming, in China’s Yunnan province, who previously walked with Salopek through China. “When I finally returned home to the city of Kunming, a tremendous contradiction collided within me. Even in my dreams, I felt my body was still out walking the mountain roads. I yearned to return to walking, to connect with people, with the land, and my community. The walk gave me the gift of listening, of stepping into the elders’ memories.”
About Out of Eden Walk
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek is retracing our ancestors’ ancient migration on foot out of Africa and across the globe. His 24,000-mile, multiyear odyssey began in Ethiopia—our evolutionary “Eden”—in January 2013 and will end at the tip of South America. Supported by the National Geographic Society, Salopek is engaging with the major stories of our time, from climate change and technological innovation to mass migration and cultural survival. As he traverses the globe at the measured pace of his footsteps, he reveals the texture of the lives of the people he encounters—nomads, villagers, traders, farmers, and fishermen who seldom make the news. When this journey ends, this project will have pieced together a global mosaic of stories, faces, sounds, and sights—an unparalleled archive of our shared humanity at the start of a new millennium.
About National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society is a global nonprofit organization that uses the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world. Since 1888, National Geographic has pushed the boundaries of exploration, investing in bold people and transformative ideas, providing more than 15,000 grants for work across all seven continents, reaching 3 million students each year through education offerings, and engaging audiences around the globe through signature experiences, stories and content.
To learn more, visit www.nationalgeographic.org or follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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About The National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society is a global nonprofit organization that uses the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world. Since 1888, National Geographic has pushed the boundaries of exploration, investing in bold people and transformative ideas, providing more than 15,000 grants for work across all seven continents, reaching 3 million students each year through education offerings, and engaging audiences around the globe through signature experiences, stories and content.
To learn more, visit www.nationalgeographic.org or follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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