News

Mr. Philip Mok

Accomplishments or support for the ROK-U.S. Alliance:

Assisted in the development of the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA) while interning in Hon. Lee KeJin’s office (2007). As Campaign Coordinator for Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, solicited support of Korean Veteran community for volunteers (2010).  Founding member of Kollaboration DC, which highlights Korean and other Asian talent to mainstream audiences.  Named as Korean American Leader in the Public Sector by Korean Consulate General in NYC (2013).  Supported Korean & U.S. Veterans while serving as Korean Community Liaison for NY Senator Toby Ann Stavisky (2012-2014). Support ROK-U.S. Alliance through active participation in Society of American Military Engineers (SAME), which supports military engineering worldwide.

Volunteer efforts:

Founding Board Member, Kollaboration DC (12/09-4/11); Social Media Specialist, Kollaboration Houston (2/12-5/12); VP of Communications, COMTO New York (12/16-6/18); VP of Publicity, Society of American Military Engineers NYC Post (1/20-1/22); Mentor Hawaii Committee Member, Chamber of Commerce Hawaii Young Professionals (7/23-7/24); Web Manager, SAME Honolulu Post (1/24-Pres.); Startup Mentor, Blue Startups (2/24-Pres.); Virtual Professional-in-Residence (VPIR), Pacific Asian Center for Entrepreneurship (4/24-Pres.); Board Member, COMTO Hawaii (6/24-Pres.); and VP, Western Region, SAVE International (6/24-Pres.)

Short biography:

Phil Yong Soo Mok was born in Baltimore, Maryland to parents James Jinsu & Christine Eunjoo Mok, both Korean Americans who came to the U.S. at an early age to pursue the American Dream. James’ father had served in the Korean War, and Christine was adopted by an American GI. He knows that the Republic of Korea would not exist without the U.S.-ROK Alliance and has dedicated parts of his career to furthering that Alliance. Phil received his Bachelor’s in Government & Politics from the University of Maryland with a specialization in East Asian relations, and studied at Korea University’s International Summer Campus in 2007, where he interned at the Office of ROK National Assemblyman Kejin Lee, who was on the Assembly Culture and Tourism Committee, and Chairman of the Agriculture, Forestry, and Maritime Committee. Thanks to the KORUS FTA, goods and services trade between the two countries total $200 billion annually. Phil then worked for Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley and New York State Senator Toby Stavisky in Korean community outreach roles, and worked in an advisory role for Korean outreach on political campaigns. He currently resides in Honolulu, Hawaii, with his wife Andriani, and works for AECOM, a Fortune 500 infrastructure consulting firm as a Project Manager on projects in Hawaii, Guam, Korea, and Japan.

Statement from the nominator about the nominee’s qualities:

If selected for this Honor, I will continue to do my best to contribute further to the ROK-U.S. Alliance by first publishing that I was chosen for this Honor to my social media (15,650 LinkedIn connections,  4600 Facebook followers, ~1200 Instagram) and Honolulu Korean-language media, urging all those who support the Alliance, democracy, a free and open Indo-Pacific, and the rules-based international order to join KDVA.  I will continue my steadfast support of the Alliance by contributing to events that will further the relationship between the two nations and their peoples. In addition, I will create connections between my colleagues in Congress (ex. Rep. Grace Meng), the ROK National Assembly, and Korean Consulate General in Honolulu and supporting formal engagements between the two nations, for example joint declarations, military exercises, joint bases like the one announced in Japan. I will support commerce between the two nations using my connections at Blue Startups and University of Hawaii’s Shidler School of Business.