A South Korean researcher has gleaned insights from what other people throw away

Kang has found — as so many private eyes searching for clues do — that what people throw away can, with the right interpretation, yield a treasure trove of information. From discarded packets of fast food, to candy wrappers, the rubbish from the North has provided him with a sketch of changes taking place in the notoriously isolationist dictatorship. For example, the increasing amount of fast-food waste indicates that Kim Jong-un has been forced to cater to the desire for market-based consumerism. That the packaging of the unhealthy delectables often mimics South Korean counterparts provides hope that, despite a hard border and ideological differences, in their tastes, people remain the same.

Kang was forced to comb the shoreline for garbage as a result of the pandemic: He lost access to goods and people from North Korea in Chinese border towns due to strict lockdowns. He was often stranded on a beach if a ferry didn’t arrive and forced to spend the night in inclement weather. Local residents often complained to the police about a strange man eagerly collecting and sifting through trash. The results of his investigations, though, are no secret and he aims to understand his neighbours, sundered from the common community by a history of violence and suspicion. Now that’s a goal worth spending time in the dirt for.