Dr. Jang Heo (Ph.D. in Sociology) got his bachelor and master degrees at the Seoul National University majoring in sociology. After spending several years as junior researcher at the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI), Seoul, Korea, he studied environmental sociology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, U.S., and got the doctoral degree in December 1997. Returning back to the KREI, he has implemented researches and published many research papers on social change and welfare of rural areas of Korea and sustainable agricultural policy. Since 2006, his research interests have been directed toward international development cooperation, including official development assistance (ODA). He is traveling frequently abroad, particularly to Southeast Asian countries, in order to help donor and recipient parties plan and evaluate cooperation projects and perform consultative activities.
- Vice Chair of Korean Rural Sociological Society since 2021
- Vice Chair of Korean Society of International Agriculture since 2018
- Advisor to Committee of Grant Aid-related Organizations in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea since 2020
- Agriculture and Forestry Sector Advisor to Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) since 2017
- Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Korean Rural Sociological Society during 2016 and 2017
- Chair of Research Committee on Rural Development of the Korean Association of International Development and Cooperation (KAIDEC) during 2015 and 2017
- Member of Result Management Committee of the Korea Saemaul Undong Center since 2015
- Member of Working Committee of International Development Cooperation of Korea during 2014 and 2018
- Member of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) of the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) during 2010 and 2012
- Awarded a Medal from the President of the Republic of Korea in 2016, and awarded a Citation from the Minister of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery in 2011