I gave my first ever keynote speech. It was the first time I have publicly spoken on this deeply personal topic of adoption, not only with intellectual detail, but with emotional clarity and vulnerability.
In October, I was honored to participate in the 4th Annual Korean Adoptee Cultural Roots Festival at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. Surrounded by fellow Korean adoptees, we experienced live traditional music and dance performances, appreciated Korean art and pottery from antiquity, and shared conversations over delicious Korean food.
My professional achievements on my LinkedIn résumé were not what qualified me to share the message. For a transracial adoptee who for decades struggled to find identity through many other things – achievements, work, music, acts of service, success – none of those reasons are why the audience listened.
They listened because a man got personal and shared how adoption has affected him throughout his life.
This is the first time I presented about my experience, but it will certainly not be my last.
Watch the video on YouTube.
#nationaladopteeawarenessmonth #koreanadoptee #identity #adoption #transracialadoptee #adoptionjourney
A Curious Odyssey: A Korean Adoptee’s Journey Toward Identity, Belonging, and Hope
What if the questions you have carried your entire life were not obstacles, but invitations? In A Curious Odyssey, Brian Shun takes audiences on a powerful journey through identity, belonging, and self-discovery as a Korean adoptee whose story spans cultures, histories, and communities. Through compelling storytelling and deeply personal reflections, Brian reveals how curiosity became the force that helped him reclaim his narrative, reconnect with his sense of self, and transform uncertainty into possibility. This keynote will challenge, inspire, and empower attendees to become active authors of the lives they want to live. Audiences will leave inspired to embrace the questions that shape them, discover untapped chapters of their own lives, and step fully into a future defined not by circumstance, but by purpose, courage, and choice.
Special Thanks to:
Han Narea - https://www.hannarea.org/
Overseas Koreans Agency - https://www.oka.go.kr/web/main.do
Museum of Fine Art Houston - https://www.mfah.org/
Susan Fraser - https://www.linkedin.com/in/susan-fraser/
Natalie Fockel - https://kingdomsoilgardens.com/
Jeanie Inglis - https://www.getjeanius.com/
Kayla Vatalaro - https://vatalarocoaching.com/
Jodie Olson - https://www.instagram.com/zinnie_designs/
