For scholars, the case study of a borderland in transition may be of use. Chinese-North Korean relations along this frontier are fraught, and the interactions between the populations within and on both sides of the border are significant barometers for any number of important questions. Are markets and special economic zones near the Chinese border true levers for cultural change in the DPRK? To what extent is the border permeable when it comes to ideas, or financial flows, or environmental management? The Chinese-North Korean boundary—in our case, marked the by Tumen River from its Paektusan/Changbaishan origins until it loses itself into the void of the Sea of Japan—is one of continual exchange, activity, and controversy
