East Rock Institute (ERI) is a nonprofit research and educational organization dedicated to the enhancement and deepening of cultural understanding between Eastern and Western societies through innovative approaches to research and teaching. The work of ERI has evolved through three phases. In the early 1950s, the Institute made a concerted effort to introduce democratic ideals to the Korean people. During the 1970s, ERI pushed for the introduction of Korean and Korean American Studies to the American and Korean American academic community. In the 1990s, ERI broadened its scope to include comparative East Asian and Korean diasporaic studies. East Rock Institute is situated in New Haven. CT, adjacent to Yale University. The Institute's name, taken from a New Haven landmark, symbolizes the firm foundation of East Asian and Korean studies in the United States.