Gwanak-gu Youth Single-Person Households Take Steps to Prevent Social Isolation

Volunteer Activity for Sharing Side Dishes with Socially Vulnerable Groups in Collaboration with Social Welfare Centers

Social Dining Participants Volunteer to Share Side Dishes

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) is operating the 'Youth Social Dining' project targeting young single-person households who eat alone.

The Youth Social Dining project aims to foster healthy eating habits among young single-person households through health education such as nutrition education and choosing healthy ingredients, build networks through communication among youth, and prevent social isolation.

Originally planned to be conducted offline only, due to the prolonged COVID-19 situation, a non-face-to-face operation method will be combined. From August to October, the online sessions will be held via the video application Skype, and offline sessions will take place at the Job Cafe 'Youth Space Ieum' (Bongcheon-ro 62-gil 5, 4th floor).

Under the guidance of a professional cooking instructor, a total of 14 sessions will include practical cooking classes focused on healthy living, along with cooking know-how and health education to promote healthy eating habits.

Additionally, using the dishes learned online, participants will engage in volunteer activities distributing side dishes to socially vulnerable groups in cooperation with local social welfare centers, and have time to build friendships among the participating youth.

Sessions are held every Wednesday from 7 PM to 9 PM via the online video application (Skype), where participants connect online to watch live videos and practice cooking simultaneously.

Youth aged 19 to 39 who live or reside in Gwanak-gu can apply through the Youth Space Ieum website.

At the offline meeting on August 1, participants made steamed chicken dishes and conducted volunteer activities distributing them to 40 vulnerable households in cooperation with the Gwanak-gu Central Social Welfare Center.

Mayor Park Jun-hee said, “I hope this Youth Social Dining project will contribute to forming social networks among local youth and fostering healthy eating habits,” adding, “We will continue to carry out various projects to improve the quality of life for youth and create an environment where they want to stay.”