Gwangju Dong-gu, Recruiting Participants for Senior Life Publishing Project Until the 25th

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Dong-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City (Mayor Im Taek) announced on the 11th that it is recruiting participants for the ‘2021 Life Publishing Project,’ which reexamines the lives of the elderly and publishes them as autobiographies, until the 25th.

Started in 2019 and now in its third year, the ‘Life Publishing Project’ is a humanities initiative designed to share the memories and wisdom of the elderly with future generations.

Through writing classes for autobiography composition, the elderly’s handwritten writings about their lives and past times have been compiled and published as a joint autobiography.

Although rough, the sincerely and plainly written life stories deeply imbued with the twists and turns of the elderly’s lives are highly praised for evoking great emotions not only among families but also residents, as they transcend personal memories to become valuable assets of the era.

In particular, to promote intergenerational empathy and expand youth social participation, university students actively participate in the publishing process of this project.

The ‘Life Publishing Youth Mentoring Group,’ composed of undergraduate and graduate students from the Department of Creative Writing and the Department of Cartoon Animation at Chosun University, assists the elderly with writing guidance and creating illustrations for the autobiography.

Dong-gu is recruiting 30 elderly residents who wish to participate by the 25th, and will conduct a total of 10 writing education sessions at the Jeonil Living Culture Center from July 4th to July 30th. In October, a joint autobiography will be published along with a publication celebration event.

Especially this year, the autobiography writing classes will be additionally scheduled in both morning and afternoon sessions to increase participation opportunities for the elderly. In response to the COVID-19 situation, education will be conducted in small groups, and oral narration and recording personnel will be reinforced for elderly participants who find writing somewhat difficult due to advanced age.

Eligibility for participation is elderly residents aged 60 or older who have lived long-term in Dong-gu and have no prior experience writing an autobiography. Applicants can fill out the application form available at each neighborhood administrative welfare center and submit it there, or refer to the district office website and submit the application form via email.

Mayor Im Taek of Dong-gu said, “I hope that through the process of recording a lifetime entering twilight years, the elderly can find pride,” adding, “The record of an individual’s life is a valuable cultural asset of the region, and our descendants will be able to learn wisdom for living in the world through the lives of the elderly.”