Seongdong-gu Hosts the 6th Seoul Forest Social Venture Expo

From the 14th, the largest social venture festival '6th Seoul Forest Social Venture EXPO' will be held for 3 days in Seongsu-dong... Over 160 social venture companies and ESG practice companies nationwide participating... A stepping stone for creating the 'Global ESG Startup Valley'... Jungnang-gu to hold Children's Play Festival on the 15th... Gwanak-gu to host the 4th Gwanak Youth Festival on the 14th at Nakseongdae Park featuring 'Banggu-seok Concert' and 'Street Dance' performances

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Seongdong-gu (Mayor Jung Won-oh) announced that from the 14th to the 16th, over three days, the largest social venture festival, the "6th Seoul Forest Social Venture EXPO," will be held around the Understand Avenue area near Seoul Forest in Seongsu-dong under the theme "Social Ventures Changing the World with ESG."

Now in its 6th year, the "Seoul Forest Social Venture EXPO" is a place to share and communicate the achievements of social ventures that create social value, with about 160 social venture companies expected to participate. Various ESG-practicing companies such as Socar and Futureplay, which have established themselves in Seongsu-dong, will also join, and the opening ceremony and conference will be broadcast live online via the Seongdong-gu Office YouTube channel.

Starting with the opening ceremony on the 14th, events will include the establishment ceremony of the Seongdong ESG Fund (Seongdong 2nd Fund), the signing ceremony for the "Global ESG Startup Leap," corporate case presentations including Socar on the theme "Social Issues Solved by Startups," and a social venture academy roundtable.

In particular, at the "Global ESG Startup Leap" signing ceremony, various public-private entities such as Seongdong-gu, the Korea Technology Finance Corporation, KT&G, the Korean branch of AVPN (Asia Venture Philanthropy Network), the largest impact investor and social innovation network in Asia, Futureplay, and MYSC (MY Social Company) will participate. They will pledge support and cooperation for ESG startup companies and hold a meaningful event marking the first step toward becoming global companies.

Following this, the results announcement and awards ceremony for the "Social Venture Innovation Competition," which selects creative and innovative business models and supports them with a total of 100 million KRW in business development funds, will take place. Afterwards, there will be a meeting with the award-winning companies to listen to industry opinions.

At the venue, to support social ventures struggling with sales channels after the COVID-19 pandemic, a "National Social Venture Value Market" will be held in a pop-up store format, gathering products from over 60 social venture companies nationwide. Additionally, a product market for KT&G Sangsang Planet resident companies will be open.

Also, in the exhibition experience zone, there will be company introductions and product exhibitions of ESG startups that have captured the global market, along with an excellent company story wall exhibition showcasing social venture products that can be encountered in daily life.

Seongdong-gu Mayor Jung Won-oh said, "I welcome everyone to this festival, which can widely promote the achievements of social venture companies that have taken the lead in solving social problems through ESG practices," and added, "Our ultimate goal is to diversify support for various ESG management startups, including social ventures, to create a sustainable global ESG startup valley."

Jungnang-gu (Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi) will hold a "Children's Play Festival" on the 15th at the Yongma Waterfall Park circular plaza.

The "Children's Play Festival" is an event held since 2020 to allow children to freely run and enjoy various physical activities.

Due to COVID-19, the event was conducted as small-scale play camps in various local areas, but since last year, it has been operated as a large-scale children's play festival where everyone gathers and interacts. In June this year, about 1,000 children participated.

This play festival will start with community games that all participants can join, such as height exercises and balloon popping, followed by various team games. There are 28 diverse physical activity programs prepared, ranging from traditional games like archery, stone hitting, and Yutnori to board games, and experiences with traditional foreign musical instruments and costumes.

The play festival will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and all children can participate without prior registration.

Jungnang-gu Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi said, "I hope children gather together, laugh and play without masks, enjoy various games, and create joyful memories to cherish," adding, "We will continue to promote various innovative educational projects based on communication and participation to create the best public education environment that satisfies residents."

The district was designated as a Seoul-type innovative education district in 2019 and has continued the project for four years. Under the vision of "Jungnang, an educational city where children and youth are happy, created together with the community," it leads public-private-academic cooperation and is promoting 23 innovative education projects in four areas, including school curriculum operation with the community and support for children and youth autonomous activities.

Gwanak-gu (Mayor Park Jun-hee) will hold the "4th Gwanak Youth Festival (Feel Like Star)" on the 14th from 12 noon to 10 p.m. around Nakseongdae Park, in conjunction with the "Gwanak Gang Gam-chan Festival," to allow young people to fully demonstrate their potential and possibilities.

The festival slogan, "Flying Youth, Rising Stars," reflects the meaning of "Nakseongdae" as "stars fallen from the sky rise together with youth." This festival is planned as a program by youth participation, centered on youth, for youth, and through youth.

First, the "Room Concert" will be held to provide performance opportunities for young artists. Ten youth artist teams were selected through an open call to perform band music, instrumental performances, K-pop dance, and more in front of local audiences.

Following this, a "Street Dance" performance, which has received great response from the MZ generation, will take place. To live music by Breaking Symphonic, groups such as Brand New Cosmic from Just One Entertainment, the locking crew Rock & Roll, popping group Dawons, and girls' hip-hop group Lady Bounce will present passionate performances. The event will be hosted by singer Jung Min-hyuk (Ami).

At sunset, a "Media Photo Zone" using media facade techniques will be installed at the entrance of Anguksa Temple, projecting videos via beam projectors containing the festival symbols "Youth, Star, Gwanak" to wish for a hopeful future for young people.

Additionally, a "Youth Network Zone" will operate from the 14th to the 16th, providing booths for promotion and sales of youth cultural and artistic groups and startup companies' handmade products, offering promotional opportunities for youth organizations and companies and serving as a platform for sharing various information for young adults starting their careers.

Gwanak-gu has the highest youth population ratio in the country at 41.2%, earning it the nickname "Youth Special City." The district expects this festival to be a place where young people take the lead in meeting, communicating, and enjoying together.

Mayor Park Jun-hee said, "I hope the 'Gwanak Youth Festival,' now in its fourth year, becomes an opportunity for local youth to engage in more vibrant exchanges, design their dreams, and achieve them," adding, "We will continue to implement various projects to create 'Youth Special City Gwanak,' where young people want to stay and live."