Dongdaemun-gu Presents Comprehensive Youth Blueprint for 2023

Dongdaemun Creating a City Where Youth Gather in 2023

Creating Youth Cultural Spaces, Activating Youth Networks, and Supporting Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship with Welcome Voucher Programs for New Residents

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Lee Pil-hyung) will promote a wider variety of youth support projects in 2023 to create a vibrant Dongdaemun-gu where young people gather.

To address youth unemployment, the district will open two specialized spaces for employment and entrepreneurship. In the first half of the year, a ‘Youth Startup and Community Space’ will open on the 3rd floor of the Huigyeong-dong station-area youth housing, providing education, mentoring, and residency spaces to create a favorable environment for youth startups. In the second half, in collaboration with Seoul City, the largest employment academy in Seoul will be established on the 3rd floor of the redevelopment site of Dongbu Cheonggwa Market in Yongdu-dong, offering specialized education in the 4th industrial revolution fields and employment linkage.

Additionally, the district will collaborate with local university campus towns to support youth employment and entrepreneurship. The support amount for the ‘Youth Qualification Acquisition Activity Support Project,’ launched for the first time in Seoul this year, will be increased from 100,000 KRW to a maximum of 200,000 KRW to assist unemployed youth facing difficulties such as high inflation and high interest rates.

Furthermore, a youth cultural center will be established around Cheongnyangni to create a unique space in Dongdaemun-gu where young people and local artists can express their creativity and talents.

Moreover, the operation of the Dongdaemun-gu Youth Policy Network (Dongcheongnet) will be converted to direct management, expanding recruitment of university student members to gather diverse opinions from youth. Various youth events conducted by the district will also be promoted in collaboration with Dongcheongnet.

In addition, an online youth platform will be built to unify promotional channels for youth policies. A ‘Welcome Youth Voucher’ program is planned to provide gift certificates for using local cultural facilities or traditional markets to young people moving into Dongdaemun-gu.

Lee Pil-hyung, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, stated, “It is necessary to create a young Dongdaemun-gu where youth can freely express creativity and culture,” adding, “We will prepare practical solutions for youth jobs and create a Dongdaemun-gu where young people want to gather and stay.”

At the Young CEO Startup Forum, Seok-Suk Seo, Mayor of Songpa District, is meeting and communicating with young people. (2022.12.09.)

Songpa-gu Holds '2022 Songpa Youth Policy Project Performance Report' at Sofitel Ambassador Seoul on the 29th

Songpa-gu (Mayor Seo Gang-seok) will hold the ‘2022 Songpa Youth Policy Project Performance Report’ on the 29th at Sofitel Ambassador Seoul to share the achievements of youth policies carried out together with young people throughout the year and to communicate directly with them.

The district explained that this event was organized to share the activity results of youth policy projects directly participated in by youth, including ▲Songpa Youth Network ▲Songpa Youth Startup Challenge Project ▲Songpa ICT Youth Startup Support Center resident companies, and to discuss future plans.

Previously, in 2019, the district formed the Songpa Youth Network, which has continued activities to address youth issues such as discovering and proposing youth-related agendas, activating local youth exchanges, and participating in district government activities and events related to youth policies.

This year, under the leadership of the 2022 Songpa Youth Network composed of 45 youth members, the network was reorganized from 4 subcommittees into 5 subcommittees (Public Relations & Communication, Housing & Environment, Culture & Arts, Employment & Entrepreneurship, Participation & Education), conducting a total of 50 online and offline meetings. They directly proposed four specialized projects in the ‘2023 Seoul Youth Autonomous Budget Support Project Contest,’ achieving the distinction of Songpa-gu being the only one among Seoul’s 25 autonomous districts to have all four projects selected.

Additionally, the youth network held the ‘Omnidirectional Youth Perspective’ mobile youth counseling center at Seokchon Lake in September, operating eight counseling booths and providing consultations to 120 youth. They also conducted 42 lectures related to employment and entrepreneurship, such as personal color and interview speech, greatly activating the Songpa youth employment and entrepreneurship mentoring platform project and receiving high praise.

Sharing and Communicating Activity Results of Youth Network, Startup Challenge Project, and Songpa ICT Youth Startup Support Center

At this performance report meeting, commendations will first be awarded to members who contributed to the activation of the youth network and the discovery and promotion of policies. Then, among the five companies participating in the Songpa Youth Startup Challenge Project, the CEO of Nuzzi Co., Ltd., which is growing through the development of a posture correction functional chair, and the CEO of Charatu Co., Ltd., a medical data analysis platform startup residing in the Songpa ICT Youth Startup Support Center, will share their achievements and experiences with attendees.

This event will also feature an exhibition of works by four youth artists (Son Young-kyung, Choi Yuna, Jo Se-hee, Ryu Jeong-heon) who participated in the new 2022 Songpa youth artist support project ‘Cafe Youth Spring,’ which received favorable reviews, adding brilliance to the venue.

Other events include ▲‘Mosaic Picture Performance’ collecting youth opinions and New Year wishes on Songpa youth policies ▲Youth slogan performance ▲The cheerful ‘Comedy Mime’ by Team Funist ▲‘Sand Artist Performance,’ promising a warm and enjoyable occasion.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, said, “Emphasizing administration with a warm heart rather than a cold head, we will harness the passion of youth, the future leaders, as a driving force to make Songpa a great place for youth startups and support the vigorous start of youth from various professions with strong backing from Songpa.”

Yeongdeungpo-gu Operates Indoor Playground in Winter... Promoting Physical Activities such as Relay Races, Tag, Jump Rope, and Soccer Classes

Yeongdeungpo-gu (Mayor Choi Ho-kwon) announced that it will operate an indoor playground titled ‘Winter is Great! Playing is Even Better!’ during the winter vacation.

This event was prepared to guarantee the right to play and support the healthy growth of vulnerable children who have relatively fewer opportunities for play culture.

In particular, as outdoor activities are further restricted due to the severe cold wave this winter, the district plans to provide an environment where children can freely run and play indoors and operate various play activity programs to help children cultivate healthy bodies and emotions.

The event will be held 27 times from December 27 to February 24 next year. The target participants are vulnerable elementary and middle school students from local children’s centers and Dream Start programs, with about 20 children per session and a total of approximately 450 participants expected.

The venue consists of two indoor youth soccer fields, each 160㎡ in size, equipped with artificial turf flooring to prevent injuries and safety walls on all sides.

Participating children will engage in group exercises under the guidance of professional coaches specializing in physical activities, including former soccer players. Activities include ▲relay races ▲tag using towels ▲group music jump rope ▲mat exercises ▲soccer classes.

The district expects that operating this indoor playground will not only improve children’s basic physical strength but also relieve stress and enhance social skills and cooperation.

Meanwhile, on the 27th, the district held a winter vacation family event for 109 Dream Start children and their families. Visiting KidZania, a career theme park, and Lotte World, children and families enjoyed various career experience activities and rides, spending a special time together.

Choi Ho-kwon, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo-gu, said, “I hope this event prepared for the winter vacation will become a good memory for children,” adding, “We will continue to do our best to provide beneficial educational programs that help children and adolescents, the future leaders, to train their minds and bodies healthily and foster awareness of their right to play.”