SK Inno-Kookmin University, Green and Carbon Reduction Design Project

Green ESG Design Development Industry-Academia Cooperation MOU

SK Innovation and Kookmin University are starting an industry-academia collaboration project focused on eco-friendly design.

On the 16th, SK Innovation and Kookmin University signed a business cooperation agreement (MOU) for the development of green ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) design at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

They plan to develop characters, fonts, sculptures, and eco-friendly products that intuitively and familiarly express SK Innovation's financial story "Carbon to Green." The aim is to enrich the eco-friendly narrative by developing SK Innovation's eco-friendly character "Haengko (Happy Elephant)" and Friends characters, which were introduced last year.

New businesses promoted by SK Innovation, such as energy superstations, urban oil fields, the comprehensive waste plastic recycling complex (ARC), and future electric vehicle (EV) batteries, will also be used as design materials. Professors and students from Kookmin University's design department plan to use sculptures to provide a glimpse into the future "Net Zero" era.

They will collaborate on designing with a focus on strengthening the eco-friendly identity of SK Innovation affiliates' businesses and products, including waste battery recycling, carbon capture, storage, and utilization, small modular reactors, lightweight materials for vehicles, and lithium-ion battery separators.

In October, Kookmin University will host the "Happy Green Exhibition" (tentative name) at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul to showcase the results of this industry-academia cooperation.

Kim Jun, Vice Chairman of SK Innovation, said, "This will be an opportunity for emerging student artists who empathize with ESG and carbon reduction to freely express eco-friendliness, carbon reduction, and green themes in practical and artistic ways," adding, "I hope it will be an opportunity to widely promote the sincerity of SK Innovation's ESG management for carbon reduction."