Anyone aged 19-39 living or residing in Seongdong-gu struggling with isolation or withdrawal can apply... Until December, professional counselors will visit the desired location to provide 8 sessions each of 1:1 psychological counseling or art therapy
Seongdong-gu, Seoul (Mayor Jeong Wono) is operating a ‘Visiting Mentoring’ service for isolated and reclusive youth in the area.
Isolated youth refer to young people who have no meaningful interaction with others beyond family or work contacts and lack a support system to ask for help, while reclusive youth are those who live in limited spaces such as rooms or homes and have almost no interaction with others or society. According to a survey by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, as of 2022, there are approximately 540,000 isolated and reclusive youth nationwide, and this number is expected to increase in the future.
Accordingly, Seongdong-gu established the Ordinance on Supporting Socially Isolated Youth in Seongdong-gu in 2022 to create an institutional foundation for supporting isolated and reclusive youth.
In May of this year, a basic plan was established, and since August, the ‘Visiting Mentoring’ service has been officially implemented to provide psychological and emotional support so that isolated and reclusive youth can voluntarily participate in social activities through psychological stability.
The ‘Visiting Mentoring’ service targets youth aged 19 to 39 who reside or live in Seongdong-gu and meet one or more of the following criteria: ▲ youth who feel they have experienced isolation or reclusion at least once ▲ youth who spend most of their day in a limited space such as their home ▲ youth who have no social network and live alone or find it difficult to participate in society ▲ youth who have no one to seek advice from when facing important or difficult matters. Any youth concerned about their life due to isolation or reclusion can apply.
Selected participants receive eight sessions each of one-on-one psychological counseling or art therapy with professional counselors. In particular, to ensure that participants can receive counseling in a psychologically comfortable state, the counseling is conducted by having counselors visit the location desired by the participant (such as their home or a nearby caf?), reflecting the characteristics and needs of isolated and reclusive youth.
This program will operate until December and accepts applications on a first-come, first-served basis. Those wishing to participate can apply by calling the Seongdong-gu Youth Support Center or by scanning the QR code posted on promotional materials.
Meanwhile, the district is promoting various youth support policies, including the ‘Youth Challenge Support Project,’ which helps youth who have given up on job searching regain confidence and provides customized services such as career exploration and employment competency enhancement.
It also operates programs to improve daily life for socially isolated and reclusive youth, including providing information necessary for daily life such as culture, finance, health, and networking, as well as housing environment improvement and customized woodworking classes.
Jeong Wono, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, stated, "I expect the ‘Visiting Mentoring’ project to be a turning point in the lives of youth isolated in this fiercely competitive society and to be a great support to their families as well. We will continue to strengthen the support system so that young people can achieve healthy independence in the local community."
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