Korea Tourism Organization Invites Public to Join Eco-Friendly Sea Travel with "Data Plogging"

The Korea Tourism Organization announced on September 15 that it will be running the campaign "A Special Journey to Enjoy the Sea, Toward a Caring Ocean" until October 31, with the aim of promoting sustainable marine tourism and spreading eco-friendly travel culture.

This campaign was launched to encourage travelers not only to simply see and enjoy the sea, but also to take responsibility for caring for it during their travels.

A RunTrip participant is conducting coastal cleanup activities at Najung Gounmorae Beach.
Photo by Korea Tourism Organization

Anyone visiting beaches across the country can participate in the campaign. Travelers are invited to pick up trash they find while exploring the seaside and record the collected litter as data by taking part in "data plogging." Data plogging is a new type of environmental movement that involves not only picking up trash while jogging (plogging), but also recording what types of waste are collected. During the campaign period, the organization will select outstanding participants three times and award them with gift certificates.

Special events will also be held, such as the "Sea Transformation Challenge," where participants post before-and-after photos of their cleanup activities on social media, and the "Sea Bingo Challenge," which involves completing bingo cards based on the types of trash collected. More details can be found on the data plogging platform "Dolboneun Badaro."

The Korea Tourism Organization held a RunTrip event along the coasts of Gyeongju and Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province on September 12 and 13. Over 20 influencers in the running and travel sectors participated in this RunTrip, which was linked to the campaign. They ran along the coastline, including Gyeongju, the host city of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, and nearby attractions, while also engaging in coastal cleanup activities. In addition, participants experienced upcycling by creating keychains from the marine waste they collected.

Kim Namcheon, Acting Director of the Tourism Content Strategy Headquarters, stated, "This campaign was designed to spread a travel culture that both enjoys and cares for the marine environment together with the public," adding, "The Korea Tourism Organization will continue to strive for the establishment of eco-friendly travel and sustainable tourism culture."