Two-day 'Social Great Transformation Insight Forum' held in Jeju

Forum addresses role of vocational education amid population decline and regional hollowing

Partners to strengthen cooperation on tailored workforce development amid industrial shifts

The COACH team from the Semiconductor Convergence Campus, which advanced to the finals of Korea Polytechnic University's 9th Venture Startup Item Competition, presents their idea for AI-based analysis and feedback of game replay footage. [Korea Polytechnic University]
The COACH team from the Semiconductor Convergence Campus, which advanced to the finals of Korea Polytechnic University's 9th Venture Startup Item Competition, presents their idea for AI-based analysis and feedback of game replay footage. [Korea Polytechnic University]

Korea Polytechnic University and the Council of Metropolitan and Provincial Research Institutes of Korea are joining forces to find talent development solutions for the AI era.

The two organizations will co-host the "Social Great Transformation Insight Forum for Balanced Regional Development in the AI Era" at Halla Convention Center at Jeju Halla University from Thursday through Friday.

The forum was organized in response to regional crises including population decline, the hollowing out of local communities and the concentration of resources in the greater Seoul area. The two institutions plan to explore ways to develop talent by linking regional industries with vocational education, and to discuss vocational education policies and cooperation frameworks that reflect local conditions.

The forum will share key findings and future directions from a joint research project on building a talent development framework to address shifts in regional industrial and demographic structures. Discussions will focus on workforce development strategies to respond to industrial changes driven by AI and demographic transitions, the evolving role of vocational education, and measures to counter regional depopulation.

On the first day, presentations will cover the direction of the joint research on regional industrial and demographic shifts. Talk concerts on "Changes in the Role of Vocational Education in the AI Era" and "Industrial Talent Development Strategies to Counter Regional Depopulation" will also be held. The second day will feature a general consultation session on the direction of the joint research and inter-institutional cooperation strategies.

"The advent of the AI era and rapid demographic changes are demanding a new transformation across regional industries and vocational education as a whole," said Lee Cheol-su, chairman of Korea Polytechnic University. "We will combine Polytechnic's field-centered vocational education capabilities with the expertise of regional policy research institutions to build a sustainable talent development model suited to local conditions."

Lee and Choi Jin-hyeok, chairman of the Council of Metropolitan and Provincial Research Institutes of Korea, along with officials from both organizations, are expected to attend the forum to explore common ground between balanced regional development and talent development policy.


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