Dongdaemun-gu in Seoul signed mutual cooperation agreements with the student councils of Kyung Hee University, the University of Seoul and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies on Monday to boost youth civic participation, and held a tea-table forum to hear students' policy proposals and everyday grievances.
District Mayor Choi Dong-min, the presidents of the three universities' student councils and officials from the Seoul Youth Center Dongdaemun attended the event.
Under the agreements, the district and the three student councils pledged to work together on youth policy outreach and feedback collection, planning and running youth events, and cooperative projects to promote youth social participation and community contribution.
The tea-table forum that followed the signing ceremony drew out specific opinions on the direction of youth policy and the real-life challenges students face.
"I think a great deal about young people's struggles with housing, employment and starting businesses," Choi said. "I arranged this gathering because I believe the answers lie with those directly affected and on the ground — I wanted to hear from young people myself." He called on the district, the three universities and the Seoul Youth Center Dongdaemun to collaborate and produce tangible results.
Lee Chan-min, student council president of the University of Seoul, said youth policy must deliver a genuine sense of effectiveness and usefulness, and proposed policies tailored to each university's strengths — Kyung Hee's interdisciplinary focus, the University of Seoul's urban orientation and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies' global character. He also suggested that the district regularly share information on youth support policies and projects with the student councils and distribute it through channels students use most, such as Instagram and KakaoTalk, so that young people who need the policies can actually find them.
Shin Chang-hun, student council president of Kyung Hee University, proposed intergenerational coexistence policies extending beyond youth to include people in their 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s. Kim Ha-eun, student council president of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, said "Dongdaemun-gu's strength is its warmth in paying close attention to young people," and expressed enthusiasm for the partnership.
Practical suggestions followed. Students from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies proposed allowing students to use the public parking lot in front of Oeidae Station during daytime hours, and incorporating both the university's and the district's identity into the design of a planned nearby public square. Choi said the district would review options for using the parking lot without inconveniencing residents, and would look for ways to reflect both Dongdaemun-gu and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in the square's name and use of space.
Students from Kyung Hee University asked the district to extend eligibility for some youth programs — including free legal consultations — to students enrolled at universities in the district, not just Dongdaemun-gu residents. Choi called it a good proposal and said the district would look for ways to make it work, adding that it plans to establish a labor welfare center where non-resident students at local universities can also access labor and welfare counseling.
The district and the three universities also plan to jointly prepare events bringing together campuses and the community, including "Troika" and "Samdongje" during Youth Week in September and an academic forum in November. The Seoul Youth Center Dongdaemun will serve as a communication channel linking the district and the universities on youth policy and on-the-ground feedback.
"Youth policy should not be something the administration creates unilaterally — it must start from the voices of young people themselves," Choi said. "Communicating the policies to those who need them is just as important as making them, so I will consistently stay in dialogue with the three universities' student councils to ensure that proposals from the field translate into real policy and real change."
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