Im Man-gyun, Kim Ki-deok, Kim Gil-young among 10 Seoul Metropolitan Council members recognized
Awards spotlight field-driven legislative work, from livelihood issues to policy innovation
Ten members of the Seoul Metropolitan Council who have worked to improve the lives of Seoul residents and address local issues were honored at the 2026 Seoul Assembly Policy Awards. The ceremony recognized their legislative work and administrative oversight, as well as their efforts to identify policies closely tied to residents' daily lives.
The awards ceremony, organized by Herald Media Group, was held Friday at Seminar Room 3 of the National Assembly Members' Office Building.
Established this year for the first time, the Seoul Assembly Policy Awards were created to identify and publicize outstanding policy and administrative cases that have made a tangible difference in the lives of Seoul residents and generated social value. The awards placed particular emphasis on sharing policy achievements and innovative cases that citizens can feel directly, and on spreading sustainable policy development.
In the Seoul Metropolitan Council category, 10 members were selected as recipients: Council Speaker Im Man-gyun (Democratic Party of Korea, Gwanak 3), lawmaker Kim Ki-deok (Democratic Party of Korea, Mapo 4), People Power Party floor leader Kim Gil-young (Gangnam 6), Housing and Urban Space Committee Chair Park Seung-jin (Democratic Party of Korea, Jungnang 3), Planning and Economy Committee Chair Lee Jun-hyung (Democratic Party of Korea, Gangdong 3), Environment and Water Resources Committee Chair Lee Min-seok (People Power Party, Mapo 1), Urban Safety and Construction Committee Vice Chair Im Chun-dae (People Power Party, Songpa 3), lawmaker Oh Jung-seok (Democratic Party of Korea, Dongdaemun 2), lawmaker Kim Gwang-cheol (People Power Party, Songpa 2) and lawmaker Yun Yu-jin (People Power Party, Songpa 1).
The awards were notable for casting a wide net across the many policy areas the Seoul Metropolitan Council has addressed, including livelihood issues directly affecting residents, improvements to residential environments, local economic revitalization, urban safety, environmental policy and the expansion of everyday infrastructure.
The Seoul Metropolitan Council serves as a core institution of local self-governance — not only reviewing city policies and budgets and overseeing administration, but also channeling residents' voices into policy. As urban challenges grow more complex and citizens' demands more diverse, the importance of field-driven policy development and effective legislative activity continues to grow.
In housing and urban space, key challenges include stabilizing residential conditions, advancing redevelopment projects and improving aging residential environments. In the local economy, supporting small businesses, restoring livelihoods and nurturing new industries to build a foundation for Seoul's growth have emerged as important policy priorities.
Environmental and urban safety issues — disaster response in the face of climate change, improvements to living conditions and the expansion of infrastructure for public safety — remain closely tied to residents' daily lives. Legislative work aimed at narrowing gaps in local infrastructure and resolving residents' inconveniences is also recognized as a vital function of local councils.
The awards served again to highlight the importance of the legislative work, policy proposals and on-the-ground communication that council members have carried out to address these varied policy challenges.
Also noteworthy is the broader shift in the role of local councils — moving beyond simple administrative oversight toward proposing policy alternatives and translating citizens' demands into institutional change. Delivering real policy results requires not only securing budgets but also maintaining responsible oversight of project implementation and outcomes throughout the process.
The Seoul Assembly Policy Awards were designed to examine the role of local councils from a citizen's perspective and to share examples of outstanding legislative work, adding further significance to the occasion.
Byeon Jae-un, chair of the Seoul Assembly Press Research Society, served on the judging panel. A total of 21 people were honored across four categories — the Seoul Metropolitan Council, the National Assembly, the Seoul Metropolitan Government and a special award.
Herald Media Group said the ceremony was intended to ensure that outstanding policy cases do not remain one-off achievements but are shared and brought into broader public discourse so they can spread to other policy and administrative settings.
The recognition of 10 Seoul Metropolitan Council members is expected to serve as an occasion to reflect on the importance of local councils' legislative capacity, policy expertise and communication with citizens. It also leaves a standing challenge: that legislative work producing real change in people's daily lives must continue going forward.
7toy7@heraldcorp.com
