Dobong-gu Holds Orientation for International ESD Youth Project Neuru

Published 26 May.2021 00:02(KST)

Dobong-gu's Unique ESD Youth Project for Ecological Literacy and Glocal Leadership Development... 61 Students from 5 Countries, 28 Schools Including Elementary, Middle, High, and University Participate, Orientation Starts May 22

Sustainable Development Education Hub City (RCE: Regional Centre of Expertise) Dobong Logo

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Dobong-gu (Mayor Dongjin Lee), a Regional Centre of Expertise (RCE) for Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), held an orientation on the 22nd for the international ESD youth project "Neuru," the first nationwide project operated based on Zoom.

"Neuru," a pure Korean word meaning "not rushing all at once but over a long time," aims to encourage youth to pursue a sustainable life for a long time by fostering ecological literacy and glocal leadership capabilities through voluntary practice and action.

The project includes 61 elementary, middle, high school, and university students from 28 schools across five countries (Korea, China, Japan, Australia, and the United States), selected during the recruitment period from February to May.

Participants will focus on the 2021 main theme, "The truth of hamburger," linked with SDGs 1-17, exploring various issues related to hamburgers through the photovoice research method and activity sheets.

Project Neuru stands out by moving beyond past fragmented cultural and case exchange programs among youth from different countries, utilizing the photovoice research method that focuses on participants' voices and experiences through the medium of "photography." Additionally, Dobong-gu developed session-by-session activity sheets through domestic and international consultations, enabling participants from each country to connect and perform ESD core competencies and target areas.

The program started with the first orientation on May 22 and will proceed as follows: ▲ Photovoice research and photography theory (Session 2) ▲ How much do we know about hamburgers? (Session 3) ▲ Finding hamburger shops in our region (Session 4) ▲ Hamburger connection (Session 5) ▲ Making good hamburgers (Session 6) ▲ Promoting good hamburgers! (Session 7) ▲ Photo exhibition and sharing session, submission of research report to the UN University (Session 8).

Participants who complete Project Neuru will receive a certificate of completion issued by the Dobong-gu Office.

Mayor Dongjin Lee of Dobong-gu stated, "As ecological transition education becomes increasingly important, the international ESD youth project Neuru conducted in Dobong-gu will serve as nourishment for youth to grow into citizens with ecological literacy and glocal leadership, moving beyond micro-level environmental education. I hope this eight-month journey will be a time to find connections to 'sustainable food' that can be practiced in daily life. Since the main theme changes every year based on participants' feedback, I encourage students who hesitated to join this year to definitely participate next year."