[One Day, One Thousand Characters] ‘Dokdo Love’ Handwriting... Captured in a Calendar

Over 23,000 Entries Gathered Nationwide
Gyeongbuk Office of Education Selects Outstanding Works

Over 23,000 handwritten pieces expressing love for Dokdo were collected from all over the country. From elementary students to middle and high school students, the general public, and foreigners alike, each person carefully wrote one character by hand to convey "Dokdo, the beautiful territory of the Republic of Korea." This was part of the "Handwriting Relay Filling Dokdo Love" project conducted as a nationwide initiative of the Gyeongbuk Office of Education's Cyber Dokdo School. The outstanding handwritten works selected through this event were made into a Dokdo education calendar.

The Gyeongbuk Office of Education held this relay on the Cyber Dokdo School website from October 4 to November 3 last year, lasting one month. Eligibility to participate included elementary, middle, and high school students nationwide, school staff, the general public, and foreigners.

The participation method was to submit handwritten entries expressing love for Dokdo using the provided phrases. The suggested phrases included "Dokdo, the beautiful territory of the Republic of Korea," "Dokdo is not lonely!," "Dokdo, I love you!," and "Dokdo, Beautiful Island of Korea." Participants were also allowed to freely add other phrases related to love for Dokdo.

The relay was successfully completed, gathering a total of 23,195 handwritten entries. All 17 cities and provinces nationwide participated, adding to its significance. A teacher from an elementary school who participated in the group category said, "It was a precious experience to express love for Dokdo together with the students."

The Gyeongbuk Office of Education separately selected outstanding works and used them to produce the "2024 Dokdo Love Education Calendar." The calendar includes handwritten works throughout so that the handwriting can be seen as the pages are turned. The theme of the calendar is "Birds of Dokdo and Handwritten Love for Dokdo." Dokdo is located along the migratory path of migratory birds and is rich in food, attracting about 190 species of birds such as black-tailed gulls and white-tailed eagles.

The calendar also marks major commemorative dates related to Dokdo and various events and schedules. It was designed to help people naturally learn about and practice love for Dokdo, our territory, in daily life. One copy of the calendar was distributed to every class in elementary, middle, and high schools under the Gyeongbuk Office of Education. It was also provided to the Ministry of Education, education offices of cities and provinces nationwide, and related organizations.

Lim Jong-sik, Superintendent of the Gyeongbuk Office of Education, emphasized, "The 'Handwriting Relay Filling Dokdo Love,' which practiced love for Dokdo through diverse handwriting, was a moving time that gathered the will of the entire nation to protect and love Dokdo. We will faithfully perform the central role of leading Dokdo education in various ways going forward."

‘2024 Dokdo Love Education Calendar’ produced by Gyeongsangbuk-do Office of Education [Photo by Gyeongsangbuk-do Office of Education]

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.