'Let's Live Together, Gatsaeng Supporters Expo' Held to Raise Awareness for Suicide Prevention

Ministry of Health and Welfare and Korea Life Respect and Hope Foundation Promote Suicide Prevention Hotline 109 and More

To mark 'Suicide Prevention Week' (September 10-16), the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Life Respect and Hope Foundation will hold the '2025 Let's Live Together, Gatsaeng Supporters Expo' at Yongsan Station in Seoul on September 11. The event aims to promote suicide prevention and foster a culture of respect for life.

'Gatsaeng' is a new term derived from 'Gatsang' (meaning a diligent and exemplary life), reinterpreted to mean 'let's live together.' The 'Let's Live Together, Gatsaeng Supporters' group was launched in 2022 by young people seeking to directly prevent youth suicide and cultivate a culture of respect for life.

This year, the fourth class of Gatsaeng Supporters is composed of university and graduate students. A total of 66 members across 16 teams were selected, and since May, they have been creating content each month to raise awareness about suicide prevention, spreading it through social media channels.

At the expo, the supporters will set up a total of five booths to raise public awareness about the seriousness of suicide. They will use events and games to promote suicide prevention policies in an engaging way, including the suicide prevention hotline 109, the social media counseling platform Madeulran, and the Life Keeper program, making these resources easy to understand for the general public.

The government has announced its plan to prioritize improving public awareness of suicide prevention, increasing the promotional budget for these initiatives from 1.3 billion won this year to 2.4 billion won next year. In particular, the government will deliver the message 'Suicide can be overcome' through a variety of online and offline channels, including TV, radio, subway and elevator screens, and social media, working to spread a culture of respect for life throughout society.

Jung Yoonsun, Director General of Health and Medical Policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, stated, "This expo was planned by considering the issue of suicide in Korea from the perspective of young people, and I believe it will resonate not only with youth but with the entire nation. The government will also work to build a social safety net so that everyone can protect one another through small acts of attention and practice, making the protection of life a part of everyday society."

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