Uijeongbu City Promotes Donation Culture with "A Day of Emptying and Sharing"

Voluntary Participation by City Hall Employees
Realizing a Sustainable Local Circular Economy

Uijeongbu City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Kim Donggeun) held a donation event titled "A Day of Emptying and Sharing for Autumn" for all employees at the city hall store on the 16th.

Kim Donggeun, mayor of Uijeongbu (left), is taking a commemorative photo with Kim Joungho, CEO of Forest Story, at the donation event "A Day of Emptying and Sharing for Autumn" held on the 16th. Provided by Uijeongbu City

This event encouraged voluntary participation from employees, who donated clothing, miscellaneous goods, and cultural items that they no longer used but could be useful to others.

In particular, a total of 51 employees participated, donating 170 pieces of clothing and 350 miscellaneous items, amounting to over 520 donated goods in total. All items were delivered to the local social enterprise Forest Story, where they will be sold, and the proceeds will be used to support employment and self-reliance for vulnerable groups in the community.

Forest Story, which started as a reuse sharing store in Uijeongbu in 2017, currently operates five stores in Korea, including its main store in Minlak-dong and a branch in Uijeongbu Market, as well as a logistics warehouse in Yonghyeon Industrial Complex. In 2023, the business expanded to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Forest Story now employs 35 people with developmental disabilities and 3 North Korean migrant residents in the region, leading efforts to promote sustainable consumption and support independence for vulnerable groups.

This event was initiated after Mayor Kim Donggeun visited Forest Story through the "Into Everyday Life" program in March. The city then coordinated with three labor unions to organize the employee-led donation event. After the event, Mayor Kim met with the CEO of Forest Story and the presidents of the three unions to share the significance of cooperation among the city, labor unions, and social enterprises.

Mayor Kim Donggeun stated, "This event was not just about donating goods; it was the starting point of a circular economy where a small act of letting go by employees becomes fulfillment for someone else, creating local jobs and self-reliance. We will continue to build a sustainable local community through various forms of labor-management cooperation and public engagement."

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