Hyangran Kim of Geochang County Council: "Senior Employment Needs Qualitative Transformation Linked to Ecological Education"

Proposal for Senior Eco-Environment Instructor Group and Carbon Neutrality-Linked Project

Hyangran Kim, Chair of the General Affairs Committee of Geochang County Council in Gyeongsangnam-do, raised the need for a qualitative transformation of senior employment programs and the advancement of policies reflecting local characteristics during her 5-minute free speech.

In her remarks, Chairperson Kim stated, "This year, the senior job creation and social activity support program has been expanded so that 13.4% of the elderly population now participate, supported by a budget of over 10 billion won and an increase in eligible participants." She added, "It is time to move beyond quantitative achievements and focus on qualitative transformation."

Geochang County Council, Assemblywoman Kim Hyangran's 5-Minute Free Speech Photo

She particularly emphasized the need to move away from simple labor-centered jobs focused on environmental maintenance and to introduce new models that leverage the experience and expertise of seniors.

Accordingly, Chairperson Kim proposed the implementation of the "Intergenerational Empathy Senior Eco-Environment Classroom" and the "Geochang-Style Carbon Neutral Practice-Linked Senior Job Advancement Project."

The core of these initiatives is to utilize ecological assets such as Geochang Changpowon and local forest resources to train seniors as eco-environment education instructors, and to operate school lectures and experiential education programs for elementary and middle school students within the county.

Chairperson Kim explained, "As Geochang County has declared itself a leading city for 2050 carbon neutrality, it is necessary to establish educational programs and agents that residents can directly experience." She added, "A model combining ecological education with senior employment is a project capable of generating policy synergy."

She further mentioned, "In an era of declining school-age population, building regionally specialized educational content is significant for strengthening the competitiveness of educational cities and responding to population decline."

Specifically, she suggested operating a specialized eco-education course in collaboration with the Senior Club, the Korean Senior Citizens Association, and senior welfare centers, and granting a 'Senior Eco Instructor' certification to those who complete the program.

Additionally, she emphasized that by utilizing sites such as Changpowon, Suseungdae, and school forests for field-based education, the effectiveness of education can be enhanced—offering economic independence and social participation opportunities for seniors, and providing emotional stability and environmental awareness for students.

Chairperson Kim concluded, "Senior job policies should be expanded from simple projects to policy synergy projects linked to key pledges," and requested, "Please actively consider these as 'bridge projects' connected to major policies of the 8th popularly elected administration."

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