Continuous support for Korea’s first eco-resilience institute

Representative director Namkyu Min of JK Materials donated KRW 500 million.

Since he made a promise to donate 5 billion in total in 2014, he has donated 500 million every year, making this his 4th donation.

▲ Representative Director of JK Materials, Namkyu Min (left) and President of Korea University, Jaeho Yeom (right) pose for a commemorative photo after the donation ceremony.

On September 4, at 11:30 am, Korea University held a donation ceremony with Representative Director of JK Materials Co., Ltd., Namkyu Min, the benefactor of the KU-Ojeong Eco-Resilience Institute Fund.

In April 2014, Min promised the university he would donate KRW 5 billion in total over the next 10 years in order to support the university in establishing a world-class eco-resilience research institute on campus. Upon his visit to university this year, Min signed his 4th donation check, worth KRW 500 million.

As he had hoped, in November 2014 the university opened the Ojeong Eco-Resilience Institute (OJERI), where basic and applied research on eco-resilience has been conducted since then. OJERI was the first research institute for ecological resilience to set out to identify a solution for the unsustainable development of human civilization. Based on an industrial structure that has been driven by the imperatives of mass production and consumption, modern society has increasingly been facing monumental threats to its existence. In this context, the institute aims to contribute to the health of human society in a way that does not undermine the resilience of the global ecosystem.

After conferring a certificate of donation and a plaque of appreciation on Min, KU President Jaeho Yeom invited Min to look through the donation fund expenditure report and the OJERI's planning documents. Since its foundation, the institute has been actively working with global institutes in related fields. In addition to the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), where 5 Nobel laureates work, OJERI has been involved in collaborative projects with the Bjarknes Center for Climate (BCC) and the Stockholm Resilience Center (SRC). The institute has also been managing the affiliate offices of global research organizations such as the Global Carbon Project (GCP), the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), the Global Land Programme (GLP), and The World In 2050 organization (TWI 2050).

OJERI has become one of main eco-resilience research institutes in Asia and the world. In November 2017, the Asia Resilience Center (ARC) was founded as a joint initiative among OJERI and partner universities in Hong Kong, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere. From November 26 to 28 this year, the first international conference hosted by the ARC will be held at Hana Square, Korea University. At the conference, Asia-based scholars, who are expected to play a leading role in crucial research in the 21st century, will gather to present and discuss more than 150 research papers on ecological sustainability and resilience. The conference's primary theme is ‘Resilience and New Leadership in the World,’ and its goal is to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) established by the United Nations.

In addition to the ARC, the institute is affiliated with a range of other organizations, namely the Institute of Environment and Ecology, the Environmental GIS/RS Center, the Wild Resource Plant Seed Bank, and the Korean Biochar Research Center. Through the convergence of diverse fields, the institute aims to become one of top research institutions in the field of sustainability studies by quantifying ecological resilience, and by developing new theories and technologies to define and optimise the relationship between human society and the natural ecosystem.

Min expressed his sense of anticipation about future developments at OJERI. “I hope OJERI develops into one of the top global research institutes where great scholars work and conduct their research. I am looking forward to seeing the fruits of OJERI's research and the ways it can make a contribution to the welfare of humanity.” In response to his remarks, the Director of OJERI, Jeong-Gyu Kim said, “We will strive to become a world-class research institute by enhancing the quality of our resilience research projects and by making continuous, innovative changes to our methods.” The President of Korea University also delivered remarks. “In order for our university to enter the ranks of the top 50 universities in the world within the next 10 years, it will be important to participate in various industry-university collaboration projects. Korea University will play a full part in the convergence of various fields and offer the most optimally-customized services to companies with cutting edge technologies, in order to expand our spectrum of industry-university collaboration in our role as a research-oriented academic institution.”