Envisioning Hongneung as a future global innovation platform

Korea University held the 10th Hongneung forum.

The 10th Hongneung Forum entitled “Building the Hongneung Global Innovation Platform” was held at Korea University’s Centennial Memorial Samsung Hall on November 6th at 10 a.m. and was attended by over 400 people.

Since July 2012, the Hongneung Forum has been discussing a range of topics, such as “The Role of Hongneung as a Global Research/Education Complex”, “The Hongneung Global Education and Research Complex Plan”, and “The Cultivation of a Global Bio-Medical Cluster,” constantly proposing ways to develop the northeastern section of the Seoul Metropolitan Area and to revitalize Hongneung with organizations located within Hongneung playing leading roles.

Originally, the Hongneung Forum focused on harmonizing the Hongneung Complex and the local ecosystem. Since the 9th meeting, the forum started to turn its attention to developing an innovation creation model for the future of Korea in the Fourth Industrial Revolution age.

In the opening ceremony, Myungja Kim, the Chief Director of the forum, emphasized the importance of promoting cooperation with the local communities and government organizations based on internal consensus by saying, “We live in an age where convergence matters, but convergence is easier said than done. We’ve been making efforts to build the foundation of the forum. Now is the time to put these ideas into action.”

In his welcome speech, Jaeho Yeom, President of Korea University, said, “Hongneung accommodates over 300,000 researchers and university students. This unique cluster of talent has potential to be developed as a hub for startups, like Silicon Valley, and can become a driving force of our economy. Korea University will harness its human and material resources to make the Hongneung Valley a leading force of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and will fully support job creation for young people.” He added, “The Fourth Industrial Revolution presents an opportunity for Hongneung to make a new leap forward. If we succeed in integrating knowledge that its people have and human networks built inside and outside of the Hongneung Community, I strongly believe that Hongneung can show its limitless possibilities in the fourth industrial revolution age.”

Sejung Oh, an assembly member of the People’s Party, expressed his desires in his congratulatory speech by saying, “I hope that productive ideas generated in the Hongneung Forum can become reality and have a real impact on the society.”

After that, Seiyong Kim, a professor and the Vice President for Campus Planning at Korea University, made a presentation under the title of “Building the Hongneung Global Innovation Platform.” Professor Kim said that “Because Hongneung has an optimal research environment created by its researchers, foreign talent, and research infrastructure, as well as excellent research resources, there are various ways to develop Hongneung.” He also explained why it is necessary to restructure the industrial structure of the northeastern part of Seoul and presented his SWOT analysis on urban restoration and cultural facilities, urging the need to develop a master plan necessary to make systematic efforts to utilize the good environment and resources of Hongneung.

The presentation was followed by a panel discussion moderated by the Chief Director Kim, who is also the President of the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies (KOFST). The panels first talked about various efforts that organizations participating in the Hongneung Global Innovation Platform Plan have been making so far, and then discussed specific strategies to promote cooperation between these organizations and the Seoul Metropolitan City Government. Next, they explored government strategies to go beyond a mere establishment of the platform and to link the platform and the shift to the Fourth Industrial Revolution and innovative economy. The panels also proposed various ideas to develop Hongneung, such as a “University/Research Institute—Local Community Cooperation Model,” establishing an innovative knowledge-industry convergence complex and attracting private investments for the urban restoration of this underdeveloped part of Seoul.

▲ The participants of the 10th Hongneung Forum taking a group photo. From the seventh on the left of the front row: Heeseon Jin, the head of the Seoul City Urban Restoration Office; Byunggwon Lee, President, Korea Institute of Science and Technology; Sejung Oh, assembly member of the People’s Party; Jaeho Yeom, President of Korea University; Myungja Kim, Chief Director, Hongneung Forum; Gilju Moon President, University of Science and Technology; Nakhoon Kim, President, Dongduk Women’s University; and YoungBae Kim, the head of the Seongbuk District Office.