On March 7, 2025, Cyber Diplomacy Organization VANK joined forces with the Administrative and Health Committee of Seoul’s Jung-gu District Council to host the “Seoul Jung-gu Global Promotion Strategy Policy Forum” in the small conference room of the Jung-gu District Council.
The forum focused on exploring systematic strategies to promote Jung-gu’s tourism and cultural assets globally, aiming to revitalize the district’s tourism industry. The session was chaired by Son Ju-ha, Chair of the Administrative and Health Committee, who guided the discussions. Kwon So-young, a researcher at VANK, opened the event with a presentation introducing the VANK platform. Following this, Son Bong-ae, Head of the Sports and Tourism Division at Jung-gu Office, introduced the district’s tourism policies and key attractions.
Subsequently, VANK researchers Kwon So-young, Koo Seung-hyun, Kwon Soon-gyu, and Yang So-hee presented individual policy proposals to enhance Jung-gu’s tourism and cultural promotion. A designated discussion then took place with participation from committee members including Vice Chair Yoon Pan-oh, Jo Mi-jung, and Yang Eun-mi, where a variety of ideas were exchanged. The forum concluded with youth researchers from VANK proposing additional policy measures and discussing actionable cooperation plans among Jung-gu District Council, Jung-gu Office, and VANK.
Kwon So-young emphasized the theme of “Seoul Jung-gu Global Promotion Strategy: City Branding through Citizen Participation,” highlighting that successful city branding begins with engaging citizens. She noted, “Residents of Jung-gu, located in the heart of Seoul, are both the primary audience and marketers of the city brand,” and called for branding strategies centered on residents to foster voluntary participation. She also introduced international examples demonstrating successful citizen involvement.
Kwon also presented VANK’s national policy platform ‘Woollim,’ which empowers individuals to become active contributors in areas such as history, culture, tourism, and diplomacy by proposing ideas and shaping Korea’s cultural narrative. ‘Woollim’ provides a communication channel to government ministries and regularly features key citizen-driven policies in domestic media. Kwon highlighted how ‘Woollim’ is evolving from encouraging public participation to establishing a public-private cooperative framework.
Next, the recently launched national policy communication platform ‘Yeollim’ was introduced. ‘Yeollim’ serves as a space for sharing government policies, content, and SNS communications related to history, culture, tourism, and diplomacy, fostering direct dialogue between the public and the government. Kwon expressed high hopes, stating, “Through Yeollim, citizens can better understand government policy intentions, and the government can develop improved policies based on this dialogue.”
Following these presentations, Son Bong-ae of Jung-gu’s Sports and Tourism Division discussed the district’s tourism policies and major attractions under the theme “How about Here? Seoul Jung-gu.” Son outlined three key tourism visions and elaborated on main projects such as the walking tour program, development and daily engagement of local tourism content, the Seoul Jung-gu Tour Pass, and making festivals a routine part of life.
VANK researchers then proposed strategies for Jung-gu’s global promotion. Kwon So-young suggested partnering with local schools and universities to cultivate ‘Jung-gu Global Ambassadors’—youth who would actively promote the district’s history and cultural heritage worldwide. Having nurtured Korean promotion ambassadors among youth before, Kwon explained, “By training Jung-gu ambassadors, local young people can take pride and find meaning as grassroots diplomats showcasing their hometown.”
She further proposed utilizing the ‘Yeollim’ platform to effectively promote Jung-gu’s urban branding policies and content, enabling public feedback to be incorporated into policymaking. Kwon noted that while Jung-gu Council already practices open governance through ordinances and seminars, “these efforts mostly remain confined to official websites and media, limiting public accessibility and information dissemination.” She stressed the need for new communication channels and stated, “If 150,000 Korean promotional ambassadors widely share Jung-gu’s branding policies via Yeollim, this could significantly bolster public support for these policies.”
Koo Seung-hyun presented ideas on “Jung-gu’s Urban Rebranding Strategy Using Diverse Icons” and a “Card News Distribution and Hallyu Fan Participatory Campaign Combining Jung-gu’s Historical Value and K-Content Culture.” Emphasizing that city branding is a collaborative process defining a city’s unique identity, Koo introduced Porto, Portugal’s city branding example. Porto developed over 70 diverse icons representing landmarks, culture, and environment based on citizens’ perceptions rather than fixed images, strengthening ties between the city and residents. Koo noted similarities between Porto and Jung-gu, both characterized by historical heritage coexisting with modern urban elements, and recommended a similar icon-based branding approach reflecting citizens’ voices. Examples included icons symbolizing Myeongdong, Namdaemun Market, and Seoul Station, effectively conveying Jung-gu’s character.
Koo also suggested linking Jung-gu’s historic sites with K-content filming locations for promotional campaigns. Citing Deoksugung Stonewall Walkway—famous both as a ‘Goblin’ drama filming site and a symbol of the Korean Empire era—Koo emphasized Jung-gu’s blend of past and present. This would be promoted via multilingual card news on social media channels.
Moreover, Koo proposed using the online platform ‘Padlet’ for a Hallyu fan participatory campaign titled “The Jung-gu I Want to Visit,” encouraging global fans to share desired Jung-gu sites. The most popular locations would then inform policies and content development by Jung-gu Council and Office, aligning with visitor interests.
Kwon Soon-gyu proposed an “Experience Program on Modern and Contemporary Korean History in Jung-gu,” highlighting the district as a central hub for Korea’s independence movement and modern history. He recommended developing engaging content for foreign tourists and global Hallyu fans to directly experience and learn about Korea’s history through quizzes and social media materials focused on locations like Deoksugung and Jeongdong-gil.
Yang So-hee recommended creating an online map of Jung-gu’s tourist attractions for foreign visitors. She pointed out that presenting the district’s top ten recommended spots on an English website as an interactive online map would help tourists without access to guided walking tours obtain information more easily.
During the panel discussion, Yoon Pan-oh praised VANK’s icon-based branding proposal as a valuable visual tool to strengthen Jung-gu’s brand image. He stressed that hosting Jung-gu’s policy promotion content on the ‘Yeollim’ platform would facilitate public feedback and foster policy improvements, significantly aiding Jung-gu’s policy development.
Jo Mi-jung expressed optimism that Padlet-based discussions under the theme “The Jung-gu I Want to Visit” could yield valuable insights from Hallyu fans, which could be reflected in current walking tour programs and the Jung-gu Tour Pass content.
Yang Eun-mi criticized the limited and less accessible current tourism information delivery methods, especially for foreigners, advocating strongly for the digital online map creation as a means to improve accessibility.
Further policy proposals from VANK’s youth researchers included:
- Jeong In-sung’s “Train to Middle of Seoul,” a stamp-based tour campaign connecting key Jung-gu sites by train concept, with youth serving as tour guides to realize a ‘citizen participation’ strategy. The plan integrates ‘dailycation’ elements allowing tourists immersive experiences of Korean daily life through visits to popular local stores like Olive Young and Daiso.
- Hong Dan-bi’s “Eat This in Jung-gu” campaign promoting Jung-gu’s traditional markets like Namdaemun and Seoul Central Market by highlighting local delicacies and conducting tourist interviews, complemented by a digital map showcasing signature eateries to boost tourism and the local economy.
- Lee Jeong-woo’s “Seoul’s Center, Jung-gu” campaign, drawing parallels between Jung-gu and K-POP center members—leaders excelling in visuals, talent, and entertainment—to spotlight Jung-gu’s excellence in history, Hallyu, and shopping. Advertising with slogans like “Happy Birthday, Jung-gu!” mimicking idol birthday ads in subway stations aims to leave a strong impression on Korean visitors.
- Park Ji-eun’s “Harmony of Tradition and Modernity” photo spot proposal, focusing on creating a distinct rebranding concept for Jung-gu by visually showcasing the blend of traditional and contemporary architecture in areas like Myeongdong and Euljiro.
Closing the forum, VANK Director Park Ki-tae stressed, “The most vital factor in Jung-gu’s city branding is the proactive participation of Jung-gu residents and local institutions.” He expressed ambitions to develop inspiring city branding for both locals and global audiences, while collaborating with 243 local councils nationwide to pioneer Korea’s rebranding.
Jung-gu Council Chairman So Jae-kwon highlighted the forum as a significant opportunity to promote Jung-gu’s tourism, history, and culture worldwide, expressing hopes to strengthen the district’s competitiveness and revitalize the local economy through ongoing collaboration.
Administrative and Health Committee Chair Son Ju-ha underlined the importance of sustaining regular cooperation beyond this one-time forum. He noted, “Jung-gu’s community, institutions, and stakeholders working together will position the district as a more competitive tourism destination,” emphasizing the timely and crucial nature of the partnership with VANK to effectively utilize Jung-gu’s cultural resources for promotion.
Following the forum, VANK, Jung-gu Council, and Jung-gu Office committed to continuous collaboration. Leveraging ‘Woollim’ and ‘Yeollim’ platforms, VANK plans to enhance the value of Jung-gu’s urban promotion policies and content. With the vision of “Gateway to Northeast Asia,” VANK aims to elevate Hallyu to new dimensions through policy partnerships with Jung-gu, creating a new wave of “K-Policy Hallyu.”