President Yoon Suk-yeol was sworn into office Tuesday with the kind of large inauguration ceremony that his predecessor missed out on. The event was held at the National Assembly, with some 41,000 people in attendance, including former President Moon Jae-in and his wife Kim Jung-sook, former President Park Geun-hye, officials from the government and National Assembly, diplomatic delegations and more. After paying his respects at Seoul National Cemetery in the morning, Yoon arrived at the N

Politics May 10, 2022

Kim In-chul, the nominee for deputy prime minister and education minister, became the first Cabinet pick for the Yoon Suk-yeol administration to step away from the confirmation process. After a series of allegations surrounding his term as president of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and his family were raised, Kim said he will no longer seek the post. “I am to withdraw today,” Kim told the press in front of the Korea Institute of Educational Facility Safety in Yeouido, west

Social Affairs May 3, 2022

More than 70 percent of Earth’s surface is covered by oceans, which play a vital role in sustaining life for all on this planet. In the face of climate change, the ocean is the center of many life-threatening challenges such as rising sea levels, water scarcity and changes in sea temperature. This year, Herald Corp. will host the second edition of H.eco Forum, an annual event focused on environmental issues, on Nodeul Island on May 26, under the theme of “The Climate Crisis and

Social Affairs May 2, 2022

Our oceans, which play a pivotal role in supporting life on Earth, are at risk. Covering up 70 percent of the Earth’s surface, oceans hold about 96.5 percent of Earth’s water. All living organisms on Earth depend their lives on the sustainability of the oceans. The oceans, however, are at a breaking point, consistently pushed to the brink by environmental threats, such as global warming, overfishing, pollution, marine litter and more. In light of the oceans at risk, this year&

Social Affairs May 2, 2022

Kim In-chul, the nominee for deputy prime minister and education minister, denied allegations that his family unfairly received Fulbright scholarships from an association he was closely related to, arguing all procedures were fair. On Wednesday, the parliamentary confirmation hearing team for the Education Ministry representing Kim released a statement denying the allegations brought against his family over the scholarship. “Suggesting Kim’s family was selected as recipients becau

Social Affairs April 27, 2022

With the world slowly phasing into a post-COVID-19 pandemic era, Sollute Study Abroad Business Group is to arrange educational camps in Canada and New Zealand for teenagers this summer. Sollute Study Abroad Business Group is an education company that arranges camps for youths in English-speaking countries in partnership with local education offices and schools since 2014. Some 1,050 teenagers participated in camps arranged by the company until January 2020, before the pandemic hit the world.

Social Affairs April 25, 2022

With the ticking time bomb of climate change, more young activists are feeling an urgent need to speak up and take action. In light of the Earth Day which fell on Friday this year, The Herald Business and nonprofit organization Green Environment Youth Korea held an online roundtable session with young environmental activists across Asia, sharing their experiences and thoughts. Nurul Sarifa from Indonesia, who represents KPOP 4 Planet, a platform which calls on Korean entertainment agencies to

Social Affairs April 25, 2022

Plans to bring pre-pandemic normalcy to schools across the country in May are being met with both excitement and worry. On Wednesday, the Ministry of Education announced the “back to normal” guidelines that will see schools in Korea resume normal operations beginning May 1. Under the new guidelines, kindergartens, elementary, middle and high schools will reintroduce both academic and extracurricular activities, halting online classes, dropping self-testing routines and arrangin

Social Affairs April 21, 2022

From May 1, schools in Korea will resume normal operations under new guidelines. Schools will adapt “normalcy attendance” measures, meaning face-to-face classes will be held and online classes will be reserved for special circumstances. Extracurricular activities, such as field trips and group events, will be allowed. Self-testing routines will be dropped, too. The mask mandate, however, will be maintained at least until the end of the semester. The Ministry of Education announ

Social Affairs April 20, 2022

The number of COVID-19 cases among students and kindergarteners showed a 40 percent week-on-week drop, Seoul’s education authority said Tuesday, as schools prepare to return to normal with the attendance rate for schools in Seoul nearing 100 percent. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on Tuesday, 16,814 kindergarteners, elementary, middle and high school students contracted COVID-19 in April 11-17, marking a 40.8 percent drop from 28,366 from the week before. The

Social Affairs April 19, 2022

The Democratic Party of Korea ratcheted up its attack on President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s Cabinet nominations, raising allegations against a second nominee. Kim In-chul, the nominee for deputy prime minister and education minister, has been accused of improperly holding an additional position while he was president of the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. According to Rep. Park Chan-dae from the Democratic Party, Kim worked as a nonexecutive director of Lotte Chemical, then Lotte

Politics April 18, 2022

After more than two years since the COVID-19 pandemic hit all parts of the world, Korea is set to step into a new era, lifting major social distancing rules except for the mask mandate. Though the omicron wave is yet to be fully resolved here, the government has decided to lift pandemic-related rules, concluding that the virus peak has passed. On Friday, the disease control authorities presented a new virus response road map, lifting the preexisting social distancing rules such as the limit

Social Affairs April 17, 2022

The Jeollanamdo Provincial Government, which represents South Jeolla Province, aims to support young people of Korean ethnicity residing overseas through the K-Diaspora Youth Project. The regional office signed the memorandum of understanding on Monday with the Godowon Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to youth mentoring, the Blue Tree Foundation, an NGO against school violence, Rep. Yang Hyang-ja of Democratic Party and The Korea Herald, agreeing to work closely to educate youn

Social Affairs April 13, 2022

More than 1 in 4 elementary students have experienced greater feelings of depression during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Education Ministry said Wednesday. 　 Korea Research conducted a study on mental health of students in Korea, which ran from Feb. 11 to 18 and involved 341,412 elementary, middle and high school students, under the request of the ministry. While 27 percent of elementary students responded they have become more depressed than compared to before the pandemic, 26.3 percent said

Social Affairs April 13, 2022