Opportunities We were Missing Out -An Interview with the Mayor of Daejeon

1. What are the visions on youth policies and how is it going to be progressed?

  I believe the youth generation is our future's leader and property. Because investing in them are like investing for us all, youth policies have to cover overall on youth dwelling policies, cultural facilities, and welfare policies as well as job placement services or employment policies. In my time, I will try to push ahead youth policies while putting employment policies up first.

  First, Daejeon will be made the greatest technology start up city in Korea by concentrating on promoting 2000 startups on youth’s venture marketing and by making an innovative foundation atmosphere. A ‘Museum of Failure’, which will help consolation for failed businesses to stand up again will be created. It will be used as education taught by startup professionals from analyzing the causes of failure. Second, 40% of Sejong’s population that had transferred from Daejeon claims the main reason of the movement was dwelling problems. Daejeon will provide 3000 dream houses for youth and newlywed householders while making a comfortable and healthy growth environment to children from making about 100 public nurseries. 12 projects were promoted as ‘Regional Leading Youth Job Foundation’ giving flexibility to make youth job placements by receiving two hundred million won from the government. I will try my best to make Daejeon a young city by up close polices for the youths.

2. Even though university students strive for employment, there are students who are unaware of what youth policies offers. Can you please explain for the CNU students?

  Daejeon City is pursuing a youth policy tailored to the life cycle of the youth (college students, job seekers, and employees). In order to alleviate the burden of tuition fees for college students, we will support 'Tuition Fee Support' and 'Youth Hope Scholarship'. For those who are looking for work, we will provide 'Youth Employment Card' and 'Financial Support for Credit Recovery' to support expenses needed for job searching activities, and 'Young Hope Passbook' and 'Housing Lease Deposit' to local workers. We are promoting a new co-op "new leader training program", a youth job creation project for university students, which is a cooperative type of program that builds career through job experience during college years that connects with employment immediately after graduation.

  - Co-op program: An educational system that runs an internship in a company related to school education. Every year 18,000 students participate in 120 programs / 5,500 people have become an employee at Apple, Facebook, Amazon etc. During the vacation or semester, students will be working for less than 40 hours a week within the range of 1 month to 6 months, receiving 9,500 won per hour (monthly average 1.5 million won) in Daedeok Innopolis research institute, venture enterprise and medium-sized enterprise. In 2018, a total of 600 people will be the goal, where the project budget is 3.7 billion won.

  In addition, we have formed the Daejeon youth policy network to meet with young people at the eye level, to understand and communicate culture, and to utilize it as a communication window for collecting various opinions of young people. Search for information on Daejeon youth homepage (http://www.daejeonyouth.co.kr)

  We are pursuing a project to discover the dreams and talents of youth artists like ‘First Art Project’, ‘Public Facilities Art Project’, ‘Youth UNIV Drama Festival’. Moreover, as a school project of Daejeon youth, we made 10 student departments, such as the production of my own songs, which are not accessible at normal schools. (Young people community activation support project: Open competition every year/ 50 ~ 5 million won support) Two to three times a week, Job seeker’s cafes are operated as customized employment counseling by job experts. In particular, it provides employment consulting through resume writing, self introduction letter writing and step-by-step trainings on interview skills.

 -Kairos (Chungnam National University), U&I (Hannam University), CoffeeNee (Usong University), Daily (Hanbat National University), Pascuchi (Mokwon University)

  There are three ‘youth cooperative activity space’ created and operated by young people.

 -Cheongnin Area : Daejeon Station (Collaboair), Shark Zone (Joint Consortium), Chungcheong Today (Honeycomb Consortium)

 -Youth Loft : Remodeled former Jungang-dong resident center, establishment for young entrepreneurship and activity, space shared by residents

  -Original City Center Cooperation Space for Youths : Utilized of idle space in the original city center (total 11 facilities, facility construction fee, rent support)

We will try hard in the future, but we hope that Daejeon youths would actively suggest to us about their opinions.

 

Youth Policy Tailored to the Life Cycle of the Youth

  ■ For College students

-Reduce tuition fees, promote job experience and employment consulting

-Reduced tuition fees: Support for student loans, support for desired scholarships (October)

-Business linking and consulting: : Nae son eul jaba jwo(take my hand), job café(Kairos)

-Job seekers and start ups : lessen burdens by providing support

-Hope card support : job seeking activity - cost /300,000 Won per month × 6 month / application only available to students in their final year of study 

-Entrepreneurial card: Within three years and over three months after the start of business/300,000 Won per month × 6 month/ Hope for success

■ For employees

-Enhancement of regional economies to help employees settle and live a stable life

-Hope passbook support : 500 adolescents / 150,000 won a month for three years (11 million won)

-Fellowship for young people of tomorrow : Mutual support by matching government, business, and youth for 3 years (20 million won)

 

3. As the proud alumni of CNU, please give advices for the future to the students.

  At the time in university, I took the lead in the democratization movement with the idea that social justice was the first priority. while I worked in the industrial complex, I still faught in the labor and civil society movements. The hot days are mingled in me, and the process is not a painful wound, but passion, philosophy and consciousness, becoming internal energy for politics now in my Fifties.  I am not ashamed of how I lived my twenties, actually I have tremendous pride. The twenties were when I was the fiercest above all my years, and I knew I would have regretted it if I did not live as I did. So, I think it is important to do what you want to do during your youth. Try new challenges by finding something that you can pour your passion and don’t be frustrated with the difficult reality of unemployment.

 

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