Inside Korea’s Social Impact

  In a previous blog post, I introduced a learning group that I participate in called Social Peer Learning (SPL). We had another SPL meeting on February 28, and in this post I would like to share some of the key ideas discussed during that session.   👉Read related articles A Monthly “Social Peer Learning” Gathering: A Learning Community I Am Part Of The topic of the session was “Corporate Social Responsibility and the Social and Solidarity Economy.” We discussed why corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities are important for the social impact sector.   🌞The Situation of Social Impact Organizations in Korea   What distinguishes social impact organizations from conventional businesses is that their primary goal is to address social problems. Because of this mission-driven nature, many social impact organizations tend to be relatively small and often face limitations in terms of resources.   As a result, questions about long-term sustainability...

  One of the persistent social issues in South Korea is the concentration of resources and opportunities in Seoul and the greater metropolitan area. In recent years, there have been growing calls to strengthen regional development, and the atmosphere is slowly shifting. Nevertheless, the structural tendency toward centralization in Seoul remains strong.   The same pattern can be observed in the fields of the Social and Solidarity Economy and social innovation. Compared to other sectors, the social impact field arguably has more people who remain in their local communities and work for regional development. However, because the broader social and economic environment is heavily centered around Seoul, many forums, seminars, conferences, and networking events still take place primarily in the capital region.   While social impact ecosystems have been established across different parts of the country, in reality the ecosystem often appears to be structured around the ...

  While working as a journalist covering the fields of the Social and Solidarity Economy and social innovation, there was one question I frequently asked founders and managers of social impact enterprises. Even when I did not raise it myself, I often heard the same question discussed at forums and seminars: “What is the most essential factor in running your organization?”  ❓ Most social impact entrepreneurs gave remarkably similar answers. To operate their organizations in a stable and sustainable way, they need a reliable space — a physical place where their teams can work. And they emphasized that this space is not optional; it is essential.   Although workplaces in South Korea, like many parts of the world, are increasingly shifting toward digital environments, gathering in an offline space remains highly significant. For social impact enterprises, space is more than just a workplace. Especially for organizations that pursue both value and profit, space becomes a s...