Inside Korea’s Social Impact

Young professionals working in South Korea’s social impact sector (clockwise from left): Lee Gidae, Na Hyunhong, Kim Wangyoung, and Jeon Sungwook. (Photo courtesy of the individuals; taken in advance.)   In a previous article, we met four young people in South Korea who are working to expand social value and sustainability in their own ways, each from their respective positions. They are members of SE-ACT, which has been introduced before. Whenever major social issues arise in South Korea, they have supported responses through solidarity. Currently, they are planning and running various programs to encourage more people to take interest in the social solidarity economy and social innovation.   👉Related articles  SE-ACT Part 1 The Birth of SE-ACT Amid Korea’s Democratic Crisis (Part 1) SE-ACT Part 2 The Birth of SE-ACT Amid Korea’s Democratic Crisis (Part 2)   In this article, we share a compilation of responses to a common set of questions posed to the four ...

  [Editor’s Note🖉] Korea’s cooperative movement and social and solidarity economy have grown rapidly over a relatively short period of time, supported by legal and institutional frameworks. Since the enactment of the Framework Act on Cooperatives in 2012, cooperatives have expanded steadily across various sectors, evolving beyond a single organizational form.   Today, however, the central question is shifting — from “How many cooperatives have been created?” to “How well are they actually functioning?” The focus is moving away from quantitative growth toward qualitative maturity.   This interview captures the perspective of Kim Wang-young, CEO of CoopBiz Cooperative, who has long engaged with cooperatives and the social and solidarity economy through the lens of education. As both a young practitioner and a long-time participant in the field, he offers candid reflections from on-the-ground experience. Rather than focusing solely on institutional outcomes or busin...

  [Editor’s Note🖍] Korea’s social solidarity economy (often referred to as the social economy) is frequently described as “meaningful work.” Yet behind that phrase lie many practical challenges that are not easily visible. Organizations and individuals who place social value at the center of their work often find themselves navigating constant choices between the market and institutional systems.   This article is the second interview with Seonguk Jeon, CEO of the social venture Soact Co., Ltd. He is also a member of SE-ACT, which was introduced in the previous interview.   In this conversation, Jeon shares challenges and concerns drawn from his own experiences as well as from observing the field up close. He speaks calmly about the gap between social value and consumers, concerns around stability and sustainability, and how younger generations view the social economy in Korea.   Rather than portraying the social solidarity economy as an idealized model,...

[Editor’s Note🖊] How does a young person who simply wanted to “do good” grow into an innovator working to reshape corporate governance?   This interview features Seonguk Jeon, who began with the aspiration to build a company that does good, and went on to work across various fields of the social and solidarity economy — including social enterprises, cooperatives, intermediary support organizations, and member-based networks. Today, he is active as a social economy expert and the founder of the social venture Soact Inc.   Organizations in the social and solidarity economy are expected to pursue both social value and financial sustainability, which can sometimes make them difficult for consumers or investors to fully understand. However, this very characteristic can also be a strength. Building a virtuous cycle of K-Impact — where value creation and financial systems reinforce each other — has become increasingly important.   In this interview, Jeon shares how he f...

Nahyunhong, a community leader running a social economy network in Korea (Photo courtesy of Nahyunhong)   In the previous article, we explored how “connection” takes shape in the field of social economy and social innovation through an interview with Na Hyunhong, a community expert working in Korea’s social impact sector. We examined how online communities and open chat rooms — relatively lightweight formats — have expanded into nationwide networks. 👀Read Part 1 of the Interview The Power That Connects Korea’s Social Economy Ecosystem: Community Expert Interview (Part 1) In this second installment, we take a step further through Na Hyunhong’s interview to examine what connection truly means on the ground. We look more closely at the principles and philosophies that guide community building, as well as what is needed for Korea’s social impact ecosystem to grow sustainably. Going beyond the idea of community as simply a gathering space, this interview asks how communities actually...

Nahyunhong (right) pictured with a cooperative member(Photo courtesy of Nahyunhong)   Social economy and social innovation are not abstract concepts. In practice, they take shape through real people with clear roles, actively working in the field. Among them, those who connect — linking regions and institutions, experimentation and scale — are already playing a critical role in helping social economy and social innovation function effectively and expand further. By identifying needs both online and offline, they create structures that allow actors with different values and speeds to work together.   These community experts are not merely intermediaries; they are practitioners who sustain momentum. They go beyond simply connecting people, supporting collaborations so that they lead to tangible outcomes. While failures and trial-and-error inevitably arise along the way, they help transform these experiences into accumulated knowledge and know-how.   For the social e...

  Cooperatives bring together diverse stakeholders — such as local residents, workers, and consumers — to collectively address shared needs and challenges. In South Korea, cooperatives have offered practical alternatives in areas where public interest and sustainability are essential, including job creation, local economic revitalization, care services, housing, and energy transition. Through principles of democratic governance and collective ownership, cooperatives connect economic activity with social value.   This article is the second installment of an interview with Lee Gi-dae, one of the most prominent cooperative experts in South Korea and Deputy Director of the Research Institute affiliated with CoopBiz Cooperative. In this part, we explore the role of cooperatives in addressing social challenges and the directions needed for their sustainable development. 😎 Read Part 1😊 The Rise of K-Cooperatives: An Interview with Expert Ki-dae Lee (Part 1) A photo of Lee Gi-...

 South Korea’s social economy has grown rapidly over the past decade, largely through government-led support systems. A key turning point came in 2012, when the United Nations designated the year as the International Year of Cooperatives. In the same year, South Korea enacted the Framework Act on Cooperatives, laying the legal foundation for cooperative development. Since then, cooperatives in Korea have continued to grow steadily.   This article features an interview with Lee Gi-dae, a leading expert in the Korean cooperative sector. Lee currently serves as Deputy Director of the Research Institute affiliated with CoopBiz Cooperative, Chairperson of Dream Sharing Social Cooperative, and General Committee Member of the Policy and Institutional Committee of the Korea Social and Solidarity Economy Association. He is also actively involved in SE-ACT (Solidarity Economy in Action), which has been introduced previously on this blog. For clarity and consistency, he will be refer...