As the number of students with immigrant backgrounds in elementary, middle and high schools has surpassed 200,000, LG's commitment to nurturing youth from multicultural families into global talent has continued for 16 years.
At the "middle school immersion camp" held last month in Gangwon-do Gangneung by the "LG Love Multicultural School" (hereinafter "LG Multicultural School"), more than 90 students from eight language groups gathered for intensive training aimed at improving language skills and deepening their understanding of global cultures.
Since 2010, the public-private-academic Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program LG Multicultural School has educated about 450 elementary and middle school students selected each year with the cooperation of the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea, provincial and metropolitan offices of education, and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. It has produced more than 7,000 graduates through last year, and alumni who are now university students or working professionals joined this camp as mentors.
LG Multicultural School will also hold an elementary school vacation camp and a science camp at Seoul National University in August, followed by a middle school immersion camp in September. In November, it will co-host the 14th National Bilingual Speech Contest with the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea.
Meanwhile, LG is also supporting the visit to South Korea by heroes of Ethiopia's Kagnew Battalion, who fought for the Republic of Korea during the Korean War, as well as their descendants.
A total of 35 people, including the Gangnyu Choir made up of 34 descendants of Ethiopian war veterans and Korean War veteran Tesfaye Asmamaw, 95, will visit South Korea for 36 days starting June 22 and take part in a range of events.
LG is fully covering the Ethiopian delegation's travel and accommodation expenses, and is setting an example of public-private cooperation together with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs (MPVA), which is also sponsoring the event. The event is being hosted and organized by the nonprofit organization Warm Day, which has supported veterans of Ethiopia's Kagnew Battalion since 2016 and formed the Gangnyu Choir in 2018 to provide music education and promote international cultural exchange.
The Gangnyu Choir will attend the "International Veterans Affairs and Peace Project Concert" at the National Assembly on the 24th and the "76th Anniversary Ceremony of the Korean War" in Suwon on the 25th. It will also sing the national anthem at a professional baseball game between the LG Twins and the Samsung Lions at Jamsil Baseball Stadium on the 25th. The delegation will wrap up its schedule with a performance marking United Nations Forces Participation Day on July 27.
Beyond this sponsorship, LG also worked with KOICA and the Government of Ethiopia in 2014 to build the LG-KOICA Hope Vocational Training School, a technical training institute that has been providing IT education to local young people.
An LG official said, "Youth from multicultural families are global talents who can help address Korea's demographic cliff and become a driving force for future innovation. We will continue to support them so they can settle into all areas of society and grow into a future generation that also thrives on the global stage." The official added, "This visit by the Gangnyu Choir is more than a tribute to the noble sacrifice of Ethiopian war veterans. It is also a meaningful opportunity to connect with future generations through music."
Kim So-hyung, Sportschosun
