Gwangjin-gu and Konkuk University will jointly run the "2026 New Government-Academia Collaboration Project" from July through August, linking the initiative to Seoul's ANCHOR project, the district announced.
The project was developed through four working-level meetings, building on an MOU the two institutions signed last year.
The collaboration gained added momentum this year after Seoul restructured and expanded its existing RISE program — a regional innovation-centered university support framework — into the ANCHOR program, a regional growth talent-development framework, prompting both sides to build a more effective cooperation model.
The project combines a "College Student Policy Planning Group" with Konkuk University's Living Lab initiative. The goal is to have young people analyze local issues and propose policies firsthand, while residents and students work together in real-life settings to design solutions to social problems — ultimately surfacing youth-driven, practical agenda items for district administration.
A total of 31 participants will take part: 16 members of the Gwangjin-gu College Student Policy Planning Group and 15 students from the Konkuk University Living Lab project.
They will be divided into eight teams covering areas including urban environment, policy communications and youth welfare.
In July, the program will focus on intensive capacity-building sessions and expert mentoring, drawing on Konkuk University's academic resources.
Participants will also visit key project sites across the district — including the area around Dong Seoul Terminal, a sports facility site in Gwangjang-dong and the former Hwayangcho Elementary School site — to develop concrete, actionable policy ideas.
In August, the two institutions will co-host a policy proposal competition. Outstanding proposals selected through expert judging will be actively incorporated into district administration, and top-performing teams will receive awards.
"This will be a meaningful opportunity to think through Gwangjin-gu's local challenges through the fresh eyes of university students," district mayor Kim Kyung-ho said. "We will actively reflect their valuable ideas in actual district governance and continue providing the necessary support, so this becomes a model case of universities and local communities growing together."
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