Seoul's Yongsan-gu has launched an initiative to strengthen the capabilities of community self-governance committee members across its 16 neighborhoods and build a foundation for inter-neighborhood cooperation.
The district held the "2026 Second-Half Community Self-Governance Tour" on Monday at Hwadamsup forest park in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, and nearby facilities.
A total of 81 community self-governance committee members from all 16 neighborhoods in Yongsan-gu took part. The event was organized to help participants manage conflicts that arise in community self-governance settings, share activity experiences and ideas across neighborhoods, and promote greater civic engagement.
A highlight of the program was a case-based training session linked to the Seoul Metropolitan Government's outreach education initiative for community self-governance. Participants examined a range of conflict scenarios that can occur in real community settings and learned methods for mediating differences of opinion among residents, as well as approaches to problem-solving through communication and cooperation.
Following the training, participants toured Hwadamsup and took part in exchange activities. They shared examples of community self-governance work and operational experiences from their respective neighborhoods, and explored ways to collaborate on advancing community self-governance going forward.
Community self-governance committees are neighborhood-level civic organizations that play an important role in local society — running programs at community centers, supporting residents' self-governance activities, and fostering a sense of community.
District Mayor Kim Kyung-dae said community self-governance is "a process in which residents communicate, cooperate and work together to solve local problems." Kim expressed hope that the tour would "serve as an opportunity to strengthen committee members' conflict-resolution and communication skills, and to build a foundation for cooperation toward community development by sharing each other's experiences and wisdom."
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
