Individuals who regularly suffer from stress-related disorders are at a higher risk of developing dementia, according to a new study on Thursday. Professor Jang Sung-in’s research team from Yonsei University’s department of preventive medicine discovered a connection between stress and dementia by studying 8,906 patients diagnosed with stress-related disorders and 26,718 patients without such disorders over 11 years. The findings were published in the latest issue of the internationa

Social Affairs Oct. 5, 2023

Two new Seoul Guided Walking Tour courses in Seoul are now available for tourists to explore historical and cultural sites, Seoul Tourism Organization and Seoul Metropolitan Government said Tuesday. Both tours are available in seven languages -- Korean, English, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Indonesian and Vietnamese -- and have interpretation services for the visually and hearing impaired. “Hidden Stories of Hangang-daero, Yongsan” is a 3.5-kilometer walking tour that starts at Yongsan S

Social Affairs Oct. 4, 2023

With autumn now here, Seoul's district offices will be hosting a variety of festivals open to everyone and free of charge. The festivities will take place Oct. 3-9 and include dance performances, a city run, K-pop performance, a competitive parade, a street sports beer party and fashion shows. The following is a list of the district festivals set to take place celebrating the return of fall. World Folk Dance Festival in Seongdong After a four-year hiatus, Seongdong-gu in eastern Seoul wil

Travel Oct. 1, 2023

The first Mayors' Forum of the 12th biennial World Cities Summit Mayors Forum took place on Monday at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in eastern Seoul. "I am pleased to discuss sustainable and inclusive cities in Seoul, where 'accompanying the weak' is a core value," said Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon while delivering his welcoming remarks at the forum on Monday. Oh also shared the city government's policy achievements with "Seoul Learn," an online learning platform for

Social Affairs Sept. 25, 2023

The Suncheonman International Garden Expo, which kicked off on April 1, will show off its fall flowers over the Chuseok holiday. After first launching in 2013, the Suncheonman International Garden Expo in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, has returned for the first time in 10 years. The expo organizers said while the first edition focused on preventing urban expansion, this year's expo builds on it to include landscape gardens in wetland and urban areas, stretching across 545 hectares. The

Social Affairs Sept. 25, 2023

Roh Gwan-gyu was elected mayor of Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, in June 2022 -- just 10 months before the Suncheonman International Garden Expo. While there was limited time, Roh made sure everything was being prepared smoothly by assuming the position as the Chairman of Suncheonman International Garden Expo’s organizing committee. “Since I took office on July 1 (2022), I was always present on site to help the organizing committee make quick decisions and supplement them,” s

Social Affairs Sept. 25, 2023

Dongseoul Bus Terminal, located in Gwangjin-gu, eastern Seoul, is to be redeveloped into a sailboat-shaped mixed-use development, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s “100-Year Urban Planning Initiative.” The announcement comes after Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited New York City's Port Authority Bus Terminal, part of Manhattan's Hudson Yards, an 11-hectare, $25 billion real estate development on top of a mid-19th-century railyard with housing, office buildi

Social Affairs Sept. 21, 2023

More than 2,000 passengers were injured while using the subway in Seoul over the last five years. By subway line, Line No. 2 recorded the highest number of injured passengers. According to data released by Rep. Hwang Hee of the Democratic Party of Korea, a total of 2,485 passengers were involved in safety accidents while aboard subway Lines No. 1 to 9 from 2019 to August this year. By year, 671 passengers were recorded to have been injured on Seoul’s subways in 2019, 457 in 2020, 482 in 20

Social Affairs Sept. 20, 2023

A ceremony to commemorate the 71st anniversary of the erection of the Camp Tiano War Memorial took place in Yanggu-gun, Gangwon Province on Monday. The Camp Tiano War Memorial was built to commemorate the 19th Battalion Combat Team from the Philippine Expeditionary Force to Korea who died during the Battle of Hill Eerie in 1952 while fighting against the Chinese Communist Forces during the 1950-53 Korean War. The camp was given its name to honor the troops that died during the battle, including

Social Affairs Sept. 19, 2023

A domed baseball stadium and convention center will be built in Jamsil as part of Seoul City’s initiative to develop the area in Songpa-gu, southern Seoul, the city government said Monday. As part of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s eight-day trip to Canada and the US, Oh announced the city’s plans to build a domed baseball stadium and convention center after visiting the Rogers Centre in Toronto on Saturday. The Rogers Centre is a multi-purpose baseball stadium and is home to the Toro

Social Affairs Sept. 18, 2023

Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of the North Korean leader, could be seen grasping a $7,000 bag from French luxury fashion brand Christian Dior during Kim Jong-un’s visit to the Yuri Gagarin Aviation Plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Russia on Friday. According to a picture released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency, Kim Yo-jong was holding the black bag with quilting patterns like that of the Lady Dior bag currently being sold via Dior’s official website. Kim accom

Social Affairs Sept. 17, 2023

The bodies of five found inside a family home in Yeongam, South Jeolla Province, on Friday, are believed to be those of a man in his 50s who killed his wife and three sons in their 20s before taking his own life by drinking poison, police said Sunday. South Jeolla Police Agency said an initial autopsy showed the man, identified by his last name of Kim, died of poisoning, while his wife and three children died from stab wounds. Police found one knife and a bottle of insecticide in a search of the

Social Affairs Sept. 17, 2023

Venture capital houses have long found themselves leaning toward startups that offer business models featuring technologies that shape a better future for the next generation. Even during times of economic uncertainty, the investor appetite for business models that address issues of the future shows no signs of abating. Lim Sung-hoon, general partner of venture capital firm D3 Jubilee Partners, is one of the investors looking out for future environmental technologies that address problems surrou

Social Affairs Sept. 14, 2023

A bus driver who struck and killed an 8-year-old boy at a school zone crosswalk in May in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, was given a 6-year sentence in court on Thursday. “As a bus driver who had been driving the same route for three years, the defendant was aware that the location (of the incident) was a school zone with a right-turn traffic light, and that it was frequented by students attending an elementary school nearby,” said the Suwon District Court. “The accident could have

Social Affairs Sept. 14, 2023

The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s global startup festival, “Try Everything,” took off on Wednesday at Dongdaemun Design Plaza in eastern Seoul. Scheduled to be held until Sept. 15, up to 1,500 startup companies were in attendance, along with 220 domestic and overseas venture capital firms. Since hosting “Start-Up Seoul: Tech Rise” in 2019, the city government has hosted the startup festival “Try Everything” every September. Under the slogan, “Sta

Social Affairs Sept. 13, 2023