Excellent University Student Volunteers of the GICO G-UM Volunteer Group, donate their cash prizes

– Excellent University Student Volunteers, donate about 10 million KRW to repair the homes of the people in need

Attention has been drawn to the five Excellent University Student Volunteers of the G-UM Volunteer Group run by Gyeonggi Urban Innovation Corporation (GICO, CEO Choi Geum-shik), who expressed their intent to donate the cash prizes they had received.

According to GICO, the five individuals were given cash prizes to enroll in the Wooden Construction School operated by Habitat Korea for having been chosen as Excellent University Student Volunteers upon the completion of the G-UM remodeling work, but they instead decided to donate the money (approx. 10 million KRW) to repair the homes of impoverished families.

The G-UM Remodeling Program was chosen during the Social Contribution Idea Contest conducted in 2013 by GICO. In this program, university students majoring in architecture and similar academic disciplines collaborate with a non-government organization, Habitat Korea, on remodeling old welfare facilities for the elderly.

In the latest remodeling project, 30 architecture students chosen in April 2014 formed a volunteer group with 20 executives and employees of GICO personally took part in every stage from design to construction. As a result, the “Rest Area of Love,” a communal living facility for seniors, was completed in Namyangju on December 13.

The participating students explained that while they had participated in numerous home remodeling volunteer projects, this was their first chance to be involved in the design process and that made it extra meaningful. They also added that the construction know-how shared by the GICO employees was especially helpful.

Since 2007, GICO has been engaging in a wide variety of corporate social responsibility programs including G-Housing, which aims to improve the living environment for low-income families in Gyeonggi-do Province, and there are plans to expand the scope of the G-UM Remodeling Program this year as well.