Greetings, everyone, and thank you for joining us for this week’s edition of GTV. I’m Don Valiant and this is the news from Gyeonggi Province this week. 1. Gyeonggi’s Support Projects for Military Zone Residents (0525-1) Gyeonggi Province is home to more than 600 military bases. For residents in military facility protection zones, which account for half of northern provincial regions, the province has been pursuing SOC projects so as to alleviate hardships stemming from various zone restrictions. ► Community in Chogwa-2-Ri, Pocheon City Road surfaces in this Pocheon (포천) City community have been seriously degraded by the frequent passage of heavy vehicles to and from a nearby military base, causing difficulties for local residents. However, with support from Gyeonggi Province, Pocheon City allocated KRW 170 million to restore the roads. ► Park Gwang-bok, Chogwa-2-Ri Resident Head “This road was too narrow and dangerous. It has been improved significantly with a greater width and restored surface.” ► GTV Reporter Kim Tae-hui “Last year, a new road complete with a drainage system was constructed along this formerly unpaved route between a military base and a local village.” This project was made possible by a related ordinance aimed at addressing the hardships experienced by residents near military bases. ► Cho Seong-hae, Deputy Director, Gyeonggi Province Military-Public Office Corporation Team “We launched this program for residents around military bases so as to compensate for the sacrifices they make for the sake of national defense.” ► KRW 3.2 Billion Earmarked for Military Zone Support Projects Such military zone support projects are now marking their third year with KRW 3.2 billion allocated for this year. ► 26 Projects in Northern Gyeonggi Regions Planned for 2020 A total of 26 projects will be implemented this year, beginning with the construction of drainage systems around a military base in Paju (파주) City for the prevention of farm flooding during the monsoon season. Other projects include the development of a forest trail in Gimpo (김포) City, the installation of electric safety signboards around a gunnery range in Yangpyeong (양평) County, and the creation of a community soccer field in Dongducheon (동두천) City.   2. Gyeonggi Designates 21st of Every Month as ‘Pet Adoption Culture Day’ (0525-2) In Gyeonggi Province, the 21st day of each month has been designated as Pet Adoption Culture Day. This year, related public events, which are attracting interest, are scheduled take place online to facilitate social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. ► Gyeonggi Province Assistance Dogs Sharing Center (May 21) YouTube Live Broadcast: ‘Creating Happy Families with Homeless Animals One such event was a live YouTube broadcast of pet specialists answering viewer questions about the adoption of homeless animals. This broadcast also included an event to connect adopters and homeless dogs. ► Comment by Event Participant “Since my Juicy is a Welsh Corgi, he is very active and sheds lots of hair.” This live YouTube broadcast is scheduled to take place every Pet Adoption Culture Day, the 21st day of each month. ► Nam Yeong-hui, Deputy Director, Gyeonggi Province Animal Welfare Team “Gyeonggi Province is organizing various online and offline pet adoption events so as to reduce the number of euthanized animals and to promote adoption culture.” Each month, the broadcast covers different topics such as dog pounds, animal training, and pet grooming. It also shares information about foster care as well as adoption processes in the form of video blogs. ► Kim Ju-a, Foster Pet Caregiver (featured in vlog) “(I began working as a foster caregiver) since I wanted to determine if I could adopt a pet myself and to care for animals while they are on waiting lists.” Other contents include photo contests among adopters as well as sports and dance lessons for homeless animals. ► Information: CHFHA Website (http://animalfamily.cafe24.com/) Program information can be obtained from the ‘Creating Happy Families with Homeless Animals’ website.   3. Agri-food Drive-thru Market Opens in Multiple Gyeonggi Locations (0527-1) With drive-thrus having become popular means of social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, a drive-thru agri-food market opened in rotation at a number of locations in Gyeonggi Province. ► Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Government Complex (May 23) Specialty Agri-food Sales Event At this drive-thru, a line of cars approaches the agri-food sales area. All the drivers have to do is fill out and hand in orders while remaining in their cars. Salespeople then load the ordered items into the trunks of the vehicles. ► Gang Hye-ran, Uijeongbu City Resident “This drive-thru system is safe and also convenient since they load the purchases for me. It is a wonderful and reliable system…” At this market, shoppers can buy agricultural, marine and horticultural products at prices that are approximately one third lower than those found at other markets. ► Cash, Credit Cards and Disaster-related Basic Income Accepted Purchases can be made with cash and credit cards as well as disaster-related basic income. This drive-thru market event was organized by the province to aid school meal suppliers who are affected by the delayed opening of schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. ► Kim Chung-beom, Director General, Gyeonggi Province Agricultural Administration Bureau “The goods sold here are school meal ingredients that students would be eating under normal circumstances. With the reopening of schools postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we organized this event to alleviate difficulties experienced by suppliers by helping with their sales.” ► Goods Valued at KRW 1.5 Billion Sold at 13 Drive-thru Sales Locations to Date Since the first event held at the Suwon Sports Complex, this drive-thru market has opened at 13 locations in the province, realizing total sales of KRW 1.5 billion so far. ► Gang Wi-won, President, Gyeonggi agroFood Institute “Since the first event about a month and a half ago, the drive-thru agri-food market has taken place at a total of 13 locations to date. Total sales amount to nearly KRW 1.5 billion.” The most recent drive-thru agri-food market event was held at Imjingak (임진각) on May 30.   4. Common Workshop for Youths Opens in Yeoju City (0526) In Yeoju (여주) City, a common workshop for youths, titled ‘Tomorrow Square’, recently opened. At this workshop, users can prepare for jobs or startups while interacting with each other in a comfortable environment. ► Startup Workplace for Youths, ‘Tomorrow Square’, Yeoju City With an interior done in a comfortable café style, Tomorrow Square includes common spaces for use by youths as study rooms, meeting rooms, and offices, as well as a kitchen. Tomorrow Square is popular among students on tight budgets since all of its facilities are available free of charge except on weekends. ► An Nam-gyu, ‘Tomorrow Square’ User “I was studying at a café when I decided to come here and see what it’s like. I found it better than cafes. I became a frequent user since this place is comfortable, clean and well equipped.” Tomorrow Square also offers diverse programs on job coaching, hobbies and other cultural programs. It is expected to become an information-sharing and networking center for youths in Yeoju (여주) City who had lacked such facilities. ► Lee Mi-rim, Deputy Director, Yeoju City Youth Support Team “I believe that, by working together in similar pursuits, youths in Yeoju will be happier staying in the city and lead happier lives without leaving for big cities.” The establishment of Tomorrow Square was one of the pledges undertaken by the current Gyeonggi provincial administration. ► 12 Locations in Gyeonggi Selected for Tomorrow Square Establishment Beginning with locations in the cities of Goyang (고양) and Gimpo (김포) last year, the Tomorrow Square will be established in 6 other cities this year and in 2 more cities next year. ► Kim Kyeong-hwan, Director, Gyeonggi Province Youth Welfare Policy Division “We expect that Tomorrow Squares will serve as information exchange centers through spaces for youths. We hope they will also be used as active social participation spaces for youths in the future.” Gyeonggi Province’s Tomorrow Squares are expected to become spaces that can help youths through difficult times and enable them to prepare for the future.   5. Gyeonggi Opens Private Social Service Activity Support Center (0528) With private organizations playing greater roles in resolving social issues, Gyeonggi Province established a provincial support center for private social service activities in Suwon (수원) City on May 27. ► Ansan Citizens Association for Economic Justice The Ansan (안산) Citizens Association for Economic Justice, established by former local labor activists, operates with the aim of ensuring resident opinions are heard by public policymakers. Through various activities, this organization has achieved a number of successes including the enactment of an ordinance that enables residents to operate autonomous activity groups. ► Ko Seon-yeong, Secretary-General, Ansan Citizens Association for Economic Justice “When we see more residents joining the activities through personal encouragement and witness changes being made in Ansan City, we feel rewarded for our efforts.” There are more than 2,000 NGOs operating in Gyeonggi Province in diverse fields including welfare, social services and volunteer activities as well as international exchanges. ► Gyeonggi Provincial Private Social Service Support Center, Suwon City (May 27) Opening Ceremony This new provincial support center will help those NGOs with operational issues. ► Comprehensive Facilities Include Common Workspaces, Conference Rooms and a Café This center houses meeting rooms for collaboration between social service activists and civic groups as well as a café for residents. It operates 7 related projects including in-house as well as on-site regional meetings. ► First Project to Support Activities That Help Society Overcome COVID-19 Crisis This center’s first project will be the application-based provision of support for social service activities that contribute to COVID-19 responses. ► Gyeonggi Province Vice Governor for Peace Lee Jae-gang “I ask you to play major roles in realizing a resident-led administration that can swiftly reflect the fair opinions of residents. I believe that the social service activity support center will play a leading role in this regard.” Gyeonggi Province expects that the enhancement of NGO potential through the new social service activity support center will help expand channels for resident participation in formulating and implementing policies. Thank you for joining us for this week’s edition of GTV. We look forward to seeing you again next week.