“Although listening to the community’s opinions and conveying information are closely intertwined, they can easily be treated as separate tasks in the field. Public information should be viewed as a communication process that does not stop at one-way conveying information.”
Lee Eun-hye (36), chairman of the Canadian Laurier Institute, who visited her home country to attend the 'World Korean Next Generation Conference' recently held at Songdo Convensia in Incheon by the Office of Overseas Koreans, met with Yonhap News at the event venue on the 30th of last month and revealed her philosophy on official development assistance (ODA) projects.
Chairman Lee's suggestion was not just a discussion, but came from vivid field experience over 10 years in humanitarian aid and peace building, which are major fields of ODA.
He majored in communications at Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Canada and received a master's degree in international peace studies from the Kroc Institute for Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame. He is a next-generation leader who has been active on the international stage in the fields of dialogue, civic participation, peace building, and diversity.
The Laurier Institute, of which he serves as chairman, is a non-profit organization that carries out various activities to promote diversity and inclusion in Canadian society.
In particular, while working as a fellow at the Brazil and New York offices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in 2022, he wrote a policy note on the participation and information communication of the refugee community based on the limitations of communication he felt in the refugee relief field.
A policy note at the time called for treating refugees as “local professional partners” rather than simple beneficiaries and institutionalizing two-way communication as regular practice.
Based on this field experience, he gave sound advice to Korea's current ODA field and overseas Korean policy.
He said, “Regular opinion collection is important, but it is difficult to know all the information and questions people need,” and “We must listen to questions and concerns during the information delivery process, and what we learn from conversations with the community must be reflected in the content and delivery method of the next guidance.”
He added, "The government and institutions must recognize the practice of listening to people's opinions and establishing ongoing relationships, and provide the time and resources for those in charge to do that work."
He pointed out that ‘the ability to read the structure of influence’ is essential when discussing diversity and inclusion policies. Chairman Lee emphasized, “What I learned while working in the Canadian community is that participation is not achieved simply by gathering diverse people in one place.”
He also explained that “influence is not determined solely by official position,” and that “who has access to information and resources and can influence decisions also varies depending on race, gender, language, economic conditions, and historical relationships in a society.”
Citing the example of technical experts participating in local projects, he said that diverse experiences can be reflected in the business by looking not only at the technical solutions, but also who will use and manage the technology, who will receive the benefits and burdens, and whose opinions were left out in the design process.
He ordered that strengthening women's leadership in peace-building projects also requires an essential approach.
In the past, she conducted dialogue programs with peace mediators at various sites and participated as a civil society representative in the UN Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Week. She said, "Women are the ones affected by conflict, but they are also the ones who prevent conflict and create peace."
Chairman Lee said, “Strengthening women’s leadership does not stop at simply changing the gender composition of meeting attendees,” and added, “We need to find out about the activities that local women have been doing in the community, and that women should be able to contribute substantially to the direction of the project and resource allocation.”
This perspective also led to action toward the Korean diaspora society.
Chairman Lee co-founded ‘Women’s Hill Ministries’ to help the wives of Korean pastors living in other cultures with their identity concerns.
He said, “Women are expected to take on various roles at church and at home while adapting to immigrant life, but the scope of their work or the support for it may not be clear, so I felt like they were in a blind spot.” He added, “There is a need to not take women’s contributions for granted, but to recognize them as a part of their capabilities and leadership.”
A direction for overseas Korean youth to advance into mainstream society was also presented. The Laurier Institute Board of Directors is currently preparing to pilot a ‘Community Leadership through Dialogue’ scholarship program for high school students.
He explained, “It is not enough to encourage the next generation of Koreans to ‘enter mainstream society,’” and “only by understanding the backgrounds of different opinions and cultivating the ability to communicate to find solutions together can they discover what role they can play in the society they belong to.”
As a way for the Korean community to build trust with the local community, he advised, "Because experiences differ depending on generation, time of migration, occupation, and living environment, we must first look into whose stories are being heard and whose experiences are missing."
In addition, he added, “It is necessary to explain the perspective of the Korean community in a language that the local community can understand, while also respecting the history and experiences of other communities.”
He suggested to the Korean government and the Overseas Koreans Office, "It would be good to see the next generation of Koreans as cooperative partners with expertise and local experience," and "I hope that as exchanges continue, the next generation of Koreans will have a deeper understanding of Korean society and that Korea will also listen to their experiences and interests."
