A comparative examination of policy and models of disability in Korea and the UK

Over the last three decades, the understanding of disability has changed substantially, changes in theoretical debates and policy on disability now encourage society to understand and treat disabled people as ordinary citizens. However, arguably the dominance of Western theory on disability has resulted in the marginalisation of disabled people’s experiences in non Western cultures. This paper compares disability in relation to the culture of South Korea and the UK, by attempting to articulate some of the implicit values of disability and development of the relevant disability polic

Development of Free Economic Zones and Labor Standards: A Case Study of Free Economic Zones in Korea

Development_of_FreeEFZ_KOREA_by_Lee.pdf: 4040 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

How Design Plays Strategic Roles in Internet Service Innovation: Lessons from Korean Companies

In order to survive in the highly competitive internet business, companies have to provide differentiated services that can satisfy the rapidly changing users’ tastes and needs. Designers have been increasingly committed to achieving user satisfaction by generating and visualizing innovative solutions in new internet service development. The roles of internet service design have expanded from a narrow focus on aesthetics into a more strategic aspect. This paper investigates the methods of managing design in order to enhance companies’ competitiveness in internet business. The main research processes are to: (1) explore the current state of internet service design in Korea through in-depth interviews with professional designers and survey questionnaires to 30 digital design agencies and 60 clients; (2) compare how design is managed between in-house design groups and digital design agencies though the case studies of five Korean companies; and (3) develop a taxonomy characterizing four roles of designers in conjunction with the levels of their strategic contributions to internet service innovation: visualist, solution provider, concept generator, and service initiator. In addition, we demonstrate the growing contributions of the strategic use of design for innovating internet services, building robust brand equity, and increasing business performance. Keywords: Design Management; Internet Business; Internet Service Design; Digital Design; Digital Design Agency; In-House Design Group, Case Study</p

Change and Transformation in Asian Industrial Relations

Authors argue that industrial relations systems change due to shifts in the constraints facing those systems, and that the most salient constraints facing IR systems in Asia have shifted from those of maintaining labor peace and stability in the early stages of industrialization, to those of increasing both numerical and functional flexibility in the 1980s and 1990s. The evidence to sustain the argument is drawn from seven “representative” Asian IR systems: Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, India, and China. They also distinguish between systems that have smoothly adapted (Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines) and systems that have fundamentally transformed (China and South Korea), and hypothesize about the reasons for this difference

Care services for frail older people in South Korea

This paper examines the changed social circumstances of older people in South Korea and specifically the increased need for formal health and social services for those who are frail and have no informal carers. The article begins with a summary account of the country's exceptionally rapid demographic, economic and social transformations, which demonstrates a widening gap between the population's expectations and needs, and health and social service provision. It then examines the recently initiated and now burgeoning welfare programmes, with particular attention to health and social services for sick and frail older people. Most extant care services are accessed mainly by two minorities: the very poor and the rich. The dominant policy influence of physicians and a history of conflict between traditional and western medicine probably underlies the low current priority for ‘care’ as opposed to ‘cure’, as also for the management of chronic conditions and rehabilitation. Neither long-term care services nor personal social services are well developed. There is a marked disparity between the acute services, which are predominantly provided by private sector organisations in a highly competitive market and broadly achieve high standards, and public primary care and rudimentary residential services. The latter are weakly regulated and there are many instances of low standards of care

Korea Rediscovers Organic Agriculture

Korea will host the next Organic World Congress in 2011. The early pioneers of organic farming looked to the East for both evidence and inspiration. Korea now appears to be in the process of rediscovering its organic farming heritage. It is now seeking recognition as an organic producer. South Korea has 46 members of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) and North Korea has two members. South Korean organic agriculture increased ten-fold from 2004 to 2009 with 9729 hectares now certified. South Korean organic farms increased six-fold in the period 2004 to 2009, from 1237 to 7507. Substantial further increases in Korea’s organic area seem likely in the immediate future. With Korea’s new-found commitment to organics comes the privilege of hosting the next triennial IFOAM Organic World Congress in 2011. In a further shift towards Asia, the new IFOAM World Board, elected at Modena in 2008, has four board members from Asia. Hosting the Organic Congress is expected to stimulate the Korean organic movement and be an opportunity to display local organic know-how, including organic rice cultivation techniques. Korea’s 17th IFOAM Organic World Congress has the theme “Toward an Environmentally Benign Community”, and the dates are 27 September to 5 October 2011. The Governor of Gyeonggi Province, Moon Soo Kim has a vision of making Korea “the world's most environmentally friendly country by 2011”