Seminars

Korea Institute of Child Care and Education Holds 20th Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony and International Conference on the Mega-Trend Era and the Future of Childrearing Policy

The Korea Institute of Child Care and Education (KICCE) held its 20th anniversary commemoration ceremony and an international conference on the theme “Mega-Trend Era and the Future of Childrearing Policy” at Le Méridien Seoul Myeongdong on Friday, December 5, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. The event was organized to review the Institute’s achievements over the past 20 years and to explore policy directions for responding to rapid changes in the social environment, including demographic shifts, the climate crisis, and digital transformation.

In her welcome address at the commemoration ceremony, Ock Kyeung Hwang, President of KICCE, expressed her gratitude to domestic and international partners who have supported the Institute’s growth as a leading research organization in early childhood education and care policy and childrearing support policy. She stated that KICCE will continue to faithfully fulfill its role in the design and implementation of national policies, including the government-led integration of early childhood education and care, and emphasized that strengthening the policy foundation to ensure every child’s holistic development is the Institute’s core responsibility. Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, Minister of Education Choi Kyo-jin, and other key figures, including members of the National Assembly from both the ruling and opposition parties, sent congratulatory messages via video and in writing, underscoring the importance of evidence-based research in addressing national challenges such as low fertility and care gaps and highly valuing KICCE’s contribution to public policy.

The international conference on the same day proceeded with a keynote speech, thematic presentations, and a general discussion session. In his keynote speech, Professor Sang-Jin Han, Emeritus Professor at Seoul National University, suggested that early childhood education should be redesigned beyond a technology-centered focus toward restoring fundamental values such as human dignity, relationships, and cooperation. He further argued that, in a period of transition to a “risk society” and a “second modernity,” in which the trend toward individualization is intensifying, early childhood education should move in a direction that cultivates individuals capable of cooperation and dialogue. Subsequently, Professor Rose Luckin of University College London (United Kingdom), Professor Masahiro Hashizume of The University of Tokyo (Japan), and Professor Norbert Schneider of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (Germany) each presented, from an international comparative perspective, on the impacts of AI and digital technologies, the climate crisis, and demographic change on the lives of young children and their families, as well as related policy responses.

In the general discussion session, Professor Young Sook Seo, President of the Korea Toy Library Association, served as chair, and experts from academia and the field participated in the debate. The discussants pointed out that the spread of AI, climate and environmental change, and demographic change exert complex and interrelated effects on early childhood development and caregiving environments. They emphasized the need to establish norms and institutional frameworks at the national level, to alleviate care burdens on families, and to strengthen human-centered education and care systems.

Building on the 20th anniversary commemoration ceremony and international conference, KICCE plans to expand integrated, cross-sectoral research that responds to mega-trend changes in climate and environment, population, and digital and AI technologies. Taking “national responsibility for every child’s growth” as its core value, the Institute will further devote itself to evidence-based research that supports the design and implementation of national childrearing policies, including the government-led integration of early childhood education and care.