Field Research
Sustainable Development in the Border Area
Right next to the ruins of the KWP office (before the Covid 19 pandemic brought it to a halt) a farmers market took place every Saturday. It was a sign for the efforts of the local communities to enhance the opportunities for local farmers that offered their produce at the market. Beyond that, Cheorwon-gun is famous for being a resting ground for six different species of Cranes, including the vulnerable White-naped Crane. For the conservation of these species, a sustainable development and alternative incomes for local farmers are crucial.
One such initiative was visited by a delegation consisting of members of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Seoul National University, of the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, as well as from Hanns Seidel Foundation Korea. The Peace Farm (평화나무농장) is a role model for Bio-Dynamic Agriculture and is located in Cheorwon-gun. Kim Jun-Kwon and his wife Hyeduk Won introduced their farm that produces various products such as grain, rice, meat, tomato sauce, and much else. The entire production is organized to comply with standards for organic farming, thus contributing to a sustainable use of the land and ecosystem. The produce is sold in an online store and to private households in the area.
Given the close location to North Korea which is merely a few kilometers away, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences conducts joint research at the farm to analyze how farming methods can be improved and research findings potentially being used for agriculture in North Korea.
Hanns Seidel Foundation Korea has been working in South Korea with a strong focus on sustainable development in the border area for more than 30 years, and in North Korea for almost 20 years. In North Korea, the focus is upon international cooperation in the field of nature conservation, which shall not only be beneficial for the environment, but primarily to the local population. For this reason, one of the main objectives is to solve the question how people can benefit from the conservation of wetlands and reforestation directly. Between the conflicting priorities of economic development and environmental protection, the improvement of the living conditions of the local population is most important. Sustainable agriculture methods can be a part of a solution to improve local living conditions.