Building Bridges between Germany and Korea
Strengthening Partnerships for Peace, Environment, and Development: Visit of Dr. Susanne Luther to Korea
Dr. Susanne Luther, Director of the Institute for International Cooperation of the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF), visited the Republic of Korea for a series of high-level meetings with long-standing partners in political dialogue, environmental cooperation, and regional development. On the first day of her visit, Dr. Luther began her program with an exchange with K-Water, Korea’s public water authority, on water security and climate resilience, followed by a tour of the Ara Canal showcasing Korea’s advanced water infrastructure.
Following this, Dr. Luther held political consultations with Maria Antonia von Schönburg, CEO of the Korean-German Chamber of Commerce & Industry and received a strategic briefing from German Ambassador Georg Schmidt on current developments on the Korean Peninsula. Together with Dr. Bernhard Seliger and Mr. KIM Young-Soo of HSF Korea, she met National Assemblyman KWON Young-Se, former Minister of Unification, and visited the National Assembly Plenary.
Environmental cooperation is a central theme of HSF’s engagement in Korea. Dr. Luther met Ambassador Baasanjav Ganbold, Head of the UN-ESCAP Northeast Asia Office, to review more than a decade of joint work through NEASPEC, including biodiversity protection and the conservation of flagship species such as the White-naped Crane. Discussions with the East Asian–Australasian Flyway Partnership highlighted cross-border conservation efforts between the two Koreas along the flyway. This is followed by an HSF Korea seminar on the political situation on the Korean Peninsula and a farewell for Dr. Bernhard Seliger in recognition of his long-standing contributions.
A visit to Yeoncheon County the next day underlined the foundation’s work in Korea’s border regions. Since 2014, the county has been an important partner of the HSF and maintains a trilateral cooperation with Hof County in Bavaria, Germany—a region that itself once bordered the former inner-German dividing line. Yeoncheon’s ecological importance, including its habitats for endangered and migratory species, was a key focus.
At Kookmin University, Dr. Luther participated in the 48th Tongil Hankuk Forum organized by the Institute for Peace Affairs, featuring a lecture by Dr. Bernhard Seliger on the parallels and differences between the inter-German and inter-Korean borders, followed by an active discussion with students.
Strengthening local cooperation, Dr. Luther also visited Goyang, a border-area city, on her last day, where she met President Dr. KIM Hyun-Ho at the Goyang Research Institute and discussed long-term development strategies. HSF alumnus Dr. AHN Ji-Ho presented prospects for deepened cooperation in policy research.
The visit continued in Paju at the Inter-Korean Forest Cooperation Center, a key institution preparing for joint forestry initiatives such as reforestation and climate-change adaptation. Despite current political constraints, the center remains an important platform for scientific exchange and collaboration on inter-Korean forest cooperation. The trip concluded with a meeting at Korea University with Prof. Lee Woo-Kyun, Director of the OJERI Resilience Institute, where discussions focused on forest preservation, climate change, and balanced regional development.
Dr. Luther’s visit reaffirmed the HSF’s longstanding partnerships in Korea and highlighted new opportunities for cooperation in political dialogue, environmental conservation, and regional development. The wide range of meetings and exchanges demonstrated the trust built over many years and laid a strong foundation for future joint initiatives—in support of peace, sustainability, and resilient development on the Korean Peninsula.
