Jung Myung-geun Declares Future Vision 'Science and Technology Talent Special City, Hwaseong'

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park Chan-hyuk] Hwaseong Mayor Jung Myung-geun declared 'Science and Technology Talent Special City, Hwaseong' as the future vision of Hwaseong Special City on the 8th.

Mayor Jung held a city briefing at the city hall conference room that day, revealing the vision for a future city while expressing confidence that "Hwaseong City, which will become an 'ultra-megacity' with a population of 1.6 million by 2040, will be the most dynamically growing city in the future," and emphasized that special cities require special visions.

The future city vision of Hwaseong, 'securing science and technology talent,' is an urgent situation for the development of the Republic of Korea. To secure talent, Mayor Jung proposed detailed tasks: △Establishing an integrated research hub in Hwaseong City of the four major science and technology institutions (KAIST, GIST, DGIST, UNIST) preparing for a leap to globally recognized research-oriented universities △Specialized science and technology education through the establishment of Hwaseong Science High School and Meister High School △Expanding science and technology and information and communications education for citizens, civil servants, and elementary and middle school students in preparation for an AI future city.

The city has been operating a Science Hub with KAIST since 2021, nurturing core talents in cutting-edge science and technology fields. The KAIST Semiconductor Design Education Center (IDEC) has produced a total of 480 semiconductor design experts and placed 236 of them in the semiconductor industry, achieving significant results.

Mayor Jung plans to utilize the experience and capabilities of talent development initiatives carried out with KAIST to establish integrated research hubs with three other major science and technology institutions and grow into a new center city for Korea's cutting-edge science and technology.

Furthermore, Mayor Jung emphasized that Hwaseong City, represented by the semiconductor megacluster, the West Coast K-Future Vehicle Valley, and the K-Bio Belt, is an optimal location for cultivating future science and technology and advanced industry-tailored talent, and pledged to make utmost efforts to attract science and Meister high schools.

Mayor Jung then revealed that artificial intelligence is a key driving force that will transform citizens' lives and society as a whole, explaining that the city will implement artificial intelligence utilization education, artificial intelligence literacy education, and ethics education related to artificial intelligence for citizens.

Additionally, the city plans to establish vertiports for Urban Air Mobility (UAM), future transportation linked with artificial intelligence, and construct the nation's largest-scale autonomous driving living lab demonstration city.

Mayor Jung Myung-geun stated, "In an era of rapid change and fierce competition, advancement in science and technology determines a nation's future," and expressed his vision to "become Korea's hope by creating 'Science and Technology Talent Special City, Hwaseong.'"