{"id":15165,"date":"2025-06-11T16:05:46","date_gmt":"2025-06-11T15:05:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/londonpost.news\/?p=15165"},"modified":"2025-06-12T08:57:06","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T07:57:06","slug":"shinhans-2025-hwarang-fest-bridging-communities-concludes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/news\/shinhans-2025-hwarang-fest-bridging-communities-concludes\/2025\/06\/11\/admin1\/","title":{"rendered":"Shinhan’s 2025 Hwarang Fest: Bridging communities concludes"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Dr. Prof. Sunok Kang<\/strong><\/p>\n

In the foothills of northern Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, an unlikely model of cultural diplomacy unfolded across the campus of Shinhan University. Over the course of three days, from 25 to 27 May 2025, the university hosted its annual Hwarang Festival<\/em>\u2014a rapidly evolving platform that brings together education, community identity, and international cultural exchange.<\/p>\n

Attracting an estimated 50,000 attendees, this year\u2019s festival was the largest in its history. The title Hwarang<\/em> is derived from the Sino-Korean characters for \u201ctransformation\u201d and \u201cwave\u201d, symbolising the university\u2019s vision of being a “local creator-type global university.” The festival reflects Shinhan\u2019s ambition to foster a new paradigm in higher education\u2014one where community, diversity, and diplomacy intersect meaningfully through cultural expression.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Now regarded as one of Korea\u2019s most ambitious university-led public festivals, the 2025 edition featured an expansive international cultural programme spearheaded by the university\u2019s College of Global Studies. Students from eight countries\u2014including Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan\u2014participated in traditional costume fashion shows, international culinary exhibitions, and embassy-sponsored cultural booths. These cross-cultural showcases not only celebrated diversity but also offered a space for dialogue, mutual respect, and a shared sense of global citizenship.<\/p>\n

Adding weight to the event\u2019s international resonance, diplomatic delegations from the Embassies of Kazakhstan and Tajikistan made official visits to the festival, underscoring its growing relevance as a forum for soft diplomacy. What was once a campus celebration has emerged as a venue through which local communities and international stakeholders meet\u2014not merely to observe, but to engage.<\/p>\n

Live performances by Korean musical artists such as 10CM, Apink, tripleS, Woo Won-jae, GRAY, pH-1, and Car, the Garden drew thousands. Complementing these headline acts were youth busking sessions and performances by regional youth art troupes, all contributing to the festival\u2019s accessible and inclusive character.<\/p>\n

Families enjoyed interactive attractions ranging from hot air balloons and Viking ship rides to vibrant food truck zones. Meanwhile, the inclusion of a youth entrepreneurship flea market and a food court operated in partnership with local business associations enabled the festival to contribute tangibly to the revitalisation of the local economy.<\/p>\n

Shinhan University President Kang Seong-jong remarked<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe 2025 Hwarang Festival exemplifies our institutional mission\u2014to grow with our community while extending our reach globally. It stands as a living expression of regional cooperation and global education.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Cultural analysts and educators have taken note. With its unique convergence of education, diplomacy, economic participation, and artistic collaboration, the Hwarang Festival<\/em> has positioned itself as a model for universities seeking to rethink their civic and global roles.<\/p>\n

As South Korea continues to redefine its cultural presence on the international stage, events such as Shinhan University\u2019s Hwarang Festival<\/em> offer compelling blueprints for how institutions of higher education might actively shape the global commons\u2014by starting, quite simply, in their own backyards.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Dr. Prof. Sunok Kang In the foothills of northern Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, an unlikely model of cultural diplomacy unfolded across the campus of Shinhan University. Over the course of three days, from 25 to 27 May 2025, the university hosted its annual Hwarang Festival\u2014a rapidly evolving platform that brings together education, community identity, […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15166,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":""},"categories":[779,2437],"tags":[156,9663,9664,9665,9666,9667],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Korea1.jpg","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15165"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15165"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15176,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15165\/revisions\/15176"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brusselsindependent.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}