Kim El-lim, Honorary Professor, Appointed Head of Jeju Women's and Family Research Institute; Gender-Equality Legislation Expert to Lead for Three Years

【Financial News Jeju = Reporter Jung Yong-bok】 Kim El-lim, an honorary professor at Korea National Open University who has spent more than 40 years researching gender-equality legislation and women's policies, will lead the Jeju Women's and Family Research Institute. Her key task as the new president will be not only to analyze issues affecting women and families but also to connect research findings to Jeju Province's policies.
According to Jeju Special Self-Governing Province on the 9th, Governor Wi Seong-gon presented Kim El-lim with her appointment certificate as the fifth president of the Jeju Women's and Family Research Institute that day. Her three-year term runs from that day through September 8, 2029.
Kim was ultimately appointed from among multiple candidates recommended after document and interview reviews by the institute's president recommendation committee following an open recruitment process.
Born in 1958, Kim graduated from Ewha Womans University’s Department of Law and earned master's and doctoral degrees in law from the university's graduate school. She began her research career at the Korean Women's Development Institute in 1983 and worked there as a researcher and senior research fellow until 2002. The Korean Women's Development Institute is now known as the Korean Women's Development Institute (KWDI).
She then served as a professor in the Department of Law at Korea National Open University from 2002 to 2023. She also served as dean of the College of Social Sciences, dean of student affairs, head of the Jeju regional campus, and head of the Jeonbuk regional campus, gaining experience in both research and university administration.
When the Ministry of Justice launched the Gender Equality Policy Committee in 2020, it appointed Kim as its inaugural chair. The committee advised on gender-sensitive justice administration and measures to achieve gender equality.
Kim has conducted long-term research in gender-equality legislation, including women's employment, family law, measures against sexual harassment in the workplace, and employment disputes involving gender discrimination. In 2018, she received the Order of Civil Merit, Peony Medal, for her contributions to the development of gender-equality legislation and the advancement of women's rights.
The research scope of the Jeju Women's and Family Research Institute, which the new president will oversee, is not limited to gender-equality policy. It covers areas closely connected to residents' lives, including women's labor and employment, work-life balance, the declining birth rate, families and care, population, housing, children and youth, and gender-based violence.
The institute is a research organization funded by Jeju Special Self-Governing Province and was established to develop women’s and family policies and create a gender-equal Jeju society. In recent years, it has expanded its policy research to include women's economic activity, family conditions, gender impact assessments, population decline, and child policy.
Following Kim's inauguration, the key question will be how effectively the institute's research findings lead to actual provincial government projects and institutional improvements. Jeju Province has also identified research on gender-equal labor policies, care and family-friendly policies, and responses to gender-based violence as priorities to be strengthened under the new leadership.
Kim El-lim said, "I will communicate closely with local communities and residents to improve gender equality in Jeju and their quality of life," adding, "I will increase the practical use of research findings and develop the institute into a policy research organization trusted by residents."
Governor Wi Seong-gon urged her, saying, "The institute must become a practical policy research organization that supports residents' lives and changes in the field," and added, "Please lead the organization so that it strengthens research on major issues based on expertise and leadership and ensures that research findings lead to provincial government policies."


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