Sungkyunkwan University Launches Value-Based Interdisciplinary Research Platform, Sungkyun Civilization Institute

[Financial News]  Sungkyunkwan University has launched the Sungkyun Civilization Institute (SKCI), which studies complex social issues such as artificial intelligence (AI), climate change, and economic inequality through interdisciplinary research. Nine specialized research institutes on campus are participating to study East Asian humanities heritage and the future socioeconomic order, linking the results to education and social action.
Sungkyunkwan University said on the 18th that it held the opening ceremony for the Sungkyun Civilization Institute at the R&E Lounge in International Hall on its Humanities and Social Sciences Campus and officially began operations. About 80 people attended, including Park Jae-wan, chairman of the Sungkyunkwan University Foundation; President Yoo Ji-beom; standing director Joo Young-soo; and Cha Dong-ok, executive vice president of the university's alumni association.
The Sungkyun Civilization Institute is an interdisciplinary research platform that reinterprets Sungkyunkwan University's guiding principles of Humanity, Righteousness, Propriety, and Wisdom as the modern values of humanity, justice, citizenship, and practical wisdom. Rather than remaining confined to research within individual disciplines, it aims to address challenges facing future society by linking research with education and social action.
Alongside its launch, the Sungkyun Civilization Institute unveiled two flagship research projects involving nine specialized research institutes on campus.
The first is a study titled "Humanities Heritage and Future Civilization," jointly conducted by five institutions, including the Academy of East Asian Studies. Its goal is to identify principles of coexistence for modern society in documentary heritage, including East Asian classics and Confucian traditions, and to suggest a direction for future civilization.
The second is a study titled "Inclusive Society and a Sustainable Future," involving the Institute of Management Research and research institutions in the social sciences, economics, and law. It analyzes how advances in AI, climate change, and economic inequality affect the existing social order and explores alternatives for a sustainable socioeconomic order.
In a video congratulatory address, world-renowned ethicist Peter Singer said he hoped the Sungkyun Civilization Institute would help spread the values of respect for human beings, empathy, justice, and moral judgment, while becoming a hub where researchers and students from around the world can discuss the future.
Choi Hoon-seok, director of the Sungkyun Civilization Institute, said, "To respond to the challenges facing future society, we must begin with fundamental questions about the values we should pursue. We will develop it into a knowledge hub that brings together expertise from multiple disciplines and collaborates with universities and institutions overseas."

[email protected] Lee Bo-mi Reporter