Moving the Korea Foundation for Science and Creativity to Daedeok could link researchers, educators and the National Science Museum and make science more accessible to all.
An aerial view of the 70.4-square-kilometer (17,396.2-acre) Daedeok Innopolis, spanning the Daedeok and Yuseong districts of Daejeon and bringing together research, production and business functionsDAEJEON CITY PROVIDED
Han Seon-hwa
The author is an honorary professor at the University of Science and Technology.
Science and technology increasingly shape national competitiveness and everyday life. When advanced technologies move beyond laboratory walls and become part of people’s lives, society gains a stronger engine for innovation. In keeping with the inclusive values pursued by the current government, science should not remain the preserve of a small group of experts. It should expand into “science for all” — something every person can experience and enjoy in daily life.
Two institutions provide crucial pillars for spreading this culture of science. The National Science Museum serves as a hub for exhibitions and hands-on experiences, where people of all generations can learn about science. The Korea Foundation for Science and Creativity (Kosac), meanwhile, oversees creative education and develops and distributes cultural science content.
One is a large physical platform on which science meets the public directly. The other is a software engine that designs policies and content. Realizing science for all requires strong synergy between these two elements so that the hardware and software can work as one.
That makes the question of Kosac’s location worth serious consideration. What if the foundation moved to the Daedeok research complex, where government-funded research institutes, major scientific facilities and the National Science Museum are concentrated?
Reducing the physical distance between research and planning could allow laboratories’ latest achievements to be quickly transformed into hands-on content accessible to the public. It could also create a virtuous ecosystem in which scientists, education planners and citizens interact naturally in the same place. Such proximity would make it easier to turn cutting-edge research into programs that people can see, understand and experience rather than encounter only as abstract knowledge.
Bringing the foundation closer to researchers would shorten the path from discovery to public understanding, helping science education respond faster to new developments while giving scientists more opportunities to engage people.
A culture of science cannot flourish as a distant slogan. It takes root only when people can feel its relevance in everyday life.
If the National Science Museum’s strength in public engagement and Kosac’s planning expertise can be organically combined at the heart of Korea’s research community, the country could move more quickly and firmly toward an era of genuine science for all. Daedeok already brings together many of the institutions that generate scientific knowledge. Closer collaboration with the organizations that interpret and communicate that knowledge could help ensure that scientific progress is shared more broadly with society.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
