The POSCO 1% Foundation noted on the 26th that it is conducting various support projects for people with disabilities, including the Digital Academy for the Disabled and Wings of Hope, to assist in their independence and improve their quality of life.
First, the Digital Academy for the Disabled is a project aimed at expanding employment opportunities for people with disabilities by nurturing digital talent suitable for the 4th industrial age through coding education for young and middle-aged individuals with disabilities.
The education program is operated in collaboration with the Guro Digital Training Center. It includes a workshop held over three nights and four days at the POSCO Talent Development Center in Songdo, Incheon, making for a total of 28 weeks of courses.
During the workshop, courses on artificial intelligence (AI), big data analysis, business fundamentals, business etiquette, and self-PR speech will be conducted.
Now in its fifth year, the Digital Academy for the Disabled has graduated a total of 60 individuals, who have secured jobs at domestic mid-sized companies and public institutions such as KB Kookmin Bank, the Korea Internet & Security Agency, Megazone, POSCO Humanity, and the Korea Vocational Ability Development Institute.
The Wings of Hope project provides customized assistive devices tailored to the characteristics of disabilities, helping to improve the quality of life by broadening daily conveniences and activity ranges, as well as supporting participation in sports.
So far, customized assistive devices considering disability characteristics have been provided to 183 war veterans, firefighters, and soldiers, as well as 901 local individuals with disabilities, including artificial limbs, wheelchairs, eye mice, and sports equipment.
In particular, in 2020, marking the 70th anniversary of the Korean War, a partnership was established with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs to provide advanced assistive devices to the disabled veterans.
Through this initiative, advanced assistive devices such as robotic arms and legs and multifunctional wheelchairs are being provided to war veterans. Since last year, the range of assistive devices has been expanded.
As a result, walking aids such as C-Brace have been provided to those with lower limb paralysis, and starting this year, wearable rehabilitation robots and other customized assistive devices are being gradually domesticized.
Additionally, sports prosthetics and competition wheelchairs have been provided to national representative players with disabilities in ice hockey, badminton, and table tennis, supporting their preparation for the Hangzhou Asian Para Games.
The foundation is also operating the Hope Space project, which aims to improve the environment of facilities for individuals with disabilities and households with disabled children in Pohang and Gwangyang, providing a safe and pleasant space.
To date, remodeling assistance has been provided to 125 facilities for individuals with disabilities and low-income families with children and youth with disabilities. Starting this year, the scope of the project has been expanded to include not only facilities related to disabilities but also aging public facilities in the community.
The foundation is also working on the project titled 'Turning Encounters into Art' by producing videos showcasing the daily lives of lesser-known disabled artists and their collaborative processes with popular artists, supporting the popularization of the creative activities of disabled artists.
Initiated in 2020 and continuing through 2023, the project has selected 32 teams and 34 disabled artists across various fields such as art, music, dance, and literature, producing a total of 74 videos.
This year, disabled artists who have participated thus far will meet again with popular artists to showcase performances at the POSCO concert and street performances for donors and local residents of the POSCO 1% Foundation.
The POSCO 1% Foundation explained that it plans to enhance its symbolic projects in areas such as support for the independence of vulnerable groups and fostering future generations, including children from multicultural families and youth preparing for independence, in addition to its projects for individuals with disabilities. They also stated plans to expand donor participation projects to drive positive change in society.