[Sponsored Report] Hyundai offers wheels of hope for a new start

Under the slogan “Moving the World Together,” Hyundai Motor Group is conducting various social contribution activities. From top: Happy Move Global Youth volunteers, the safety life vehicle moving service, the angel’s wing campaign and Kids Autopark

As one of Korea’s representative conglomerates, Hyundai Motor Group is conducting various sharing management activities in Korea and overseas, fulfilling its social responsibility as a corporate body. Hyundai Motor Group has announced the management philosophy “Pursuing happiness through cars” in 2004 and announced its social contribution slogan “Moving the world together.” In 2008 it announced the social contribution management and in 2009 the group’s social responsibility committee designated the social responsibility charter and has stood in the lead to fulfill its role as a responsible global corporate citizen.

Especially based on the group’s four major social contribution fields, the company is conducting systematic sharing management. Also to realize the Chairman Chung Mong-koo’s social contribution philosophy, the group founded the Hyundai Motor Company Chung Mong-koo Foundation, giving support in various fields such as education, scholarship, medicine and welfare. The group has donated 20 billion won ($18.6 million) to social welfare organizations to help those who are in need. The group also has a “year-end group social voluntary week” where all the employees of the group participate in voluntary activities by providing basic necessities.

In addition to providing daily necessities, the group is having a cultural campaign so the neighbors who have less chance to enjoy cultural performances can also partake in the holiday festivities. The group is planning to invite 7,300 of neglected neighbors as well as its 2,000 employee volunteers to various cultural performances to spend celebrate the year’s end. Starting from this month Hyundai Motor Group put on performances at Konkuk University for the month of December, as well as touring Korea’s nine regions including Ulsan, Gwangju, Gimcheon and Incheon.

The group is actively working to provide actual help to the neighbors through activities as briquette delivery and kimchi making activities. Hyundai Motor Group’s affiliate Kia Motors delivered 4,000 heads of kimchi made by 90 volunteers including headquarters employees and region motherhood communities to 1,200 families in Seocho, southern Seoul, on Nov. 16. This is one of the social contribution activities Kia Motors has been working on since 2010, reducing financial burden to the neglected neighbors while spreading the holiday cheer.

Recently, the Chung Mong-koo Foundation poured in 10 billion won to help some 20,000 low-income families including the elderly living alone, children living with grand parents and children who live alone, delivering rice and supporting with utilities.

Since October, Hyundai Motor Group started the gift giving campaigns, presenting cars to the neighbors who really need cars to be financially able. The five people who receive four one-ton Porter trucks and one Starex and used these to start up a business and to show appreciation conducted voluntary activity for multicultural family housewives and the elderly. Hyundai Motor Group also delivered 5 million won for creative startup businesses while also providing free consultation. The group will continue to provide professional consulting to ensure sustained success. A company executive said, “The common goal of the many people who received this car was to stand on their own and later help many neighbors in need. We hope this warm heart of loving and sharing will stretch far through this Gift Car Campaign.”

By Lee Ji-hyun [concordia@joongang.co.kr]