Just a few months after FZN and DMT-LB signed a cooperation agreement with the Coal Mining Area Development Support Center of the Gangwon Research Institute, the partnership was already flourishing. FZN not only got to know the province of Gangwon-do in northeastern South Korea, but also saw how this region is preparing for the post-coal mining era.
During their visit from November 17 to 20, 2025, Prof. Christian Melchers (Head of the Research Center of Post-Mining) and Julia Haske (Head of the Research Focus "Land Use & Transition" at the FZN) not only met up again with partners from the delegation visit to Bochum, but also made new contacts with people from politics, science, and administration. In addition to the great hospitality—for which the FZN would like to express its sincere thanks—the dynamism and diversity of South Korea, which was evident throughout, also made a lasting impression.
Great interest in the wealth of knowledge on structural change in the Ruhr region
This allowed them to experience first-hand the many facets of a country that is both a modern industrial nation and a major player in digital and high technology, but also a country steeped in tradition with a rich culture, great cultural appeal, and huge potential in the field of tourism. With regard to the end of coal mining in South Korea, Prof. Christian Melchers and Julia Haske were able to experience both differences and similarities with the Ruhr region and Germany, but also see what plans South Korea and Gangwon-do Province have for the future after the closure of the coal mines, taking social and economic aspects into account. Even after the end of coal mining there, Gangwon-do is interested in how the Ruhr region is managing structural change and how the region established and promoted science, business, culture, and tourism as important pillars after the end of active coal mining.
This continued the exchange that began with the visit of the South Korean delegation to the German Mining Museum in Bochum on June 27, 2025, where FZN and DMT-LB ceremoniously signed a cooperation agreement with the Coal Mining Area Development Support Center of the Gangwon Research Institute..
Amidst great interest from the South Korean media, the visit to the FZN demonstrated the enormous potential of the partnership between Bochum and Gangwon – and how mutually beneficial the intertwining of science and ideas is for the transformation of former mining areas. This close partnership allows both regions – despite their geographical distance – to learn from each other and gain inspiration for successfully shaping the post-mining era.
Prof. Christian Melchers and Julia Haske would like to express their gratefulness for the memorable days filled with hospitality and lively exchange in South Korea. The FZN looks forward to further strengthening its relationship with the Gangwon Research Institute, as well as with the region in general, and eagerly anticipates future collaborations and projects.
Photos on this page: FZN & Gangwon Research Institute
A sign of media interest in Gangwon-do in the Ruhr region: a regional newspaper reports on the visit to the FZN and profiles the Zollverein UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The hosts/participants in Gangwon-do
November 17–November 20, 2025
List of participants
| KIM Moo gyeong | Head of Strategic Project Team,Gangwon State |
| LIM Jae young | Direktor des Coal Mine Area Development Support Center |
| KIM Yeong mi | Wiss. Mitarbeiterin, Coal Mine Area Development Support Center |
| BAE Sang Kun | Präsident des Gangwon Institute |
| CHOI Soon chil | Abandoned Mine Area Support Department, Gangwon State |
| KWON Yong deok | Alternative Industry Promotion Department, Gangwon State |
| SIM Won-sub | Direktor des Departments für Zukunftsindustrien, Gangwon State |
| KIM Kwang-Lae | Vize-Gouverneur für Wirtschaft, Gangwon State |
| KIM Yong-bok | Vice Chairman, Gangwon State |
| KIM Dong-gyun | Stellvertretender Bürgermeister der Stadt Taebaek, Gangwon-Do |
| KIM Tae-soo | Vertreter des Komitees zur Förderung der Registrierung von Welterbe / UNESCO-Welterbe der koreanischen Kohleindustrie |
| KIM Boram | Programme Specialist, UNESCO Agenda & Policy Center, Korean National Commission |
| JEON Dae Bok | Stellvertretender Gouverneur der Stadt Yeongwol, Gangwon-Do |
| LEE Eungoh | Direktor für Klimaneutralität, Taebaek City Hall |
| LEE Yong-gyu | Generaldirektor, Jeongson Center for Urban Regeneration |
| LIM Sungjin | Management Planning Team, Leader of Management Planning Art, high1 Resort, Kangwon Land Inc. |
| KO Yunjung | Regional Business Team Manager & Curator, high1 Resort, Kangwon Land |
| YU Byeong uk | Direktor des Seoul Headquarters / The Kang-Won Ilbo (Korea Press Center) |
| JIN Yong Sun | Direktor des Arirang Archives |
| PARK Chang-gyu | Präsident der Vereinigung von Hinterbliebenen von Industrieveteranen |
| KO Chang-won | Präsident der Global Conference of Korean guest-workers in Germany |
| SCHWERDFEGER So-Hyang | Präsidentin des Vereins koreanischer Krankenschwestern und Krankenpflegehelferinnen in Deutschland e.V. |
| MELCHERS Christian | Leiter Forschungszentrum Nachbergbau & Vizepräsident THGA |
| HASKE Julia | Leiterin Land Use & Transition Department am Forschungszentrum Nachbergbau der THGA |
