□ A multicultural camp hosted by the fifth Outlookie team—a team of foreign students exploring Korean culture—and the GKL Dream Hope Volunteer Group was held from Wednesday, July 10, to Thursday, July 11, in Seoul and Chuncheon, Gangwon-do.

□ Where there is a group of people from different national origins, there is bound to be the sound of English—the universal language. Yet, gathered here were people from 25 countries who were communicating solely in Korean. It was the Outlookie camp co-organized by the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (KOFICE, president Kim Yong-rak) and the Grand Korea Leisure Foundation (GKL Foundation, chairman Chae Seung-muk) and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST, minister Park Yang-woo), a Korean culture exploration program inviting foreign students studying in Korea.

□ Outlookie is a program conceived to help foreign students adapt to Korean society and create their own networks, encouraging cultural exchanges between foreign student members and Korean college student supporters. With the first Outlookie team launched in 2015 (71 students from 10 countries), this year’s team marks the fifth phase (120 students from 25 countries).

□ The multicultural camp kickstarted with a special environmental campaign for Hangang River water quality restoration using soil balls containing effective microorganisms (EM). It was co-organized by the GKL Dream Hope Volunteer Group consisting of GKL executives. The aim of this campaign was to promote the students’ personal and cultural interactions with diverse Korean groups and to help the students contribute to Korean society as members of the community while also boosting their self-esteem.

□ The team then moved on to Namiseom Island in Chuncheon, Gangwon-do, to spend time experiencing each other’s cultures through a series of events: “Traditional Clothes Runway” introduced the traditional attires of participants’ countries of origin; “World Skewer Competition” offered a taste of various spices and food cultures; and “How in the World is That Possible” introduced various unique customs found around the globe. This event, which enabled a self-directed exploration of world cultures, was organized to help the students embrace the cultural diversity within the Outlookie team and to develop into global citizens.

□ Ho Minh Du, a Vietnamese member of the fifth Outlookie team, described the experience as “fruitful in that [he] got to introduce the Vietnamese culture while studying in a foreign country.” He added, “Outlookie is more than just foreigners unilaterally experiencing Korean culture; it’s an opportunity for multicultural students and Korean students to share each other’s cultures, grow together as members of Korean society, and contribute to the community, which makes the activities more meaningful.”

□ Gong Seong-bin, a Korean supporter of the fifth Outlookie team, said, “I joined the Outlookie team to hear what foreign students have to say about studying abroad because I’m planning to study abroad after graduation myself. I came to understand them better while engaging in the various explorations together. Not only that, but I became prouder of my own culture in the process of building friendships with the foreign students, and the experience made me want to introduce Korean culture to more people around the world.”

□ The fifth Outlookie team set out in May with a launching ceremony in Jeonju and entered the K-Culture Academy, a month-long program exploring Korean traditional culture, K-pop dance, taekwonmu, traditional craft, fan dance, and samullori.

□ Planned for the latter half of this year are a reunion of the first to fourth Outlookie teams (August), K-Culture Academy II (September), Global Friendship Festival (October), and the disbanding ceremony of the fifth Outlookie team (November).