Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) Department of Housing and Environment (Chair Professor Mi-sun Jang) has stepped forward to provide practical support for vulnerable households in the local community, continuing its practice of spatial welfare that connects the university's educational and research strengths with the community.

JBNU Department of Housing and Environment announced on the 1st that it delivered a total donation of KRW 16,000,000 to improve the housing conditions of Jeonju City's housing-vulnerable households.

The donation was raised jointly, with JBNU Department of Housing and Environment contributing KRW 10,000,000 and the Department of Interior Architecture at Yonsei University contributing KRW 6,000,000. JBNU participated for the second consecutive year, continuing its sustained contribution to the local community.

The delivered donations will be used, in cooperation with Jeonju City and the Jeonju Housing Welfare Center, to improve the living environments of households living in poor housing conditions. In particular, tailored spatial improvements aimed at enhancing safety and everyday convenience will be implemented, focusing on elderly and disabled households.

Since 2023, JBNU Department of Housing and Environment has continuously conducted a public–private partnership-based housing space improvement demonstration project and has completed housing improvements at seven sites to date, primarily for elderly households. The project operates as a practice-oriented education and research model in which faculty and students directly participate in the entire process, from field surveys and spatial assessments to design, construction, and post-evaluation.

Notably, this project is being carried out as a collaborative research effort with the Department of Interior Architecture at Yonsei University. Yonsei is participating as part of the Phase 4 BK21 Graduate School Innovation "Shoulder-to-Shoulder Project." Through inter-university cooperation, the program, which identifies and addresses local community issues, is expanding into practical research aimed at improving the quality of life for housing-vulnerable households.

The two universities plan to jointly refine data-driven spatial welfare design and residential planning methodologies, and to establish an integrated research system that combines theoretical and design capabilities with on-site measurement, diagnosis, and construction expertise. This year, activities will expand beyond space-improvement work to a linked demonstration research program that progresses from indoor environment measurement and diagnosis to spatial improvements. They plan to implement additional improvements at two or more sites for housing-vulnerable households in Jeonju City.

Professor Mi-sun Jang, chair of the department, stated, "This project is a representative case in which the university's education and research lead to solving local community problems. It provides students with a valuable educational experience in which they deeply understand the lives of the elderly and vulnerable groups and translate that understanding into space." She emphasized, "We will continue to develop a spatial welfare model that grows together with the community through ongoing demonstration projects."