Seed

It started when a young man exchanged e-letters with a foreign friend. The man introduced Korea to the foreign friend only to be shocked at the foreign friend's wrong information on Korea. Though the friend had distorted information on Korea, the friend wanted to know about Korea exactly and to visit Korea. He was encouraged by his friend and started to run on-line tour guide activities, promoting Korea to foreigners.

In addition, the Korean man found out that there had been many errors or mistakes on Korean history and territory in his pen-pal friend's textbooks and world maps. So, he sent written protest to the related famous foreign textbook publishing companies so that they could deliver right information on Korea. This is the history of Voluntary Agency Network of Korea (VANK), established in 1999.

"The mustard seed is small, but brings forth a large tree, and the fowls lodge in the branches."



Taking Root

VANK started to take root and have a dream. The Center of Asia, Gateway of Northeast Asia!
The Republic of Korea shares its dream and friendship with all people in the world!  

VANK hopes Korea to become a center of Asia, gateway of Northeast Asia and
economically prosperous so that it can share its wealth with all people across the globe.
It also wishes Korea to grow into a mentally prosperous and globally loved nation
by sharing its vision and friendship with all people in the world. VANK spares
no effort in realizing these visions.

The VANK marches on today, too, with sense of mission and devotion to achieve
these visions.

VANK has the following missions. First, it helps the 800 million overseas netizens
change their image and mind-set over Korea. Second, it helps the 6.5 million dispersed
Koreans become one. Lastly, it encourages the 70 million Koreans to achieve their dream
and vision. We wish VANK's visions and missions take root deeply and widely....



Bud

Training VANK cyber diplomats who can be compared with the rooted bud are the most important and core activities of VANK. Until now, VANK has cultivated numerous cyber diplomats who are continuously expanding their frontiers through more brisk activities. Our diplomats first build up friendship with foreign friends by exchanging sincere letters and sharing dream and visions before promoting Korea. Trust and friendship will help our diplomats to introduce Korea and their villages to their foreign friends. In deed, trust and friendship have brought many changes among foreigners.

They have started to be eager to know about Korea and study Korean language using Korean dictionary. Some of them are preparing the High Diplomatic Service Examination to become diplomats in the Korean embassy. What is more, some foreigners have sent protest letters to foreign publishing companies to urge that their textbooks' wrong expression of "Sea of Japan" should be changed into "East Sea".

They have bothered to do these just because Korea is the nation of their friends. VANK thinks all we need is not the showy attitude of Koreans but just each Korean's sincerity and trustfulness in promoting Korea throughout the world.

Korea, the country of my friend

VANK is well aware of that promoting Korean with just a foreigner requires much time and effort. However, we believe only those invested love, joy, goodness, perseverance and sincerity can transform Korea into a "country of my friend" in the end. Any one regardless of nationality, age and sex or even the level of foreign language skills can become VANK cyber diplomats after taking the 14-stage training course.

The 14-stage cyber diplomat training course

Collecting Korea PR information data → Self-introducing in English and introducing Korea → Promoting Korea through e-penpal → Public relation of Korea in the chatting room → Becoming an international expert → Translating foreign news → Discovering wrong information on Korea →Sending goodwill letters to foreign publishing companies → Sending collaborative letters to foreign organizations → Sending interchanging letters to foreign schools → Sending protest letters → Binding overseas Koreans → Realizing the dream of VANK → Realizing the dream of Korea



Luxuriant Branches

Diverse activities of VANK cyber diplomats have become the main source of making luxuriant branches. From children to old people, various aged people are engaging in VANK activities. Juveniles are exposed to violence and lewd culture in the cyber space and faced with the exam hell. However, many of them have been deeply interested in VANK activities since they can learn a genuine lesson by building up a friendly relationship with foreigners while promoting Korea."

Coincidently, many Koreans are worried about the Japan's distortion of its history in their textbooks, so, many Koreans actively partaking in VANK's "9 Major Projects To Promote Korea Rightly".

Training all Koreans as cyber diplomats : It focuses on cultivating cyber diplomats by establishing a whopping 10.000 clubs in nation-wide elementary, middle and high schools as well as universities. The vision of VANK will grow into the vision of all Koreans.

E-pen palling with foreign friends : It targets Internet-savvy Korean juveniles to be more fluent in English and expand their intellectual horizon by making friends with foreigners through e-pen palling.

Correcting distorted information on Korea : Foreign textbooks with distorted information on Korea are now being rapidly circulated on the Internet after having spread across the world over the past years. This project is to cut off further diffusion and correct the distorted information.

Establishing international cooperative network : It creates windows that can deliver new and diverse information on Korea in an effective and sustainable manner by cooperating with influential overseas associations.

Taking pictures of my village : It promotes Korea to as many as foreigners by making DB that holds diverse pictures of Korean historic relics and cultural heritages of more than 5,000 years.

Constructing search engine of Korean information : It helps overseas netizens have right information on Korea without major difficulties in colleting or searching information by systematically gathering and networking all dispersed online information on Korean culture, history and lifestyle.

Network for oversea Koreans : It secures a personal network composed of Overseas Korean Student Association, children of overseas Koreans and Koreans adopted into foreign families abroad and establishes a community that brings together all 6.5 million overseas Koreans to promote Korea rightly.

English newspaper, Friendly Korea : Our cyber diplomats participate in making Friendly Korea targeting potential foreign visitors to Korea and foreigners residing in Korea.



Luxuriant Leaves

Luxuriant leaves are the ongoing fruits of VANK's diverse activities and its future tasks. As long as we believe in the "Mustard Seed Conception" we will surely achieve our dream and vision.

VANK helps Koreans to believe in the "Mustard Seed Conception" and become the witnesses who can truly show that the miracle of mustard seed is the engine of Korean change.

Korea is changing : VANK's Korean promoting activities targeting more than 6 billion foreigners are upgrading the national image of Korea and leading the genuine change of Korean politics, economy, society and culture. For a real promotion of Korea throughout the world, Koreans first need to have a right information and knowledge on Korea while correcting any distorted and wrong matters.

Korean young children are changing : Numerous children exposed to the violent and lewd online environment are fighting against the temptation of indulgence to share their vision and friendship with overseas friends through VANK activities. Finally, they will have their bright and beautiful viewpoint that world is a beautiful place without skin color or language discrimination.

Korean juveniles are changing : Many juveniles who had studied without any purposes in ugly educational environment started to study voluntarily after seeing the activities of VANK juveniles. More juveniles will study harder to introduce Korea to their foreign friends. They are also getting more interested in their foreign friends' counties. Therefore, they will spend more time on studying English for a smoother conversation. That means Korean juveniles will begin to study voluntarily to get more knowledge.

Finally, Korean young men are changing : Diverse activities of VANK have reversed the decision of many Korean young men who wanted to emigrate after having lost their hopes. Those young men will change their mind-set and love Korea more than before, after they realize that other countries will be treated by foreigners according to the national status of their own country. That means they will work harder to make Korea more prosperous and wonderful country.



Nesting Birds

Trees with luxuriant branches and leaves will welcome a lot of birds.
No wonder the bigger trees are, more birds will come. VANK will do its utmost to become a tree with luxuriant branches and leaves, welcoming numerous birds.

VANK dreams that Korea becomes a center of Asia and gateway of Northeast Asia. But the ultimate goal of VANK is making Korea that shares its dream and vision with all people across the globe. In doing so, Korea can become a genuine respected leader in the world.

When we lead the world by sharing our vision and dreams, Korea will be truly loved by the whole world. Having goodwill relations with all people across the world based on national reconciliation is the vision of VANK as well as of Korea in this 21st century. How proud Korea is, by thinking that Korea is a leader of Asia and shares its vision and dream with the world.

This is the future of VANK and Korea. This is the dream of all cyber diplomats of VANK and all Koreans. Although the mustard seed is the smallest among other seeds, it brings forth a large tree, and the fowls lodge in the branches. Like this, if we put our small effort into practice continuously, we can realize any dream that seems to be far away.

VANK hopes to share our dream and vision with all of you with the "Mustard seed conception".