Following the massive wildfires that swept across the country on March 22nd, the national wildfire disaster alert was raised to “serious.” The fires caused significant damag not only to forests but also to residential areas. As of March 30th, 48,000 hectares—equivalent to 80% of Seoul—has been damaged. Over 3,000 houses were destroyed, and systematic restoration of the displaced population and the damaged forest ecosystem was urgently needed.

In response, the SNU College of Agriculture and Life Sciences' Department of Forest Sciences held a fundraising event called ‘FO:RESTORE’ to support wildfire recovery efforts.

‘FO:RESTORE’ Fundraising Event for Forest Fire Recovery
Planned and led by Kim Dong-hyun, a senior in the Department of Forest Environmental Science, FO:RESTORE is a portmanteau of the words Forest, Restore, and Store, symbolizing “a green store that restores the forest.” All funds raised through sales are donated to forest restoration efforts.

The event took place over two days—on Thursday, April 10th and Friday, April 11th—at designated booths within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Seoul National University, from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM.

Items for sale included forest-themed merchandise and photos taken by students and staff, featuring forests, trees, and flowers. DIY “plant kits” were also available, allowing visitors to create plant props using natural materials. A flea market was also held, where students sold secondhand goods, and donations were collected on-site.

All Funds Donated to ‘Forest for Life’
All proceeds from the event were donated to forest fire recovery efforts. The donations went to the Forest for Life (https://forest.or.kr/), a nonprofit civic organization dedicated to forest conservation through urban forest creation, community forest initiatives, reforestation, and restoration projects. More information can be found on their official website.

Kim Dong-hyun said, “I hope that the small actions of each student can bring about big change,” and added, “We hope many students will participate in this event, which the planning team has put a lot of effort into preparing it in a short time.”

interviewed by Cals Press 21st 이효선 and 22nd 최수인
translated by Cals Press 22nd Ye Jin Lee (department of applied biology and chemistry)