GKL volunteers join tourism students for environmental clean-up in Seoul

Grand Korea Leisure Co Ltd (GKL), an operator in South Korea of foreigner-only casinos, saw staff take part in an environmental clean-up in Seoul alongside university students currently studying tourism and interested in a career in the sector. A total of 34 people were involved in the event in early September at a waterway known as Cheonggyecheon stream, according to a recent press release from the company. Eleven members of GKL’s employee volunteer group and 23 students and faculty members from the Department of Hotel and Tourism at Soongeui Women’s University took part in the activity. Those involved were divided into groups of five or six to collect litter, while also discussing topics including the students’ perceptions of Grand Korea Leisure, issues affecting the tourism industry and employment opportunities for young people. Grand Korea Leisure runs three foreigner-only, Seven Luck-branded, casinos. Two are in the capital Seoul, one of the venues being Seoul Dragon City in Yongsan. Its third is in the southeastern port city of Busan. The group is a subsidiary of the Korea Tourism Organization, which in turn is affiliated to South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Grand Korea Leisure’s chief executive, Yoon Doo-hyun, said the activity had enabled the company to hear “new and diverse perspectives” from young people on the organisation and the wider tourism industry. He added that the casino operator would continue working on meeting the public’s expectations of a state-owned enterprise.