Do not go gentle into that good night, old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light, though wise men at their end know dark is right, because their words had forked no lightning they, do not go gentle into that good night.
Enlisting celebrities, influencers, Seoul aims to rebrand itself as haven for families
Actor Shin Hyun-joon and his family / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government
By Jhoo Dong-chan
Facing the world’s lowest birthrate, the city of Seoul is deploying an unconventional set of ambassadors to show that raising children in the capital is not only possible, but enjoyable.
Municipal officials announced, Thursday, the selection of eight families — an eclectic mix including veteran film actor Shin Hyun-joon, a national paper airplane champion and an "infant stroller running" enthusiast — to serve as the faces of the city’s promotional campaign for family-friendly policies.
Selected from nearly 500 applicant households — a fierce 60:1 competition ratio — the group forms the fourth cohort of "Seoul I Ambassadors" ("I" meaning child in Korean). Over the next six months, these families will create social media content, test municipal child care programs and participate in public campaigns aimed at normalizing and encouraging parenthood in an increasingly expensive urban landscape.
The initiative reflects an expanding strategy by City Hall to tackle demographic problems through lifestyle marketing alongside direct cash subsidies. Crucially, officials expanded this year's ambassador criteria beyond traditional young nuclear families to include multi-generational households, multicultural couples, pregnant mothers and families raising school-aged children.
Among those chosen is the Shin family, led by the prolific actor with three children whose broad appeal across generations gives the city a high-profile platform to advertise after-school care programs and subsidized dining options. Another ambassador group, the Kangaroo family, features a member of a local stroller-running crew who will highlight urban fitness initiatives, while the Yoosin family showcases a three-generation household where grandparents receive municipal stipends for helping raise their grandchildren.
"In the past, urban parenthood was often framed solely through the lens of economic strain," said Ma Chae-sook, director general of the Women and Family Policy Affairs Office at Seoul Metropolitan Government. "By broadening our ambassador roster to reflect how modern families actually live — from multi-generational co-living to multicultural households — we want citizens to see the real, day-to-day viability of raising kids in Korea’s largest metropolis."
Starting in August, the eight ambassador families will share their firsthand experiences with various city services — such as municipal indoor play sites, subsidized taxi credits for parents, and night-and-weekend day care facilities — across Instagram, YouTube and webtoons. Through candid, peer-to-peer storytelling, city officials said they hope to shift public perception and foster a culture that genuinely welcomes children into the nation's sprawling capital.
This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.