Nexon launches social charity foundation
Children in Myanmar play with bricks provided by Nexon as part of the gaming firm’s global brick play-based creativity aid projects. / Courtesy of Nexon
By Jun Ji-hye, Jung Da-min
Nexon has launched a foundation that will lead the game publisher’s social contribution and community coexistence activities including the construction of a children’s hospital.
The Korean firm announced the launch of the Nexon Foundation during a news conference held on Tuesday at the company’s building in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province.
The firm said it has invested 5 billion won ($4.7 million) into the foundation.
The foundation will be in full charge of integrating social contribution and local community “harmony” activities sporadically conducted by Nexon and its holding company NXC, and continuing to expand them.
“Nexon was a small company when I was a new recruit in 2003, and has been growing constantly thanks to the support of its users,” said Nexon CEO Lee Jung-hun who was present at the conference. “We feel greater responsibility toward social contribution activities. That was why we decided to establish the foundation that will help children and adolescents dream of a better future.”
Kim Jung-wook, vice president of the gaming firm, assumed the chairmanship of the foundation.
Kim said one of the projects pushed for by the foundation is the construction of the second rehabilitation hospital for children.
In 2016, the firm, in cooperation with the Purme Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to disability issues, opened a hospital specializing in rehabilitation for disabled children in Mapo, Seoul. The firm has invested 22 billion won since 2013 for the operation of the hospital.
Kim said the firm is considering setting up the second such hospital outside of Seoul so that more children can receive benefits.
“We will undertake preparatory work within the year at the earliest,” Kim said, noting that final decisions on the location and size of the hospital will be made after discussions with the central and local governments.
“Once the decisions are made, we will consider additionally contributing funds to the foundation this year,” he said.
The Nexon Foundation will push for overseas social activities as well by funding a creativity aid project using “brick play” for underprivileged children. For the global project, Nexon has set up a separate foundation, Soho Impact, which will cooperate with the Nexon Foundation in operating global “brick play-based” creativity aid projects in countries such as Myanmar and Cambodia.
“We strive to bring brick play to communities in need,” said Priya Bery, CEO of Soho Impact based in California. “Our goal is to help communities thrive through creative play.”
The firm will also enhance its existing projects such as the “Small Library” and “Nexon Youth Programming Challenge” (NYPC).
The library project that started in 2005 has established 118 libraries in Korea and developing countries with over 100,000 books.
The NYPC competition is an annual coding competition for young people, started in 2016. Last year’s competition got positive reviews from participants for its mentoring sessions with software developers, according to the firm.
The game company has been encouraging its game users to participate in its social contribution activities while they play online games.
In 2016, those who play “Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds” could donate books to the small library in Indonesia when they accomplished special quests while playing the role playing game.
Similar donation events were held for other games including “Dungeon and Fighter” to support victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.