Hongneung to Become a Venue for Cooperation between Young Scientists from South Korea and the US

KIST (President: Seok-Jin Yoon) announced that the 2023 KIST-LLNL Joint Workshop to promote cooperation with the American research institute, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), was held from the 12th to the 14th of September in the Hongneung region of Seoul.

The workshop, the fourth of its kind to be held by the two organizations, is designed to provide a platform for young scientists from Korea and the United States to grow into next-generation science and technology leaders through joint research. A total of 21 researchers, led by Dr. Glenn A. Fox, visited Korea to attend the event, where researchers from both countries shared their joint research outcomes in the solid-state battery, computational science, hydrogen, catalyst, and climate & environmental fields and discussed future cooperation.

KIST and LLNL have been seeking out potential areas for mutual cooperation that can promote their respective strengths while compensating for weaknesses through joint workshops that have been held since 2019. The result of this was the establishment of international joint research in five fields: solid-state batteries, computational science, hydrogen, catalysts, and climate & the environment. In addition, starting from this year, KIST researchers will be dispatched to LLNL to further expand the scope of international cooperation.

LLNL is a representative American research institute under the US Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. Since its establishment in 1952, LLNL has led the development of technologies to meet the R&D needs for maintaining US national security, from high-performance computer technologies to advanced laser technologies. Currently, more than 8,000 researchers at LLNL are conducting research in various fields, such as bioscience, space physics, materials science, energy-related research including the development of innovative technologies in the field of energy production and use, terra-level computer simulation research, high-performance climate environmental impact assessment research, and research that addresses national security threats caused by the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs).

Seok-Jin Yoon, the President of KIST, commented, “This cooperation model between KIST and LLNL is expected to serve as an excellent precedent for revitalizing R&D through international cooperation that centers on young scientists from both countries.” Meanwhile, Glenn A. Fox, Associate Director for LLNL, stated, "I'm pleased that such a meaningful event could be held at KIST, and I hope that this workshop will be an opportunity to expand on research cooperation between our two organizations in the future."