The country of South Korea is located in eastern Asia. Most of the country is hilly and mountainous and the majority of the uplands of the Korean Peninsula are still comprised of forests (South Korea: a Country Overview.) The people of Korea are descended from several Mongol tribal groups who entered the area in approximately 4000 BC from Siberia and Manchuria; gradually, they became homogenous as a race and were independent of their neighbors with specific cultural qualities that were separate from other Asian ethnic groups such as the Chinese and Japanese.
South Korea is a Republic and its government is led by the president, who is elected by popular vote for only one five-year term, and he or she appoints the Prime Minister. The legislature is made up of the National Assembly, which contains 299 seats, each of which members serves a four-year term. The power of the legislature is jointly shared by the government along with the National Assembly. The people of South Korea number approximately 50 million, and nearly half of the population is secular with 26% Christian, 26% Buddhist, 1% Confucianist and the remaining 1% other religions. Koreans speak one language.
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Regarding the social structure of South Korea, its people have lived by an ethic based on five hierarchical relationships: father-son, came-subject, husband-wife, elder-younger, and friend-friend (South Korea: a Country Overview.). The way that a person is treated is mostly determined by his or her age, and an extraordinary degree of importance is put on how a person treats others. In other aspects, there is more of a vertical aspect to relationships because of the common language, which reinforces the mutuality of communicating. The most important part of Korean life is the family, and as in the Confucian way, the father heads the family and takes responsibility to provide them with all the essentials. The welfare of the family is much more emphasized over the needs of an individual, and as a whole, Koreans put a great deal of emphasis on social networks, which are grounded in family, hometowns, provinces, schools, and other associations so that often, the first asked by Koreans are about a person’s age, educational background, and family background.
Climate change poses significant risks to South Korea. The country has been hit especially hard by changing weather patterns and unlike many of its international colleagues, has been directing confronting the problems rather than engaging in denial. The country has been battered by torrential rains that have resulted in significant flooding, landslides, and widespread property damage (Climate Change Comes to South Korea.) People have been stunned by the visuals of the capital, Seoul, with its downtown area flooded with water that is up to the neck. Each summer, in South Korea, heavy rains are typical but the intensity and the nature of the recent storms have been viewed as evidence that climate change is real and that if the country wants to survive, it must make adjustments to accept that its future will involve a hotter, wetter, and more volatile climate. In addition, the season of summer has been longer than ever before and has had temperatures that are higher than ever as well as rainfall that is far greater than previous summers. In the last three decades, in South Korea the number of days that experienced rainfall has doubled, and most recently the rainfall in other regions was more than two or three times the average rainfall from prior years.
- “Climate Change Comes to South Korea.” 8 August 2011. Asia Sentinel. Web. 13 March 2014.
- “South Korea–a Country Overview.” 2014. South Korea Anglo Info.com. Web. 13 March 2014.
The country of South Korea is located in eastern Asia. Most of the country is hilly and mountainous and the majority of the uplands of the Korean Peninsula are still comprised of forests (South Korea: a Country Overview.) The people of Korea are descended from several Mongol tribal groups who entered the area in approximately 4000 BC from Siberia and Manchuria; gradually, they became homogenous as a race and were independent of their neighbors with specific cultural qualities that were separate from other Asian ethnic groups such as the Chinese and Japanese.
South Korea is a Republic and its government is led by the president, who is elected by popular vote for only one five-year term, and he or she appoints the Prime Minister. The legislature is made up of the National Assembly, which contains 299 seats, each of which members serves a four-year term. The power of the legislature is jointly shared by the government along with the National Assembly. The people of South Korea number approximately 50 million, and nearly half of the population is secular with 26% Christian, 26% Buddhist, 1% Confucianist and the remaining 1% other religions. Koreans speak one language.
Regarding the social structure of South Korea, its people have lived by an ethic based on five hierarchical relationships: father-son, came-subject, husband-wife, elder-younger, and friend-friend (South Korea: a Country Overview.). The way that a person is treated is mostly determined by his or her age, and an extraordinary degree of importance is put on how a person treats others. In other aspects, there is more of a vertical aspect to relationships because of the common language, which reinforces the mutuality of communicating. The most important part of Korean life is the family, and as in the Confucian way, the father heads the family and takes responsibility to provide them with all the essentials. The welfare of the family is much more emphasized over the needs of an individual, and as a whole, Koreans put a great deal of emphasis on social networks, which are grounded in family, hometowns, provinces, schools, and other associations so that often, the first asked by Koreans are about a person’s age, educational background, and family background.
Climate change poses significant risks to South Korea. The country has been hit especially hard by changing weather patterns and unlike many of its international colleagues, has been directing confronting the problems rather than engaging in denial. The country has been battered by torrential rains that have resulted in significant flooding, landslides, and widespread property damage (Climate Change Comes to South Korea.) People have been stunned by the visuals of the capital, Seoul, with its downtown area flooded with water that is up to the neck. Each summer, in South Korea, heavy rains are typical but the intensity and the nature of the recent storms have been viewed as evidence that climate change is real and that if the country wants to survive, it must make adjustments to accept that its future will involve a hotter, wetter, and more volatile climate. In addition, the season of summer has been longer than ever before and has had temperatures that are higher than ever as well as rainfall that is far greater than previous summers. In the last three decades, in South Korea the number of days that experienced rainfall has doubled, and most recently the rainfall in other regions was more than two or three times the average rainfall from prior years.
- “Climate Change Comes to South Korea.” 8 August 2011. Asia Sentinel. Web. 13 March 2014.
- “South Korea–a Country Overview.” 2014. South Korea Anglo Info.com. Web. 13 March 2014.
