From Crisis to Commitment: How a Young Activist is Shaping South Korea's Environmental Policies Two years ago, the South Korean government banned cafe and restaurant owners from distributing single-use plates, chopsticks, cutlery, and plastic cups. A few months later, the list of banned items stretched to plastic straws. Violation could amount to a fine of about $2,300. Public reaction was mixed.

Two years ago, the South Korean government banned cafe and restaurant owners from distributing single-use plates, chopsticks, cutlery, and plastic cups. A few months later, the list of banned items stretched to plastic straws. Violation could amount to a fine of about $2,300. Public reaction was mixed. Business owners seemed concerned about costs. And customers, meanwhile, weren't prepared for the sudden change. "These objects are very close and intimate to our daily lives," said Cherry Sung, a 17-year-old climate activist. "Koreans drink coffee from a very young age and going to cafes is part of their routine. That routine, up until now, didn't include a mushy paper cardboard straw."

So when the government reversed the entire policy in late 2023, Sung wasn't shocked. "The whole situation showed a clear lack of consumer research," she said. "I wish it had been handled differently."

Since Sung was in middle school, she's been plugged into key debates and conversations surrounding climate and the environment. As a fifth grader, she launched a blog, "Greener is Cleaner," to post explanatory articles on subjects such as the history of microplastics, sustainable seafood, and better alternatives to disposable packaging. Often, she connected the topic back to policy and to South Korea. "Widespread microplastic is a very pressing problem in Korean waters," she wrote in 2019, comparing reported microplastic content in Korea to California.

Sung, now a high school junior, researched and wrote these blog posts in her free time, on nights and weekends. Science classes at her school didn't address the environment, so she tracked down information alone. That year, she was also seriously ill with anorexia. "Pouring myself into environmental activism actually helped me recover," Sung said. "I discovered a new passion, one that demanded I get healthy and strong."

She established Greener is Cleaner as an international club and began recruiting students from South Korea and across the world. Her members, who live in Asia, Europe, South America, and Australia, write blog articles and produce educational webinar events. Through this outreach, the organization—which has reached roughly 15,000 people worldwide—strives to educate young people and empower them to take environmental action. As founder and executive director, Sung also appointed members to run the social media accounts and design and manage the website.

As Sung expanded the club, she also remained focused on policy and youth activism. In 2020, she was elected to the Minister of Environmental Education Youth Council, a committee of 15 students from across the country. For three years, she studied government policy and drafted policy proposals to mandate environmental education in public schools. As of 2018, only 470 out of 5,591 public schools in South Korea were offering environmental education.

To capture international schools—not affected by the policy proposal—Sung also led an initiative to write educational booklets to tackle key environmental issues using approachable language and graphics. She distributed the books to school librarians and passed them out to students during workshops. "It makes students a little more excited about environmental education," Sung said. "It's essential to give environmental education to young people. We're the ones who will live on this planet in 50 years. We deserve to not just be included in big decisions about the environment, but to have a say."

Sung has since won a RISE Global award and a Youth Leads Award, and she's been recognized as an International Young Eco Hero and Global Social Leader. For the last year, she's been hard at work organizing a project with Greener is Cleaner to implement a sustainable cup program at her international high school. Not only will the on-campus cafe replace all single-use containers with reusable cups, but each one will get a QR code—making the cup traceable using an app. Sung's club is developing the code now, and she has plans to present a prototype to administration by next month. "It makes a big difference for the environment," she said. "And if you communicate the science by looping in the public, it's actually not a huge deal for consumers. In a few years, they won't think twice."