- Local Community Governance
- Local Community Strategy
- Local Community Activities
- Local Community Goals
Local Community
Local Community Governance
Local Community Implementation Organization
Coway deliberates and approves its approach to social contribution and the related implementation plans through the ESG Council and the ESG Committee. Based on the strategies endorsed by the highest decision-making body, the Social Contribution Team takes the lead in driving execution, while regular performance reviews enhance the effectiveness of these activities. Coway combines its business capabilities with social responsibility. These efforts take shape through employee volunteer initiatives and product donation programs built around its core assets, water and air. We also lead in promoting inclusive value by supporting the social independence of underrepresented groups and broadening access to culture and the arts through the operation of a sports team for people with disabilities and the Mulbit Choir.
Local Community Policy
Coway has established clear principles for local community development and codified them in its Social Contribution Policy for implementation. This policy is continuously updated and managed in line with rapidly evolving social needs and the UN SDGs, serving as a guideline to ensure that all activities contribute to addressing the actual issues facing local communities.
Local Community Strategy
Local Community Framework
Guided by the principle of "Good Wave for People & Environment," Coway places people and the environment at the forefront, engaging with local communities to address a wide range of social issues. Social contribution initiatives are selected through a multi-faceted review of the urgency of each issue and its connection to Coway's business. We also foster an environment that encourages voluntary employee participation and run regular engagement programs to expand awareness of social contribution. Going forward, we plan to establish communication channels for ongoing dialogue with local communities and introduce a structured approach to assessing the outcomes and social impact of each activity, both quantitatively and qualitatively.
Social Contribution Framework Diagram
Local Community Activities
Environmental Protection Activities
EM Mud Ball Throwing
Coway is contributing to water purification and carbon reduction through the "EM (Effective Micro-organisms) Mud Ball Throwing" campaign. EM mud balls are made by mixing a solution of beneficial microorganisms with red clay and fermenting the mixture for approximately three weeks. When thrown into rivers, the balls gradually dissolve, clarifying the water and reducing odors. Such activities help restore river ecosystems and have a positive effect on absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Coway's employee volunteer group has carried out this campaign along the Anyangcheon Stream near our headquarters in Seoul, deploying a cumulative total of 13,000 EM mud balls between 2023 and 2025. Going forward, we plan to expand the campaign to areas near major sites, including the Incheon Plant and the Pocheon Plant, to support the recovery of local aquatic ecosystems and promote the value of water environment conservation.
River Plogging
Since 2022, Coway has been advancing everyday environmental protection through the "River Plogging" campaign. This activity, which involves jogging along rivers while collecting litter, aims to maintain clean waterside areas and safeguard water environments. In 2025, employees and children from the in-house daycare center took part in plogging at the ecological pond within G-Tower, sharing the value of environmental protection firsthand. We plan to continue hosting this campaign to communicate the importance of water. Coway has also broadened its water environment protection activities to the marine domain through the "Marine Plogging" program, in which employees with diving certifications retrieve waste from beaches and the seabed, supporting marine ecosystem protection.
Coway Classroom Forest
Through the "Classroom Forest" program, Coway supports environmental education for elementary school students and creates social value. The program provides air-purifying plants for classrooms, helping children learn in a comfortable environment and grow more familiar with nature. From 2022 to date, Coway has donated a total of 3,117 air-purifying plants to seven elementary schools, including 494 plants donated in 2025. We also contribute to biodiversity conservation by separately donating endangered tree species in the same quantity as the plants placed in classrooms.
Coway Ecological Forest
Coway launched the "Ecological Forest Creation Project" in 2024 to address the environmental crisis and restore ecosystems. The project creates ecological forests by planting endangered and rare native species based on the IUCN Red List and the list of conservation-target plants designated by the Korea Forest Service. By 2025, Coway has established ecological forests covering a cumulative 421㎡ (approximately 127 pyeong) at its headquarters and Seoul Banghwa Elementary School, conserving a total of 2,560 native plants of the Korean Peninsula over two years, including nationally protected species such as endangered and endemic plants.
Going forward, we plan to leverage these ecological forests to expand ecological education activities involving both employees and local residents, and to run environmental programs for children and adolescents to continuously promote the value of biodiversity.
Community Protection Activities
Living Environment Improvement Project
Coway is improving living environments by providing air purifiers and water purifiers to vulnerable groups. Under the agreement concluded with the Ministry of Environment in 2018, Coway supplies air purifiers free of charge, together with regular maintenance services, to groups vulnerable to indoor air quality risks and to youth facilities such as schools. Through these efforts, Coway has helped create more comfortable living environments, supporting a total of 525 units by 2025. In recognition of these contributions, Coway received a commendation from the Minister of Environment at the 2024 Indoor Environment Improvement Agreement Ceremony for Vulnerable Populations.
In addition, Coway carries out the 'Safe Groundwater Project' in rural areas affected by groundwater contamination, helping residents access safe drinking water. In 2015, Coway signed an initial agreement with the Ministry of Environment. It distributed approximately 500 water purifiers under this agreement. A second agreement in 2021 added around 500 more units, providing clean drinking water to about 1,000 households. Through this initiative, Coway supports healthy living for local residents who had been affected by groundwater contamination.
Support for Sports and Cultural Arts for People with Disabilities
Coway is fostering local community integration and promoting a culture of sharing by expanding social participation for persons with disabilities and creating sustainable employment opportunities. In particular, Coway signed an agreement with the Korea Employment Agency for Persons with Disabilities in 2022 to promote employment for persons with disabilities, and has actively implemented its plan to expand such employment. Notably, Coway established the "BlueWheels Wheelchair Basketball Team" and the "Mulbit Choir for the Visually Impaired" to support sports and cultural arts activities for persons with disabilities.
The Coway BlueWheels achieved a grand slam by winning all tournaments in 2025 and continues to run wheelchair basketball experience classes for schools in local communities. The team also hosted the "1st Coway Cup," contributing to greater disability awareness and the broader spread of social value, and received a commendation from the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2025 in recognition of its contributions to revitalizing wheelchair basketball. The Coway Mulbit Choir is also expanding its cultural arts outreach by holding regular concerts and special performances for employees and local residents. The choir leads efforts to deepen understanding of disability by conducting awareness performances and lectures for the next generation, including elementary and middle school students. Notably, in 2025, the choir won the Grand Prize (Presidential Award) at the 33rd National Choir Competition for Persons with Disabilities, held to commemorate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. The award recognized the choir's contribution to advancing cultural arts for this community.
Employee Volunteering Activities
Since 2022, Coway has been running a campaign in which employees personally create braille learning materials to support the education of children with visual impairments. The completed teaching aids and tactile picture books are delivered to schools for the blind and welfare facilities nationwide, with a total of 615 items produced and donated to date. In 2023, Coway also launched the "Voice Donation" initiative. Employees receive vocalization training from professional voice actors. They then record children's stories to produce audiobooks. These audiobooks are delivered through the Seoul Nowon Welfare Center for the Visually Impaired to children with visual impairments, multicultural families, and others who face challenges in accessing books. To date, 60 employees have voluntarily participated, contributing to bridging the educational divide. Going forward, Coway plans to continue strengthening employees' awareness of ESG practices and to expand sharing activities for those underserved in education and information access.
Classroom Forest
BlueWheels Wheelchair Basketball Team
Local Community Goals
Mid- to Long-term Local Community Goals
Coway carries out social contribution activities in the environmental and disability sectors in connection with its core businesses. Over the three years from 2023, a cumulative 981 employees have voluntarily participated, completing a total of 2,392 hours of volunteer work. Aiming to reach 2,191 cumulative volunteers and 5,000 cumulative volunteer hours by 2028, Coway plans to expand employee participation, develop a wide range of programs, and continue supporting local communities.
Mid- to Long-term Social Contribution Targets¹⁾
1) Based on targets established in 2024
Mid- to Long-term Social Contribution Roadmap
