ABOUT
Welcome from GELYDA
The Global Extended Learning and Youth Development Association (GELYDA - pronounced GELIDA) is a new international membership organization dedicated to understanding, supporting, and improving expanded opportunities for learning, development, and thriving in schools, afterschool and summer programs, and communities.
Building off the success of our first international conference in Reykjavik, Iceland in June 2025, the GELYDA Steering Committee is pleased to announce the Association’s second international conference, “Building civic and community engagement in youth development: A shared responsibility of schools and extended education,” in Seoul June 24-26, 2026.
Preparing young people for democratic citizenship is more urgent than ever. Children and youth must develop the values, skills, and attitudes to participate meaningfully in community life, safeguard positive norms, and contribute to a more just and connected global society. Afterschool programs, service learning, and community initiatives provide critical opportunities for young people to practice perspective taking, civic engagement, and collective problem-solving.
Through engaging keynote speakers, symposia, breakout sessions and other interactive formats the 2026 GELYDA international conference calls on practitioners, policymakers and researchers to explore the role of extended learning in the development of young people.
Please join us as we gather at Sungkyunkwan University, a prestigious private research university in the heart of Seoul with a history that spans over 600 years.
Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School and Chair of GELYDA
The Global Extended Learning and Youth Development Association (GELYDA - pronounced GELIDA) is a new international membership organization dedicated to understanding, supporting, and improving expanded opportunities for learning, development, and thriving in schools, afterschool and summer programs, and communities.
Building off the success of our first international conference in Reykjavik, Iceland in June 2025, the GELYDA Steering Committee is pleased to announce the Association’s second international conference, “Building civic and community engagement in youth development: A shared responsibility of schools and extended education,” in Seoul June 24-26, 2026.
Preparing young people for democratic citizenship is more urgent than ever. Children and youth must develop the values, skills, and attitudes to participate meaningfully in community life, safeguard positive norms, and contribute to a more just and connected global society. Afterschool programs, service learning, and community initiatives provide critical opportunities for young people to practice perspective taking, civic engagement, and collective problem-solving.
Through engaging keynote speakers, symposia, breakout sessions and other interactive formats the 2026 GELYDA international conference calls on practitioners, policymakers and researchers to explore the role of extended learning in the development of young people.
Please join us as we gather at Sungkyunkwan University, a prestigious private research university in the heart of Seoul with a history that spans over 600 years.
Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School and Chair of GELYDA
Welcome Message
Dear Colleagues and Friends,
We warmly invite you to the 2026 GELYDA International Conference in Seoul, 24–26 June 2026. The theme is “Building civic and community engagement in youth development: a shared responsibility of schools and extended education.”
We gather in an AI‑ and technology‑driven era that is rapidly reshaping education and everyday life. Our goal is to sustain and expand humanity and community life. Forming a future generation that understands how society works, recognizes roles and responsibilities, and pursues the common good through reason and intellect—not power—is a shared responsibility. It does not rest with schools alone. It calls for extended education and local communities to stand alongside schools.
Korea was once called “The Land of the Morning Calm.” Today, the Republic of Korea, through the dual achievements of industrialization and democracy, has shown the strength of education. Building on this history and experience, we hope to share international cases on the evolving roles and responsibilities of extended education, draw enduring lessons, and design evidence‑informed policies and practices. The program features research presentations, case exchanges, policy roundtables, and conversations on students’ and young people’s growth and development.
We also invite you to experience the vibrancy of K‑culture and the rich diversity of K‑food woven into the program. Over four days and three nights in Seoul, bridging scholarship, policy, and practice, your insights and experience will make our shared journey more rewarding. Please join us in taking a meaningful step forward in advancing civic and community engagement in youth development as a global agenda.
Dear Colleagues and Friends,
We warmly invite you to the 2026 GELYDA International Conference in Seoul, 24–26 June 2026. The theme is “Building civic and community engagement in youth development: a shared responsibility of schools and extended education.”
We gather in an AI‑ and technology‑driven era that is rapidly reshaping education and everyday life. Our goal is to sustain and expand humanity and community life. Forming a future generation that understands how society works, recognizes roles and responsibilities, and pursues the common good through reason and intellect—not power—is a shared responsibility. It does not rest with schools alone. It calls for extended education and local communities to stand alongside schools.Korea was once called “The Land of the Morning Calm.” Today, the Republic of Korea, through the dual achievements of industrialization and democracy, has shown the strength of education. Building on this history and experience, we hope to share international cases on the evolving roles and responsibilities of extended education, draw enduring lessons, and design evidence‑informed policies and practices. The program features research presentations, case exchanges, policy roundtables, and conversations on students’ and young people’s growth and development.
We also invite you to experience the vibrancy of K‑culture and the rich diversity of K‑food woven into the program. Over four days and three nights in Seoul, bridging scholarship, policy, and practice, your insights and experience will make our shared journey more rewarding. Please join us in taking a meaningful step forward in advancing civic and community engagement in youth development as a global agenda.
Sang Hoon Bae
Vice President of Academic Affairs & Professor, Sungkyunkwan University
Director, Education and Future Institute
Editor-in-Chief, International Journal for Research on Extended Education (IJREE)
Vice President of Academic Affairs & Professor, Sungkyunkwan University
Director, Education and Future Institute
Editor-in-Chief, International Journal for Research on Extended Education (IJREE)
Welcome Message
Dear colleagues and friends,
With great joy, we welcome you to Seoul, South Korea, and to the 2026 GELYDA International Conference taking place from June 24 to 26, 2026.
As co-hosts, we are deeply honored to host this conference in the South Korea. Under the theme “Building civic and community engagement in youth
development: a shared responsibility of schools and extended education,” the 2026 GELYDA conference will be precious opportunities to connect research and practice, and to bridge local and global in the field of extended education.
In South Korea, where the extended education has formed in the tension between community and school-centered orientation, it will provide new insights to discuss new directions of future extended education for whole development of youth. We are confident that the 2026 GELYDA conference will be an interesting meeting.
Seoul, the capital of South Korea, is a crossroad of the history and the present of Korean society more than just a big city. Here, ultra-modern buildings blend with traditional spaces. It's also a city of education and a cultural hub, with a diverse educational institutes and collections of museums and memorials. Even a brief visit will tell fascinating stories about Seoul's unique identity, openness, and dynamics.
Please join us for this meaningful journey to discuss on the role of community and education for development and well-being of youth.
Warmest regards,
Dear colleagues and friends,
With great joy, we welcome you to Seoul, South Korea, and to the 2026 GELYDA International Conference taking place from June 24 to 26, 2026.
As co-hosts, we are deeply honored to host this conference in the South Korea. Under the theme “Building civic and community engagement in youth
development: a shared responsibility of schools and extended education,” the 2026 GELYDA conference will be precious opportunities to connect research and practice, and to bridge local and global in the field of extended education.
In South Korea, where the extended education has formed in the tension between community and school-centered orientation, it will provide new insights to discuss new directions of future extended education for whole development of youth. We are confident that the 2026 GELYDA conference will be an interesting meeting.
Seoul, the capital of South Korea, is a crossroad of the history and the present of Korean society more than just a big city. Here, ultra-modern buildings blend with traditional spaces. It's also a city of education and a cultural hub, with a diverse educational institutes and collections of museums and memorials. Even a brief visit will tell fascinating stories about Seoul's unique identity, openness, and dynamics.
Please join us for this meaningful journey to discuss on the role of community and education for development and well-being of youth.
Warmest regards,
Sung-sik Kim
Professor, Seoul National University of Education
Chair-elect, The Korean After-School Study Association (KASSA)
Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of After-School Research
Professor, Seoul National University of Education
Chair-elect, The Korean After-School Study Association (KASSA)
Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of After-School Research
| Theme | Building civic and community engagement in youth development: A shared responsibility of schools and extended education |
| Dates | June 24 – 26, 2026 |
| Venue | HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES CAMPUS, International Hall, 25-2 Sungkyunkwan-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul 03063, Korea |
| Official Language | English (keynote speech will be simultaneously interpreted into Korean) |
| Organized by | The Global Extended Learning & Youth Development Association https://www.gelyda.org/ |
| Hosted by | Education and Future Institute, Sungkyunkwan University https://www.edunfi.org/ |
| In collaboration with | The Korean After-School Study Association https://afterschool.re.kr/ |
| Address | HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES CAMPUS International Hall, 90212 (Lobby Floor) 25-2 Sungkyunkwan-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul 03063, Korea |
| Homepage | If you would like to know more about Sungkyunkwan University, please click the https://www.skku.edu/eng/. |
| Directions to the Conference Venue |
(1) Sungkyunkwan University (2) Sungkyunkwan University International Hall (3) Official University Map |
| Campus Map |
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The 2026 Global Extended Learning and Youth Development Association (GELYDA) International Conference, to be held from 24-26 June 2026 in Seoul, Korea, brings together educators, researchers, practitioners, and youth development professionals from around the world.