Korea Federation for Environmental Movements
A South Korean environmental civil-society federation campaigning for ecological protection, environmental justice, renewable energy, and grassroots participation.
Last updated August 25, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
The Korea Federation for Environmental Movements (KFEM) is a South Korean nonprofit environmental organization and one of the country's largest environmental civil-society networks. It was established in April 1993 through the federation of eight environmental groups, with the Korean Anti-Pollution Movement Association serving as its largest predecessor organization. The federation emerged from the wider democratic and civic movements that shaped South Korean civil society and developed a model combining public campaigning, scientific research, environmental education, legal advocacy, conservation work, and international cooperation. KFEM operates through a national network of local offices and affiliated specialist bodies. Reference material describes approximately 80,000 individual members and around 50 local offices nationwide, although current figures should be verified against the organization's latest reports. Its work is primarily domestic, but it also participates in international environmental campaigns and is associated with Friends of the Earth International. KFEM obtained special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council in May 1998 and has been identified as a Korean national member of Friends of the Earth since 2002. The organization campaigns against projects it considers environmentally damaging and has participated in public opposition to nuclear-waste facilities, large dams, river-development schemes, inappropriate golf-course construction, coastal reclamation, and other forms of ecological degradation. Notable campaigns cited in reference material include opposition to a proposed nuclear-waste storage facility on Gulup Island, dam construction on the Dong River, and a golf course in Gaya Mountain National Park. KFEM also opposed the proposed Grand Korean Waterway, a large canal project intended to connect the Han and Nakdong river systems. Its conservation work covers wetlands, rivers, forests, biodiversity, and the Korean Demilitarized Zone. KFEM has conducted ecological surveys in and around the DMZ, where restricted human access has allowed habitats for species such as the black-faced spoonbill, red-crowned crane, and Amur goral to persist. The federation has advocated protection for Korean wetlands that serve as breeding, stopover, and wintering sites for endangered and migratory birds. It has also used field research, public exhibitions, and ecotourism programs to support the designation and management of protected wetlands, including Upo Wetland. Environmental health is another major area. KFEM has campaigned against hazardous substances including asbestos and problematic PVC products, monitored indoor air quality in public facilities, and investigated links between consumer products, pollution, and human health. Its food and agriculture work supports organic farming and questions the environmental and health consequences of genetically modified organisms, artificial additives, and other agricultural practices. KFEM's policy platform emphasizes sustainable consumption, protection of vulnerable communities, ecological land use, stronger environmental laws, green local governance, industrial and tax-system reform, nuclear disarmament and denuclearized energy policy, renewable energy, climate-change mitigation, and international solidarity. Through affiliated organizations such as environmental information, research, legal, education, and consumer-cooperative bodies, it provides citizens with practical channels for participation as well as policy expertise. Its public identity is rooted in the principles of life, peace, ecology, environmental rights, and bottom-up democratic action.
History
KFEM's institutional roots lie in South Korea's expanding environmental and democratic movements of the late twentieth century. The Korean Anti-Pollution Movement Association, one of its principal predecessor organizations, developed campaigns and specialist functions addressing pollution, environmental law, public information, and community concerns. These activities provided the organizational foundation for a broader national federation. In April 1993, eight environmental groups joined to establish the Korea Federation for Environmental Movements. The federation's creation gave local and issue-specific groups a shared national structure while preserving the importance of citizen participation. From the beginning, KFEM combined public demonstrations and campaigns with research, legal work, environmental education, and direct conservation. This combination allowed it to challenge major infrastructure and industrial projects while also proposing policy alternatives and building public understanding. During the 1990s and 2000s, KFEM became involved in campaigns against environmentally harmful development. Its cited successes and major campaigns included opposition to a proposed nuclear-waste storage facility on Gulup Island, dam construction on the Dong River, and a golf course in Gaya Mountain National Park. The federation also criticized large-scale river engineering and later opposed the proposed Grand Korean Waterway, a planned 540-kilometre canal linking the Han and Nakdong rivers. These campaigns reflected KFEM's broader concern that infrastructure decisions should account for ecological integrity, local communities, and long-term public interest. Conservation became a central part of the federation's work. KFEM surveyed the Korean Demilitarized Zone and nearby areas, documenting habitats and species protected by decades of limited human access. It also worked on wetland conservation at a time when extensive coastal areas were being reclaimed or considered for reclamation. Through field studies, public education, exhibitions, and advocacy, KFEM supported stronger protection for wetlands including Upo Wetland, recognized as a Ramsar wetland of international importance. The organization's environmental-health agenda expanded beyond conventional nature conservation. KFEM campaigned for the reduction or elimination of hazardous substances such as asbestos and certain PVC applications, examined indoor air quality in schools and subway systems, and studied the environmental and health implications of products including bottled water and intravenous bags. It also promoted organic agriculture and raised concerns about genetically modified organisms and artificial food additives. KFEM developed specialist affiliates to support its expanding activities. These included environmental information and public-awareness work, citizen environmental research, an Environmental Law Center, environmental education programs, and an eco-oriented consumer cooperative. The Environmental Law Center evolved from earlier legal counseling functions and became an affiliated organization in 2000. The Eco Cooperative, established in 2002, promoted eco-friendly products and closer relationships between producers and consumers. The Korea Environmental Education Center worked to create educational programs and materials for citizens, teachers, and environmental activists. The monthly magazine Ham-ke-sa-neun-gil, launched in 1993, provided another channel for public communication. Internationally, KFEM has participated in Friends of the Earth activities and wider environmental cooperation. It supported campaigns concerning climate change, desertification, biodiversity, wetlands, and regional information exchange. Between 2003 and 2007, reference material records cooperation with Chinese organizations and local residents on grassland restoration in parts of Jilin province, followed by a 2007 planting project in northern Inner Mongolia. In 2014, KFEM undertook an environmental project involving wetland areas in the Brazilian Amazon and supported an ecological exchange involving Suncheon in South Korea and Curitiba in Brazil. Today, KFEM is best understood as a national environmental movement federation rather than a conventional consumer brand. Its continuing role is to connect local activism, scientific evidence, environmental law, public education, and international solidarity. Its stated priorities include renewable energy, climate action, denuclearization, environmental rights, ecological land use, sustainable consumption, biodiversity, and participatory local governance.
- 2014
Brazilian Amazon wetland project
[1]KFEM carried out an international environmental project involving wetland areas in the Brazilian Amazon.
- 2002
Eco Cooperative launched and Friends of the Earth relationship established
[1]The Eco Cooperative began operations in October, while KFEM became identified as a Korean national member of Friends of the Earth.
- 2000
Environmental Law Center established as an affiliate
[1]KFEM's environmental legal function developed into the affiliated Environmental Law Center on 21 February 2000.
- 1998
UN ECOSOC consultative status
[1]KFEM obtained special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
- 1995
Citizens' Information Center becomes affiliated
[1]The Citizens' Information Center for Environment became one of KFEM's affiliated specialist organizations.
- 1993
Federation established
[1]Eight South Korean environmental groups formed KFEM in April 1993, with the Korean Anti-Pollution Movement Association as the largest predecessor organization.
- 1993
Ham-ke-sa-neun-gil launched
[1]KFEM began publishing Ham-ke-sa-neun-gil, a monthly environmental and civic-awareness magazine.
Products and positioning
A large, progressive, membership-based environmental federation that combines grassroots mobilization with scientific research, legal action, education, conservation, and international environmental cooperation.
Public advocacy · 1993
Environmental campaigns
KFEM organizes national and local campaigns on nuclear energy, renewable energy, climate change, toxic chemicals, air pollution, river development, wetlands, biodiversity, genetically modified organisms, corporate responsibility, and sustainable consumption. Campaign methods include public education, citizen participation, policy advocacy, research publication, and protest activity.
Research and policy · 1993
Environmental research
Through citizen-research institutions and field programs, KFEM studies environmental health, energy efficiency, carbon emissions, wetlands, biodiversity, ecological land use, and pollution. Research is used to inform public debate, support legal and policy interventions, and strengthen evidence for conservation proposals.
Legal advocacy · 2000
Environmental Law Center services
The Environmental Law Center provides environmental legal advice, supports environment-related litigation, reviews laws and regulations, and develops educational programs for lawyers and experts. Its predecessor legal counseling function dates to 1991, while the center became a KFEM affiliate in 2000.
Education · 2000
Environmental education
The Korea Environmental Education Center develops educational materials and programs for citizens, students, teachers, and environmental activists. It also studies environmental-education systems, networks educators, advises on program design, and evaluates related public policies.
Publication · 1993
Ham-ke-sa-neun-gil
Ham-ke-sa-neun-gil is KFEM's environmental and civic magazine, launched in July 1993. Its editorial focus includes ecological coexistence, environmental awareness, conservation, and forms of social participation intended to support a healthier civil society.
Marketing campaigns
- 2007Inner Mongolia grassland project
China · Northeast Asia
KFEM participated in grassland planting in Manduh Bulag in northern Inner Mongolia as part of regional cooperation on desertification.
Outcome. Reference material reports planting on approximately 200 hectares.
- 2003Northeast China grassland restoration
China · Northeast Asia
KFEM collaborated with Chinese environmental groups and local residents to plant native grasses and address desertification in northwestern Jilin province.
Outcome. The project restored or planted approximately 900 hectares of grassland in the cited area, according to the reference material.
- Gulup Island nuclear-waste facility opposition
South Korea
KFEM opposed the proposed construction of a nuclear-waste storage facility on Gulup Island as part of its wider campaign on nuclear safety and denuclearized energy policy.
Outcome. Reference material identifies the campaign as one of KFEM's important victories, but does not provide a precise completion date or detailed outcome chronology.
- Dong River dam opposition
South Korea
The federation campaigned against dam construction on the Dong River, arguing for river protection and ecological conservation.
Outcome. The campaign is listed among KFEM's significant victories, although the supplied material does not specify the final decision date.
- Gaya Mountain National Park golf-course opposition
South Korea
KFEM opposed a proposed golf course in Gaya Mountain National Park on conservation and protected-land grounds.
Outcome. Reference material describes the campaign as a successful effort to stop an environmentally harmful project.
- Grand Korean Waterway opposition
South Korea
KFEM opposed the proposed 540-kilometre canal linking the Han River and Nakdong River, warning about the ecological and social consequences of large-scale river engineering.
- DMZ biodiversity conservation
Korean Demilitarized Zone · South Korea
KFEM conducts surveys and advocates conservation of habitats in and around the DMZ, including areas supporting endangered and migratory species.
- Wetlands protection
South Korea
The federation combines ecological surveys, policy advocacy, public exhibitions, and ecotourism to protect Korean coastal and inland wetlands.
Outcome. KFEM helped build support for government designation of several wetlands as protected areas, including Upo Wetland.
- Toxic-chemical and environmental-health campaigns
South Korea
KFEM has campaigned against asbestos and selected PVC products, monitored indoor air quality, and investigated environmental-health risks associated with consumer and medical products.
Brand decisions
2002
Join international Friends of the Earth networkStrategyBackground
KFEM sought stronger international cooperation on climate change, biodiversity, pollution, and environmental justice.
Action taken
It became recognized as a Korean national member of Friends of the Earth International.
Aftermath
The relationship connected KFEM's domestic campaigns with a global federation of environmental organizations.
1998
Obtain UN ECOSOC consultative statusStrategyBackground
KFEM's environmental work increasingly included international policy cooperation and representation of civil-society concerns.
Action taken
The organization obtained special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
Aftermath
KFEM gained a formal channel for contributing to discussions connected with the ECOSOC agenda and values.
Recent events
- 2002
KFEM joins Friends of the Earth network as a Korean national member[1]
Other
The federation became associated with Friends of the Earth International, linking its South Korean campaigns with a broader global environmental network.
- 1998
KFEM receives ECOSOC special consultative status[1]
Other
KFEM obtained special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council, supporting its participation in international civil-society and environmental discussions.
- 1993
KFEM formed through federation of eight environmental groups[1]
Other
The organization was established in April 1993 through the consolidation of eight South Korean environmental groups, including the Korean Anti-Pollution Movement Association.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/korean-federation-for-environmental-movement · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled