On March 6, 2019, a guest lecturer was invited to speak at the Samsung Convention Center at Centennial Hall. The speaker was Ban Ki-moon, 8th UN Secretary General, and he gave a talk on the subject ‘From the Perspective of a Global Citizen’. The lecture was hosted by Main Library in Sookmyung Women’s University and Association Corée-France (AFC). Moon Si-yeon, director of Main Library, presided over the lecture. The lecture was preceded by a welcoming speech by Sookmyung Women’s University President Kang Jeongai. After the welcoming address, Ban Ki-moon spoke to the audience. Then a congratulatory speech by Association Corée-France President Son Woohyun was given. 8th UN Secretary General Ban emphasized gender equality and environmental issues but concentrated his message on the importance of women in education and women’s rights. He also spoke about global leadership, skills that every leader needs. Especially he emphasized humility and gentleness and compared a person’s character to the nature of uninterrupted flowing water. Moreover, he said a leader should perform their job with both passion and compassion and he said that a leader needs insight in order to view all surrounding situations and plan for them accordingly. Kang Jiwoon, Department of German Language & Culture ’16 said, “When I participate in various activities, I often focused on the “work” rather than “people” but thanks to his talk, I had an opportunity to reflect upon my behavior. Furthermore, I think 8th UN Secretary General Ban, who was continuing work towards to resolving social issues even during his retirement days, showed us who has qualification for a leader and how important they are to move society forward.” The lecture motivated all Sookmyungians in attendance to start new and work towards becoming great leaders in society.
