Community
Management System
Policies
Community Protection Policy
POSCO Holdings, our holding company, establishes and discloses a stakeholder engagement policy and human rights management declaration applicable to all operating companies within the POSCO Group. Through this group-level policy, we actively gather stakeholder requirements and opinions to realize the values of coexistence and co-prosperity, and set out our commitments to contributing to local communities. We incorporate the guarantee of basic rights for local communities into our human rights management framework, and discuss and implement issue resolution and development directions through both regular and ad hoc meetings.
Operation of a Regional Communication Council
POSCO operates councils with diverse stakeholders, including local governments, environmental organizations, and academia, gathering and reflecting stakeholder opinions throughout the entire process ― from analyzing key local issues and establishing improvement measures to monitoring progress. We also hold regular meetings attended by the steelworks head and deputy head to expand direct communication with local residents.
· Frequency: 1~3 times per quarter
· Topics: Analysis of key local issues monitoring, promotion of environmental improvement efforts
and updates on environmental investment activities at the steelworks
Community Engagement Process
Management Activities
Community Engagement
Community Contribution through CSR
POSCO builds sustainable local communities by leveraging our capabilities and resources to deliver a wide range of contribution programs for local communities, including community development projects.
| Contribution Program | Details |
|---|---|
| Sister Villages | Since forming our first sister village partnership with Hagwang Village in Gwangyang in 1988, we have established partnerships with 209 villages and local organizations near our worksites, carrying out volunteer activities such as helping with farming and supporting vulnerable groups. |
| Community meal centers | Since opening our first centers in Pohang and Gwangyang in May 2004, we now operate five locations (three in Pohang and two in Gwangyang), providing operational support and organizing employee meal service volunteer activities. |
| Arts & Culture Facilities | Based at Hyoja Art Hall in Pohang and Baekwoon Art Hall in Gwangyang, we held 73 events (177 sessions) throughout the year, welcoming approximately 55,000 visitors. We also operate a wide range of cultural and artistic facilities for local communities, including the Space Walk at Hwanho Park in Pohang, Park1538 in Pohang and Gwangyang, POSCO Art Museum, football stadiums in Pohang and Gwangyang, and professional football clubs (Pohang Steelers and Jeonnam Dragons). In 2026, we plan to build an experiential installation at Gubongsan in Gwangyang. |
In 2025, the average annual volunteer hours per employee was 21 hours, and POSCO employees engage in a culture of volunteering and sharing, including donating part of their salary to the POSCO 1% Foundation.
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Skill-Based Volunteer Group
In 2014, POSCO launched the skill-based volunteer group, a program that leverages employees' skills, talents, and professional expertise. The Clean Ocean Group is one of our leading volunteer groups, collecting marine debris through underwater diving. In November 2025, we conducted underwater and onshore marine-cleanup activities around Jungma Pier at Gwangyang Port to help preserve the marine ecosystem. In recognition of these efforts, we received a commendation from the Governor of Jeollanam-do (Gwangyang) and a letter of appreciation from the Head of the Uljin Coast Guard Station (Pohang) in 2025.
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Global Volunteer Week
Global Volunteer Week is a dedicated volunteer initiative organized by POSCO Group. Since 2010, employees take part in a wide range of volunteer activities across the regions where the POSCO Group operates around the world. In 2025, our management and employees visited Yeongdeok-gun together to support affected farms and residents in their recovery from wildfire damage in Gyeongsangbuk-do.
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POSCO 1% Foundation
POSCO 1% Foundation is a nonprofit organization established in 2013, funded by employee donations and company matching grants. We carry out a wide range of programs to address community needs. Notably, in 2025, through a project supporting athletes with disabilities in community sports, we partnered with Pohang City's Northern Welfare Center for Persons with Disabilities ― helping its athletes achieve an overall championship victory at the 27th Gyeongsangbuk-do Sports Festival for Persons with Disabilities.
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Support for Future Generations People with Disabilities
POSCO carries out a wide range of social contribution activities for future generations and people with disabilities, including operating a university student volunteer corps, nurturing youth and local community talent, and expanding employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
BEYOND, a University Student Volunteer Group
POSCO launched the university student volunteer group BEYOND in 2007, and with a cumulative membership of 1,603, we have carried out diverse volunteer activities to address community challenges both at home and abroad. In 2025, we conducted engineering-based educational volunteer activities for children and youth.
POSCO Educational Foundation
The POSCO Educational Foundation was established in 1971 and has since established a total of 12 kindergartens and elementary, middle, and high schools across Seoul, Pohang, Gwangyang, and Songdo, providing children and youth with access to quality education.
POSCO TJ Park Foundation
Originally established as the Jecheol Scholarship Foundation in 1971, the POSCO TJ Park Foundation now operates a wide range of scholarship programs in Korea and abroad ― including the POSCO TJ Park Prize, POSCO Global Fellowship, POSCO Science Fellowship, and POSCO Youth Fellowship ― to cultivate talent in local communities and across Asia.
POSCO HUMANS, a Social Enterprise
POSCO HUMANS was established in 2007 as POSWITH, Korea's first subsidiary-type standardized workplace for people with disabilities, and was relaunched as POSCO HUMANS in 2013. We support the stable employment of employees with disabilities and continuously improve their working environment through measures such as funding for assistive-device purchases and access to professional rehabilitation counselors. As a result of these efforts, we have been recognized as a Certified Community Contributor by the Ministry of Health and Welfare for five consecutive years since 2021.
POSCO TJ Park Foundation Prize and Fellowship Programs
| Category | Key Achievements(Cumulative) |
|---|---|
| POSCO TJ Park Prize | · 4 fields (Science, Service, Education, Technology Awards): 68 people |
| POSCO Global Fellowship | · Global Scholarship in Korea: 562 people from 33 countries · Scholarship for Global Universities: 6,077 people from 22 countries · Junior Leader Fellowship: 79 people from 10 countries |
| POSCO Science Fellowship | · 543 people |
POSCO Youth Scholarship | · Vision Scholarship: 676 local university students |
POSCO Heroes | · Righteous People and their families: 136 people |
Social Contribution Expenses(2025)
| Category | Amount(KRW thousand) | Share(%) |
|---|---|---|
| Social welfare | 36,653,004 | 61.1 |
| Talent development | 20,094,000 | 33.5 |
| Sports and culture | 2,413,968 | 4.0 |
Volunteer | 820,655 | 1.4 |
Total | 59,981,627 | 100 |
Management Activities
Community Risk Management Activities
Resolving Community Issues
POSCO has established a process to identify and address potential adverse impacts on local communities arising from our business activities. When pursuing new investment projects, we consider the risks to local communities and appropriate response measures through an ESG checklist from the investment-review stage onward. Should an issue arise despite proactive risk management, we ensure that local community perspectives are sufficiently reflected in developing and implementing resolution measures, and conduct post-implementation monitoring to assess their effectiveness.
Risk Management Process
Community Engagement Targets
Mid- to Long-Term Community Engagement Targets
Building on our accumulated expertise and volunteer capabilities, the POSCO Clean Ocean Volunteer Corps aims to expand the scope of its marine-environment cleanup activities beyond the Pohang and Gwangyang areas to cover the broader Gyeongsang and Jeolla regions. In particular, we plan to gradually extend our activities to a wider range of islands, including uninhabited ones, contributing to the conservation of local marine environments and advancing more systematic and sustainable community engagement.
