One of the most important keywords in modern society is ‘sustainability’. It’s about minimizing our impact on the environment for present and future generations. This is something that requires effort from all of us. For example, since reducing carbon emissions cannot be achieved through the efforts of any single group or company alone, we must all participate. Individuals can contribute by practicing a sustainable lifestyle.
So, how can we practice a sustainable lifestyle? There is no need to feel burdened by the word ‘sustainable’ as it is possible with small changes in our daily lives. In line with this, Hyundai Motorstudio conducted a ‘Sustainable Lifestyle’ program, reflecting the awareness of sustainability that is spreading among the MZ generation. This program consists of a one‒day gardening/vegan cooking class and a ‘Share Market’, an eco‒friendly flea market. These were well‒received by many as they were able to share stories about sustainable life coexisting with nature and experience lifestyle trends in advance. Sustainable lifestyle programs are designed to give new inspiration to customers in the MZ generation who pursue a valuable life; It consists of various lifestyle experience contents that help them design and practice a conscious daily life.
For example, one of the main interests of the MZ generation is ‘home furnishing’. Home furnishing is a compound word of ‘home’ and ‘furnishing’ and means decorating a house with furniture, lighting, and interior accessories. If you add ‘Gardening’ to this, you can practice a sustainable lifestyle at home; If you choose and grow plants that you can eat, such as herbs and vegetables, it can lead to ‘vegan cooking’, which means serving vegetarian dishes such as salads.
Reflecting this trend, Hyundai Motorstudio held two one‒day classes at Hyundai Motorstudio Goyang and Hyundai Motorstudio Busan, respectively, under the two themes of gardening and vegan cooking. Experts and influencers from various fields that are difficult to meet as presenters shared practical tips for practicing sustainable daily life.
The gardening one‒day class was held under the themes of ‘home gardening’ and ‘home farming’. First, Kwon Chun‒hee, a pioneer of Korean landscaping and a first‒generation landscape architect, led the ‘Slow Gardening Class’; Lectures were given on topics such as ‘surrounding environment and plant environment’ and ‘climate change and plants’. Participants created a mini garden to grow their own salad greens such as lettuce, romaine, and crunchy lettuce, and another mini garden with edible herbs such as lemon balm, apple mint, and rosemary. Of course, it will take some time to brew tea with herbs grown at home. But the time spent growing herbs offers a special time.
Representatives Moon Hye‒seong and Song Da‒hye of ‘Seed Keeper’, known as a sensuous plant experience design brand among the MZ generation, participated as presenters for the home‒farming class. The topic of the class was ‘Creating your own handful of garden’; Participants were able to learn various theories, such as the preferred growth conditions for each plant, soil recipes according to the characteristics of sprout types, three conditions necessary for seed germination, initial care and precautions for sprouts, and seed selection. This helps to create mini gardens tailored to individual living conditions. Afterward, participants made their own soil mixture, set up planting materials, and created a small garden where they could grow plants at home.
Four one‒day classes were held under vegan cooking themes. The MZ generation, who considers both personal life and the impact on the environment, is highly interested in practicing ‘Veganism’ throughout their lifestyle. Therefore, Hyundai Motorstudio has prepared one‒day classes on various topics that are not easily accessible, such as vegan drinks, tea, alternative meat, and Buddhist temple food, rather than general vegetarian dishes.
In the vegan beverage class, we were able to learn the process of making vegan beer with Jihoon Park, CEO of Incheon Beer, who launched vegan beer ‘Gaehangro’. Afterwards, participants were able to feel the charm of vegan beer while tasting four types of vegan beer: lager, ale, IPA, and dark beer. Of course, the side dishes are also vegetarian. Participants tried a variety of vegetarian snacks to accompany their beer, including vegan som tam, vegan chips, and vegan salad.
The presenter of Tea Class was Se‒ri Kim, an artist from Korea Tea Culture Industry Research Institute. After learning basic common sense about tea and how to use tea utensils, the participants set out to make tea themselves. Depending on the type of tea, the handling method also differs. The participants experienced tea culture by brewing three types of tea: boiled tea, brewed tea, and bubbled tea (Matcha), and were able to feel the sincerity and philosophy contained in a cup of tea.
The alternative meat class was also interesting. Participants made and sampled a vegan salad wrap using vegetable alternative meat, and even those who were not normally interested in it experienced the charm of alternative meat. Participants learned theories such as the history of alternative meat, the evolution process, and use cases of alternative meat, and made their own Spicy Cajun Chicken Avocado Wrap using alternative chicken made of mushrooms.
The temple food class was hosted by Kyungsoon Oh, the owner of the restaurant ‘Doosugobang’; This restaurant is run by monk Jeonggwan, a master of temple cuisine, who also starred in the Netflix documentary “Chef’s Table.” Temple food uses only seasonal ingredients for flavor, without using animal ingredients and five vegetables(green onion, garlic, chives, wild chives, leek). Participants were able to experience new tastes by cooking and tasting makgeolli(Korean rice wine) bread, pan‒fried starch, roasted autumn lotus root, and side vegetables.
On the last day of the program, at the ‘Share Market’ held at Hyundai Motorstudio Busan, there were items containing sustainability, and people practiced sharing in their daily lives. This year’s share market, which was held in conjunction with Busan’s representative flea market brand ‘Market Um’, featured various recycled items as well as healthy foods such as fresh agricultural products and bread. And there was also a ‘donation zone’ where unused items were donated.
As above, Hyundai Motorstudio’s Sustainable Lifestyle Program was offered to experience Hyundai’s sustainability vision. In addition, Hyundai Motorstudio plans to introduce various new programs every year to reflect the ever‒changing interests of customers.
A sustainable lifestyle is easy. Most of them are deeply intertwined with our daily lives, so just a little practice is enough. Those who want a new experience should pay attention to Hyundai Motorstudio. A new program that fits your taste and even considers sustainability may be launched.
HMG Journal Operation Team
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