Mayor Bob Corker and Mayor Ki-seob Shim signed the official sister city agreement in October of 2003 making Gangneung the fifth sister city of Chattanooga. Gangneung and Chattanooga share many similarities. Both cities boast wonderful natural environments surrounded by mountains and water. Both have excellent universities to provide educational opportunities for our youth. We also have vibrant economies with strong tourist bases.

The Taebaek Mountains serve as a backdrop for the coastal city of Gangneung, which is located 155 miles east of Seoul. This resort city is a tourist Mecca for sports and outdoor activities such as skiing, hiking, boating, and swimming on its renowned beaches.

Gangneung is a cultural and historic city with many Buddhist temples, royal tombs, museums, homes, and other historic places to visit. Yulgok, a great scholar and politician, and Sinsaimdang, a symbol for Korean women, were born there. The Gangneung International Folk Festival is held each year in June.

We have established a strong tie with GangNeung through our exchange program. Since 2005, the GangNeung University students come every January to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for a 5-week English as a Second Language (ESL) program through the scholarship provided by the GangNeung City. Also, students of GangNeung Performing Art School have performed at the Chattanooga Riverbend Festival. In reciprocal, student delegation of Chattanooga’ Center for Creative Art School and Ginger Brown Academy have performed at International Juniors Art Festival in GangNeung.

More information about Gangneung is available here.