The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Korea Arts & Culture Education Service, the Game Culture Foundation, and the Busan Game Overindulgence Healing Center held the '2026 2nd Humanities Healing Talk Talk Camp for Youth to Resolve Digital Overindulgence' at the Gijang Culture and Manners School in Busan for three days from June 26 to 28.

A total of 25 youths (11 boys, 14 girls) from elementary school 5th grade to middle school 2nd grade in the Gyeongsang region participated. They took a break from their smartphones to engage in humanities healing programs and collaborative activities.

The humanities healing program was themed around 'History' and spanned eight sessions. It was designed to explore various values and attitudes in life by examining the lives and communities of people from the past.

In addition, various activities were held, including Kapla collaborative block stacking to achieve shared goals, joint creation to share individual strengths, traditional instrument and Nanta drumming sessions for healthy stress relief, and meditation programs to foster emotional regulation.

Through digital literacy training led by professional instructors, participants learned habits for proper media usage and how to maintain a healthy grip on their digital environment. On the final day, Jeon Young-soon, team leader at the Chungcheong Game Overindulgence Healing Center, delivered a lecture for parents on practical parenting methods and healthy communication strategies to guide their children's digital habits at home.

To measure the effectiveness of the camp, self-assessments for smartphone dependency and game overindulgence were conducted before and after the event. The number of participants in the smartphone dependency group dropped from 25 to 3, an 88% reduction, while the game overindulgence group saw an 85% decrease, falling from 20 to 3.

Heo Jeong-seon, head of the Busan Game Overindulgence Healing Center, remarked, "It was a meaningful time for these youths to step away from their digital devices, reflect on themselves, and form new relationships through healthy experiences. We will continue to establish a sustainable healing model to ensure the balanced growth of youths in the Gyeongsang region."

Yoo Byung-han, Chairman of the Game Culture Foundation, stated, "The key to resolving digital overindulgence isn't just physically cutting down screen time, but building inner strength to understand oneself, others, and society through humanities reflection. I hope this was an opportunity for youths to establish a healthy self-identity through history, and we will continue to refine these programs so youths across the country can benefit from such healing experiences."

The 3rd Humanities Healing Talk Talk Camp for youths in the Chungcheong region will be held from July 24 to 26 at the Daejeon Hyo Culture Village. Any youth from elementary 5th grade to middle school 3rd grade struggling with digital overindulgence can apply for free.

For more information, the official Game Culture Foundation website is where you can check the details.