From "Boogi Snack" to Sunlight Walks: Two Busan City Public PR Campaigns Win Excellence Awards

‘Sunlight Recharge Station’: A Participatory Campaign for Suicide Prevention

‘Jagalchi Boogi Package Collaboration’: Leveraging Consumer Products for Promotion

A Busan City advertisement, which featured tourist attractions on snack packaging and promoted mental health along citizens' walking paths, has won an excellence award. Both public campaigns were recognized for creatively leveraging everyday touchpoints.

On August 23, Busan City (Mayor Jeon Jae-soo) announced that its 'Jagalchi Boogi Package Collaboration' and 'Sunlight Recharge Station' campaigns each received excellence awards at the '2026 Korea Public PR Awards.'

The Korea Public PR Awards, organized by the Korean Society for Advertising and Public Relations and sponsored by the Korea Press Foundation, honors outstanding public communication cases that have enhanced communication in the public sector and contributed to the spread of social values. Now in its 12th year, the award evaluated public PR campaigns that were completed between January 2025 and May 2026.

The 'Jagalchi Boogi Package Collaboration', which received the excellence award in the local government category, is a public-private partnership campaign led by Busan City, Lotte Shopping, and Nongshim. It combined Busan’s official character, 'Boogi', with Nongshim's 'Jagalchi' snack, which is named after Busan's iconic Jagalchi Market.

This was the first time Boogi, an external character, appeared on Nongshim’s 'Jagalchi' product. The back of the packaging featured a map highlighting major tourist attractions in Busan, such as Jagalchi Market, Busan Concert Hall, and Domohon, turning the snack package itself into a promotional medium for the city.

The campaign also utilized the distribution network of over 100 Lotte Mart stores and more than 400 Lotte Super outlets nationwide. Additional efforts included promotional wraps on the Busan City Tour Bus, installations at Nampo Station, and outdoor advertisements in both Seoul and Busan, serving as a case of utilizing private companies’ products and distribution channels for local publicity.

The 'Sunlight Recharge Station', which received the excellence award in the public crisis communication category, is a citizen participation campaign addressing the heavy topic of suicide prevention through ordinary activities like sunbathing and walking.

Considering the routines of seniors aged 65 and older, mobile pop-ups were set up for a total of 15 days across three locations: Busan Central Park, Busan Citizens Park, and Oncheoncheon. The campaign encouraged sun exposure and walking while also offering mental health self-assessment and counseling guidance.

A total of 2,236 citizens visited the campaign sites, and 636 participated in the mental health self-assessment. During the screening process, early-warning signs were identified in 190 individuals, and those who required assistance were referred to specialized institutions.

Busan City explained that this award recognizes its successful attempt to combine private companies’ products and distribution networks with local content, as well as expand publicity into spaces of everyday life for citizens.

O Mi Kyung, spokesperson for Busan City, said, "Our efforts to break away from preset promotional methods and actively utilize new touchpoints, such as corporate distribution networks and citizens’ living spaces, have been favorably received. We will continue to discover new communication strategies that connect policy and citizens more effectively, further strengthening Busan City’s public PR capabilities."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.