KoRoot is an NGO providing leadership to the worldwide adoption community on issues of adoptees’ right to origin.

KoRoot is an NGO providing leadership to the worldwide adoption community on issues of adoptees’ rights to their birth records, and solidarity efforts with single parent families fighting for family preservation. KoRoot is finding solutions to the root causes of overseas adoption matters by increasing awareness about the economic disparities and discrimination targeting adoptees and single moms in Korea.

 Together with Korean adoptees

Almost 200,000 Korean children have been adopted internationally since the 1950s. Today hundreds of children are still being sent abroad for adoption every year. More than 90 per cent of babies put up for adoption are the children of unwed mothers, who fear being rejected by a socially conservative society.

 When overseas adoptees reach adulthood, many choose to return to South Korea, to learn more about the country of their birth and search for family members.

 KoRoot was established to support these overseas adoptees with the challenges they face in navigating an unfamiliar country and seeking answers about their family background and identity. Their guesthouse provides a welcoming home for ‘returnees’ on their visits to Korea, as well as a range of assistance including family tracing, trauma counselling and cultural events for returnees to build their understanding of Korean culture.

 

Approach

KoRoot is committed to reducing international adoption in South Korea.

 Their research institute focuses on raising awareness of the issues surrounding overseas adoption by publishing books, translating key academic literature about adoption and child development into Korean. KoRoot promote alternatives to international adoption including family strengthening services and domestic adoption.

 They collaborate with other volunteer groups in Korea to lobby for the country’s adoption law to meet international standards. Returning adoptees often participate in these events, sharing their first-hand experiences. In 2011 KoRoot established a ‘Single Mother’s Day’ that is now celebrated annually, to raise awareness of the rights of unwed mothers and reduce the stigma they face in society.

The Institute of Korean Root(KoRoot)

1067431123

1435915265

148788709

2074652487

2352003526

2535103040

2547000601

2551237796

2883383521

2970598858

3107677517

3128160991

316638097

339774024

3797661376

3868271524

410756082

4124487947

4172451122

496574456

698107245

91415239

2729980760

3440869557

671754822

1014384873

1112422858

153399038

2028390811

220342792

2266630408

2456389719

2519810400

2539558839

2826465835

We are a nonprofit, so instead of charging fees we rely on the generosity of donors like you.

Choose a donation for Every.org

2843798242

2898624300

2916352438

3125568929

3259439560

3583328878

3642494300

3902459442

4136002033

4177183036

4250940449

585491400

641510716

91682487