At year-end, various awards ceremonies were held, and the ESG field is no exception. From environmental protection to social value creation and transparent governance, companies and institutions that sought to practice the true meaning of ESG drew attention. Which companies and institutions were recognized for ESG management, and for what activities were they recognized? Let us examine the award results across each category of the major ESG awards ceremonies held in 2025.
A Representative Domestic ESG Awards Ceremony Based on the K-ESG Guidelines
2025 K-ESG Management Awards
Established in 2022, this awards ceremony grants awards to outstanding companies that practice sustainable management across the Environmental (E), Social (S), and Governance (G) domains and have contributed to exemplary ESG management. It also selects outstanding companies and institutions based on the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s K-ESG Guidelines. The grand prizes are divided into comprehensive, environmental, and social categories, and a total of 41 companies, institutions, and organizations received awards across various categories, including the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Award and the Minister of Health and Welfare Award. Key grand prize winners are as follows.
[K-ESG Management Awards Ⓟ Hanseo University]
[Social ESG Grand Prize — Woowa Brothers]
Woowa Brothers, which operates Baedal Minjok (Baemin), is the first private company to operate a credit guarantee loan product in partnership with a first-tier domestic bank for small business owners in the food service and traditional market sectors and food service industry workers who face operational difficulties due to lack of credit and guarantees. It also contributed to fostering startups by operating ‘Startup Square’ for the growth of domestic startups.
[Environmental ESG Grand Prize — Hansae Co., Ltd.]
Having declared carbon neutrality in 2023, the company is transparently disclosing its target for reducing direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. It was recognized for having set and practiced a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 through the introduction of new and renewable energy and the transition to electric vehicles.
[Comprehensive ESG Grand Prize — Hanseo University]
By fully adopting electronic administration to systematize ‘Paperless Administrative Work,’ the university drastically reduced its annual copy paper usage. It was also evaluated as striving for sustainable management by creating and annually operating an ESG self-diagnosis checklist. Hanseo University enjoyed the honor of winning the grand prize in this category for two consecutive years.
An Awards Ceremony Recognizing ESG Practice by Companies, Institutions, and Individuals
2025 Korea ESG Management Awards ‘THE BEST ESG’
Held since 2023, this awards ceremony evaluates the ESG practice achievements not only of domestic companies, local governments, and educational institutions leading ESG management but also of individuals and youth. At the ‘2025 Korea ESG Management Awards THE BEST ESG’ ceremony jointly hosted by the Korea ESG Council and ESG Korea News, a total of 31 institutions and individuals were selected, comprising 5 grand prizes, 8 excellence awards, 5 merit awards, 3 youth frontier awards, 7 special awards (outstanding lawmakers), and 3 special awards (individuals).
[Public Institution Grand Prize — Korea Midland Power Co., Ltd.]
Korea Midland Power sought to realize carbon neutrality by expanding zero-energy housing and smart cities. It also contributed to residential stability through support for lease fraud victims and technology to reduce inter-floor noise. It was evaluated as having strengthened trust in the company through the introduction of the Labor Director System.
[Local Public Enterprise Grand Prize — Chungbuk Development Corporation]
It attempted carbon neutrality education campaigns and eco-friendly architectural design. It was praised for leading the low-carbon transition in the region. It was also evaluated as a transparent and trusted institution through improvements to the fair contract system and the operation of a human rights management committee.
[Educational Institution Grand Prize — Chungnam National University]
It strove for mutual prosperity with the local community through the provision of health and nutrition programs and lifelong learning opportunities.
[Group photo of the 3rd Korea ESG Management Awards The Best ESG Ⓟ ESG Korea News]
Individual awards also followed. In the Youth Frontier Award, three students, including Seo Yoo-jun of Gwanggyo High School, who participated in educational volunteer activities in the Philippines to address the educational infrastructure and learning opportunity gaps for the educationally underprivileged, received the honor of the award.
ESG-Practicing Companies Recognized Directly by Consumers
2025 Consumer ESG Innovation Awards
An awards ceremony in which consumers directly evaluate the ESG management performance of companies was also held: the ‘Consumer ESG Innovation Awards.’ Last year’s ceremony was organized by Future Consumer Action and the Consumer Rights Forum, and through expert evaluation and deliberation by a panel of 50 consumer evaluators, a total of 24 companies and institutions were selected across 5 fields and 20 categories. The format involves selecting outstanding companies and institutions in each category and awarding the grand prize.
[Consumer ESG Innovation Awards Ceremony Ⓟ HBN News]
[Environmental Innovation Award (Zero Waste Category) — Sempio]
Reflecting customer VOC, the company applied a ‘removable label’ that can be easily detached under various storage conditions to its pasta sauce bottles, and obtained the ‘Glass Bottle Recycling Excellence Grade’ from the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment.
[Consumer Rights Enhancement Award — Coreana Cosmetics]
It was recognized for operating an independent customer service (CS) organization directly under the CEO and creating a system that quickly responds to consumers.
[Consumer Safety Award (Child Safety Category) — Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service]
Having won this category for three consecutive years, the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service established a ‘Birth Information Linkage System’ for operating the birth notification system. The birth information linkage system links information across medical institutions, the Supreme Court, and the National Center for the Rights of the Child to ensure that birth registrations are not missed. It was recognized for its contribution to improving consumer safety by ensuring that all children can be publicly and safely protected.
In this way, throughout 2025, various ESG awards recognized companies and institutions that practiced environmental protection, social value creation, and transparent governance. We look forward to seeing which companies will blaze new trails in ESG management this year as well.
by Editor N