From the 23rd to 25th of October 2012, Mr. André J. Cointreau, President of Le Cordon Bleu International was invited to participate in the ‘Global Human Resources Forum 2012’ at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul, Korea.

Under the central theme of ‘Better Education, The Best Welfare’, various sessions relating to human resources and sustainable growth for the global economy were held at the Global HR Forum 2012. This three-day conference was co-hosted by The Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology; The Korean Economic Daily; and The Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training.

Over 250 global opinion-leaders from 60 countries were in attendance, including former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, founder and director of The Harvard International Negotiation Program Daniel Shapiro, Professor of Economics at Harvard University Richard Freeman, and President of Aoki Co., LTD Toyohiko Aoki.

The opening ceremony was attended by more than 6,000 guests including the South Korean Prime Minister and presidential candidates.

President Cointreau led a session entitled ‘Education by Le Cordon Bleu; Answers to Global Trends and Tourism Expansion’ on the 25th of October. President Cointreau explained how Le Cordon Bleu’s graduates become leaders in the culinary and hospitality industry and went further to suggest that they were ideally positioned to spread a fresh wave of Korean influence into the culinary realm. The session was moderated by Dr. Gwangjo Kim, Director of the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Regional Bureau and guest speakers included Ms. Heajung Chung, President of the Creative Culinary Institute of Korea and Mr. Keumseok Cho, Principal of the Seoul Tourism High School. More than 250 guests, including journalists, university students and industry professionals participated. After the session, President Cointreau offered his honorarium and travel expenses as a scholarship donation to the Korea Student Aid Foundation.

Le Cordon Bleu Paris first opened its doors in 1895. With over 100 years of teaching experience, Le Cordon Bleu offers courses in gastronomy, hospitality, and tourism from the initiation level to MBA. Today, Le Cordon Bleu is present in some 20 countries with more than 40 schools, and is attended by 20,000 students from 70 nationalities every year. Le Cordon Bleu has a tradition of excellence in the world of gastronomy and is committed to furthering the appreciation of fine food and the French art of living.

At the start of 2012, Le Cordon Bleu London opened its new premises located in Bloomsbury Square, featuring state-of-the-art kitchens and interactive smart classrooms. In March, an agreement was signed with the government in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to open a training centre in preparation of the upcoming 2014 Football World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. In April an agreement was signed with the government of China to open a gastronomy school in Shanghai, followed by the announcement of a partnership in Istanbul, Turkey in July.

Find more news

1)The Korean Economic Daily, 8th October 2012

2)The Korean Economic Daily, 23rd October 2012

3)The Korean Economic Daily, 24th October 2012

4)The Korean Economic Daily, 24th October 2012

5)The Korean Economic Daily, 26th October 2012