The Institute for Basic Science (IBS; President CHANG Sukbok) held the inauguration ceremony for its fourth president on Thursday, June 4, at the Creative Band Hall of the IBS Headquarters in Daejeon. The event was attended by key guests and IBS members, including CHOI Young Ki, MANAGING Director of the Korea Virus Research Institute; CHOI Yun Sung, President of the National Institute for Mathematical Sciences; KWON Myeun, Acting Director of the Institute for Rare Isotope Science; IBS Center Directors; and other members of the institute.

President CHANG Sukbok is one of IBS’s representative researchers, having grown alongside the institute since being selected as a Center Director during IBS’s founding period in 2012. Since then, he has led the Center for Catalytic Hydrocarbon Functionalizations and has played a central role in the institute’s growth and development. He is widely recognized as a researcher who deeply understands both the philosophy of IBS and the realities of scientific research. His five-year term runs from June 2026 through June 2031.

In his inaugural address, President Chang emphasized that IBS has built world-class research capabilities over the past 15 years and should now move beyond excellence alone to embrace new discoveries and new concepts as its core values. Rather than focusing solely on accumulating achievements within established fields, he presented a vision of IBS evolving into a “Discovery Hub” that explores uncharted scientific frontiers and proposes entirely new research questions and directions.

To realize this vision, he outlined several key priorities:

• ▲ Establishing a Pioneer Research Group program
• ▲ Building an open and collaborative center system
• ▲ Strengthening the competitiveness of the IBS headquarters and research infrastructure
• ▲ Presenting future-oriented research directions
• ▲ Fostering a healthy organizational culture based on public trust

Drawing on his experience mentoring and supporting early-career researchers as a Center Director, President Chang announced plans to launch a Pioneer Research Center program aimed at identifying and nurturing young, innovative scientists with world-class potential. He also emphasized expanding flexible collaborations with universities, research institutes, and industry partners in Korea and abroad to build a more open research ecosystem.

President Chang further stressed the importance of strengthening IBS’s headquarters-centered research environment. He stated that IBS will continue enhancing research infrastructure and creating an environment that attracts outstanding researchers from around the world, particularly around the newly completed second headquarters building. He also expressed his commitment to advancing the establishment of IBS campuses at UNIST, GIST, and DGIST, while ensuring the stable operation of the Rare Isotope Accelerator so that it becomes a premier research facility actively utilized by researchers both in Korea and internationally.

In addition, he outlined plans to actively expand into emerging research fields such as quantum science, systems life science, synthetic biology, and advanced materials. He emphasized the need to proactively respond to the rapidly changing research landscape driven by computing, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI), and to pioneer entirely new research frontiers.

“An outstanding research institute can only emerge when a culture that embraces failure is combined with stable yet ambitious administrative and technical support," President Chang said. “I will do my utmost to ensure that IBS continues to earn the trust and support of the public while growing into a research institution that helps shape the future direction of global science.”

[Photo 1] President CHANG Sukbok delivers his inaugural address at the inauguration ceremony for the fourth President of the Institute for Basic Science, held on June 4 at the IBS Headquarters in Daejeon.

[Photo 2] Distinguished guests and IBS Center Directors pose for a group photograph at the inauguration ceremony for the fourth President of the Institute for Basic Science, held on June 4 at the IBS Headquarters in Daejeon.