Washington veteran named LG’s global strategist

LG Global Strategy Center President Ko Yun-ju (LG)

LG Group said Thursday it has appointed LG Chem’s Chief Sustainability Strategy Officer Ko Yun-ju as president of the LG Global Strategy Center, refreshing the group’s global policy think tank.

Launched under the LG Management Development Institute in 2023, the LG Global Strategy Center analyzes changes in overseas political landscapes and policy shifts in major countries affecting the group’s businesses, and advises on strategic responses.

With about 30 years of experience as a diplomat, Ko is regarded as an expert with knowledge of US foreign policy and a career in environmental, social and governance issues.

Born in 1968, he graduated from Yonsei University and joined South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1995 after passing the 29th Foreign Service Examination. He later served as consul for political affairs in New York from 2014-2016.

During the first Trump administration, Ko was appointed director general of the ministry’s North American Bureau in 2019, and later named as deputy chief of mission and minister for political affairs at South Korea’s Embassy in Washington in 2021.

He then joined LG Chem in 2024, where he oversaw global governance and ESG strategies. LG credited him with leading the company’s ESG initiatives by developing strategies based on trade policy analysis and executing diversification strategies and carbon reduction policies across its global supply chain.

LG said Ko will strengthen the group’s risk response system by deepening ties with governments, including the second Trump administration, as well as international organizations, and by developing business scenarios to address geopolitical uncertainty.

Ko began his role as think tank chief in early January, accompanying LG Chair Koo Kwang-mo on a state visit to Beijing as part of a business delegation, the group added.