Bridging Borders with Ideas: Reflections from the 2025 Indo-Korea International Conference

Written By: Nihilaa V M

“I am grateful for this opportunity, and I will never forget this moment. Thank you so much for inviting me. Gamsahamnida,” reflected Dr. Jin-Ho Park of Korea University during the valedictory session, his words resonating with a sense of continuity, memory, and renewed collaboration between India and Korea. Some conferences are about the papers. Some are about the people. But every once in a while, you find one that’s about both and something more. The 2025 Indo-Korea International Conference, hosted across CHRIST University’s Central and BRC campuses, turned out to be just that: a vibrant mix of culture, conversation, and collaboration.

For two days, corridors buzzed with voices in different languages, poster boards filled up with ideas on AI and society, and sessions sparked debates on everything from sustainability to tech ethics. But beyond the buzzwords and PowerPoint slides, what made IKIC 2025 truly memorable was how it brought people together as learners, leaders, and listeners.

Feedback forms usually get glanced at and forgotten. But this time, the feedback analysis by Mr. Laldinpuia Hmar (Faculty at the Department of Liberal Arts) revealed a powerful story. With 113 responses from attendees including students, scholars, faculty, and industry professionals,  the verdict was loud and clear: people loved it.

Over 78% of participants gave the conference a 4 or 5-star experience rating, with 61 calling it a perfect 5. Students made up the majority, and their feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Whether they were presenting research, managing logistics, or simply soaking it all in, it was clear the event had left its mark. The relevance of the sessions hit just as high. Most respondents felt that the themes were timely, meaningful, and well-structured. With tracks exploring Artificial Intelligence through the lenses of ethics, healthcare, philosophy, and more, there was something for everyone and most found exactly what they came looking for.

What numbers can’t always capture is how a conference makes people feel. And this one, it seems, made people feel a lot.“Being in charge of transportation was no joke. Coordinating logistics across multiple campuses was exhausting. But what moved me most was watching the student volunteers step up without complaint, with full responsibility. What began as a challenge turned into one of the most fulfilling experiences of the entire conference,” shared Mr. Vipin Nagarbavi, a faculty member from the Department of Liberal Arts, whose testimony offers a glimpse into the dedication behind the scenes.

Faculty member Laldinpuia Hmar, who helped design the dashboard and also spoke at the event, reflected on how the conference pushed him out of his comfort zone.“ Being a speaker and sharing AI solutions at the event was a valuable step forward in my career. I also created a dashboard for the event, which gave me hands-on experience in presenting data meaningfully. It was not only a personal learning experience but also a chance to grow by learning from others, enhancing both my technical skills and my abilities in event management and communication. It was my first time giving a speech, and although I stumbled, it was a meaningful beginning. Huge appreciation to the amazing team, the organizers, participants, and especially the volunteers.. Your dedication truly made the event a success.”

While the conference celebrated scholarship, it also became a classroom in leadership. Student volunteers didn’t just help run the show; they shaped it. “Organising this was intense, but so rewarding, from planning décor to handling the registration desk, it taught me coordination, communication, and calmness under pressure”, said Parinaaz Bains, who led Art and Decor and also served as SDG Club Head. Others, like Pranthi Narain, balanced multiple roles both behind the scenes and at the podium.“The Indo Korea international conference 2025 gave me an incredible opportunity to lead a team that documented the entire session. I also had the wonderful opportunity to present a co-authored paper, enabling me to contribute to a discourse on AI and Technology that is gaining momentum in the age of information.”

At its core, IKIC 2025 was about the ideas. And for many students, it was a chance to step into academic discourse on an international stage. “Presenting my poster on ‘Fairness and Bias in Large Language Models’ was a turning point. Our research looked at how tools like ChatGPT and Gemini reflect societal bias. The feedback we got made me realize how important ethical oversight in AI truly is” said Aishwarya Sabnis, a student and participant of the conference.

If you ask anyone who was there, from the faculty planning sessions months in advance to the student racing to fix a name tag, they’ll tell you the same thing. It worked because everyone showed up, there was a shared sense of purpose, and a commitment to making the conference more than just a checkbox in an academic calendar. The Indo-Korea International Conference wasn’t just about celebrating academic progress. It was about building bridges between countries, between disciplines, and between people. The hope is that the ideas shared here will ripple outward, that the connections made will last, and that the spirit of collaboration will echo into the future.