The first ever Wiley Impact Forum in Korea was held in June 2018. The Wiley Network interviewed a panel of distinguished researchers and experts, including Prof. Cafer Yavuz of our department. The other panelists included Sir J. Fraser Stoddart, 2016 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry; Iain Craig, Director of Market & Publishing Analytics, Wiley; Dr. Andrew Moore, Editor-in-Chief of Wiley-VCH and Wiley Researcher Academy; and Prof. Soyoung Kim, Head of Graduate School of Science & Technology Policy, KAIST.

The topic of the forum was "What Is Research Impact?". When asked to define the meaning of impactful research, Prof. Yavuz said "Research impact means bringing a change to the society around us". Wiley also asked "What is the biggest challenge before success?". Prof. Yavuz responded "Research is almost like going into a dark territory with a torch in your hand. You don't know what's out there, you can't be ready for it. You just walk right into the darkness."

The panelists also discussed the many challenges faced by researchers in our society. A few issues discussed include: the allocation of government funding for long-term fundamental researches vs. short-term "popular" projects; the importance of allowing scientists to explore subjects with no immediate "useful" aspects; and how to change the current culture of rating researches by numbers.