Philanthropy Besides her acting career, Lee has been involved with several charities. In 1997, she went to Ethiopia as a
NGO Goodwill Ambassador. She went to Thar Desert in 1999 to do a TV show about people in India's
lowest social caste. Later in 2001, she described these experiences in her autobiography "A Most Special Love" with partial English and donated the income from the sale of the book to charity. She was appointed a goodwill ambassador in 2004 by
UNICEF and has since held several charity posts. She has made many donations to schools and hospitals, including Chosun First Middle School in Harbin and an elementary school in China that was later renamed Lee Young-Ae Elementary School. In 2012, she served as the celebrity spokesperson for the "Love Donation" project, hosted by the magazine Woman Chosun. She made a donation to build a school in Myanmar. In 2012, Lee launched a business for organic and eco-friendly products for children in Seoul. In July 2014, Taiwanese media reported that Lee had privately assisted a pregnant Taiwanese woman vacationing with her husband in Seoul. The woman gave birth to a girl prematurely and the infant had several complications. Lee found out about the couple through her friend and decided to pay their medical bills of NT$4 million (US$134,000) because the infant required two surgeries and constant medical care after she was born. Lee was subsequently given an award by Taiwan's Chou Ta-Kuan Cultural and Educational Foundation. In 2016, she helped a Vietnamese girl who went to Korea to treat her brain tumor by donating 37 million won for the operation and other medical bills. In Sri Lanka, she is known as "Changumi" (), and her popularity there led to the creation of the Sujatha Diyani Scholarship Fund in 2014, when she donated US$100,000. The fund aims at providing financial assistance to female students from low-income families. Lee also became the first actress to join the "Chime for Change" campaign of
Gucci to "raise funds and awareness for projects promoting education, health, and justice for girls and women" around the world. In 2015, Lee was appointed special envoy by the UNESCO Korean Commission. She promotes the commission's activities such as fundraising and a campaign to render educational support to underdeveloped countries. In March 2022, Lee donated 100 million won to Ukraine, which was damaged by the
Russian invasion, along with a letter of consolation to the people of Ukraine. On May 1, 2022, Lee donated 100 million won to the Sowon Foundation Office in Yangpyeong City Gyeonggi-do Province to assist patients who have difficulty getting out of the house due to childhood cancer or rare diseases. On August 19, 2022, Lee donated to help those affected by the
2022 South Korean floods through the Korea Foundation for the Disabled. On November 3, 2022, Lee made a donation to help the victims of the
Seoul Halloween crowd crush through donations to Korea Welfare Foundation for the Disabled. On January 22, 2023, Lee donated 50 million won to residents affected by the fire in Guryong Village, Gangnam District, Seoul. In September 2023, Lee donated 50 million won to Syngman Rhee, President of the Founder's Memorial Association to build a memorial to former president
Syngman Rhee. In November 2023, Lee donated to aid humanitarian efforts for children hurt in the
Gaza war, the
Korean Red Cross announced on 21.
Endorsements for
Marie Claire Korea in February 2021. In 1991, Lee made her debut as a rookie model, became known through a TV commercial for Pacific Chemical's (now
Amore Pacific) cosmetics brand
Mamonde. Her urban image with her raised hair and trench coat collar left a strong impression on viewers, and Lee Young-ae, who was studying "German Language and Literature" at
Hanyang University at that moment, rose to stardom with the moniker
Oxygen Lady, which was the catchphrase of the commercial. At that time,
Mamonde became the most successful brand in the history of
Pacific Chemical. The product
Tropic Orange Makeup, which was released in March 1994, achieved a record of selling 1.5 million units in two months. Due to the popularity of Mamonde and Lee Young-ae, competitors also poured out advertisements with a similar concept in 1997. She had been the face of
Mamonde for 10 years. Since 2007, Lee became the global ambassador of
LG Household & Health Care's super-premium beauty brand
The History of Whoo until now. In February 2014, Lee became the cover face of the February issue of
Marie Claire Korea magazine to promote the "Trinity", "Paris Nouvelle Vague", "Destinée" and "Caresse d'Orchidées de Cartier" collection of French luxury jewellery brand
Cartier. In January 2017, Lee became the cover face of the February issue of
Elle Korea magazine to promote the Spring - Summer 2017 collection of Italian luxury fashion house
Valentino. In January 2021, she was the cover face of the February issue of
Marie Claire Korea to represent the Spring - Summer 2021 collection of Spanish-French luxury fashion house
Balenciaga. She appeared on the cover of
Noblesse Magazine June 2021 Issue to present the
Van Cleef & Arpels's "Palmyre", "Treasure of Rubies", "the Snowflake", "Arche de Noé", "Pierres de Caractères" and "Les Ateliers Créations" high jewelry collection and the bag line for French luxury leather goods brand
Fauré Le Page. In September 2021, she appeared on the cover of
Dazed Korea Fall 2021 Edition Issue to present the Aria Fall/Winter 2021 collection and the Diana bag line for Italian luxury brand
Gucci. She also appeared in
Vogue Korea's December 2023 issue to represent the
Fred Joaillier's The High Jewelry collections "Monsieur Fred Inner Light". In the
Arena Homme + Korea April 2024 issue, for which she was the cover star, Lee represented the
Bottega Veneta Spring/Summer 2024 ready-to-wear collection. In June 2024, she appeared on the cover of
W Korea's July issue of W Edition supplement book to represent the High Jewelry "Awakened Hands, Awakened Minds" Collection of French luxury house
Louis Vuitton. In July 2024, Lee appeared on the cover of the August issue of
Harper's Bazaar Korea to promote the Pre-Fall 2024 Collection by American luxury fashion brand
Ralph Lauren. In February 2025, Lee appeared on the cover of the March issue of
VOGUE Korea to promote the Spring Summer 2025 Collection by Italian luxury fashion brand
Gucci. In 2020, Lee had been selected as Korean ambassador for
Ferragamo Eyewear. In July 2022, she was selected as the model for the new product "Lifening Beauty Collagen Ampoule" of the inner beauty brand
Lifening. In May 2023, Lee was announced to become exclusive brand model for South Korean skin care medical device company Jeisys Medical, which she would be represented for its high-frequency medical device
Density. In July 2024, Integration Corp selected Lee as brand model for its Korean medicine brand
The Soo. ==Personal life==