The World's First Smart Maritime City Busan... 'Maritime Smart City International Conference' Held

Conference Held at Haeundae Park Hyatt Hotel at 10 AM on the 17th

Mayor Park Hyung-jun, Vice Minister Park Sung-hoon of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Domestic and International Businesspeople, Experts, and Others

Busan City will hold the ‘Busan International Conference on Smart Maritime City’ at 10 a.m. on the 17th at the Park Hyatt Hotel in Haeundae.

Busan Maritime Smart City International Conference Poster.

This conference was organized to explore ways to promote the realization of a ‘sustainable maritime city’ and to seek strategies and international cooperation plans for Busan City to advance as a leading smart maritime city in the era of global climate crisis.

A ‘sustainable maritime city’ is a project jointly initiated by the United Nations agency ‘UN-Habitat’, the U.S.-based maritime city developer ‘OCEANIX’, and Busan City, marking the world’s first attempt to build a floating city that meets humanity’s needs for refuge, energy, and food without destroying the marine ecosystem.

It is being proposed as a new solution for climate refugees caused by rising sea levels and other climate change effects.

The city has been seeking optimal response strategies and administrative support measures, including signing a memorandum of understanding for a pilot model construction of the maritime city (Nov. 2021) and launching a public-private task force (TF) dedicated to the smart maritime city.

The conference will be attended by about 150 people, including Busan Mayor Park Hyung-jun, Vice Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Park Seong-hoon, representatives from UN-Habitat, OCEANIX, domestic and international companies, and experts. Under the theme ‘Future Together, the World’s First Smart Maritime City,’ the event will feature an opening ceremony, keynote speeches, presentations by session, and expert discussions.

At the opening ceremony, the conference will begin with ▲a welcome address by the Mayor of Busan ▲a keynote speech by Bruno Decon, Head of the Asia-Pacific Regional Office of UN-Habitat ▲and congratulatory remarks by Vice Minister Park Seong-hoon of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.

Following this, ▲Itai Madombe, co-founder and CEO of OCEANIX, will present on ‘OCEANIX Busan Path to Construction and Funding.’

The first session, titled ‘Future Together: Global Partnerships for the World’s First Smart Maritime City,’ will continue the presentations from the opening ceremony, with major domestic and international business leaders exploring ways to realize a ‘sustainable maritime city.’

Professor Emeritus Shin Jong-gye of Seoul National University, who also serves as a technical advisor to Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, will chair the session, which includes ▲the first panel discussion on the theme ‘Future Together’ and ▲the second panel discussion on ‘Final Blueprint Design for a Sustainable Maritime City.’

Notably, the first session will feature two panel discussions with participants including ▲Lee Soo-tae, Chairman of Panasia ▲Jang Won-seok, LG CNS Business Manager ▲Florian Lux, Program Manager of UN-Habitat Africa Regional Office ▲Wen Hui Tan, Director of Development for Asia at Hilton Hotels & Resorts ▲Brian Lane, President of A-Lab and leader in energy, water, and resources in the Americas ▲Alana Goldwait Villarre, OCEANIX Busan Project Leader at Bjarke Ingels Group ▲Kim Jin-mo, Executive Director at Samsung Heavy Industries ▲Song Hwa-cheol, Professor at Korea Maritime and Ocean University’s Department of Marine Spatial Architecture ▲and Han Young-sook, CEO of Site Planning Architects, showcasing their expert insights from various fields.

The second session, themed ‘The Path to Becoming a Leading Nation in Smart Maritime Cities,’ will feature presentations and discussions.

▲Kim Seong-tae, Chair of Busan’s Public-Private Joint Task Force for Smart Maritime City Development, will present on ‘Creative Humanism and Convergent Innovation Economy: Smart Maritime City Convergence Platform Strategy’ to explore South Korea’s future strategy in the era of the Fourth Wave.

Also, ▲Yang Seong-min, Urban Solutions Team Leader at Samwoo Architects & Engineers, who participated in Busan’s maritime city concept design, will present on ‘Sustainable Smart Maritime City.’

In the following panel discussion, chaired by Kim Ga-ya, Technical Support Committee Chair of the Korea Ocean Science and Technology Council, participants including ▲Park Gu-yong, Director of Hyundai Construction Technology Research Institute ▲Jung Hyun, CEO of Ocean Space ▲Lee Han-seok, Professor Emeritus at Korea Maritime and Ocean University’s Department of Marine Spatial Architecture ▲Hong Sa-young, Senior Researcher at the Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering (KRISO) ▲and Koo Young-sung, Research Fellow at the Korea Agency for Infrastructure Technology Advancement (KAIA) will collectively explore ideas for South Korea to lead as a nation in smart maritime cities.

The third session, titled ‘Busan’s Leadership on Climate Resilience and a Sustainable Future,’ will provide insights and perspectives from UN-Habitat experts.

▲Naomi Hugerth, Global Solutions Program Manager at UN-Habitat, will reflect on Busan’s future from an international expert’s viewpoint under the theme ‘Sustainable Futures: Innovations for Resilient Coastal Cities.’

In the final panel discussion, chaired by Shin Hyun-seok, Director of Busan Development Institute, participants including ▲Kim Yi-tae, Research Committee Chair of the 2030 Busan World Expo Citizen Hosting Committee ▲Lee Jun-i, Professor at Busan National University Climate Science Institute ▲Nam Kwang-woo, Professor of Urban Engineering at Kyungsung University ▲and Yoo Jin-ho, Head of International Cooperation Projects at the APEC Climate Center will engage in in-depth discussions on overcoming the climate crisis and achieving sustainable living.

The conference will be live-streamed on YouTube with simultaneous Korean-English interpretation for domestic and international stakeholders and the general public.

Mayor Park Hyung-jun stated, “The smart maritime city to be created in front of Bukhang, the site of the 2030 Busan World Expo and the embodiment of Busan’s spirit, will symbolize a sustainable future for humanity.” He added, “Through this conference, we hope to foster international discourse on implementing maritime cities including smart maritime cities and to promote Busan’s future vision aimed at sustainable living to the world.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.