'World Health City Forum' Opens in Incheon on the 20th... Seeking Responses to Next Pandemic and Climate Crisis

A forum to explore safer and more sustainable future city models in response to the next pandemic and climate crisis will take place in Incheon.

The 1st World Health City Forum (WHCF), co-hosted by Incheon City, Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority, Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Ewha Womans University, and organized by the World Health City Forum Corporation, officially opened on the 20th at Songdo Convensia in Incheon, commencing a three-day, two-night schedule.

The forum, running until the 22nd, brings together over 150 scholars, experts, government officials, and businesspeople from more than 20 countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, China, as well as international organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Global Green Climate Fund (GCF). Under the theme "Globalization of Risk: How to Make the World Safer?", it will feature over 50 sessions and special programs.

At the opening ceremony of the "1st World Health City Forum" held on the 20th at Songdo Convensia in Incheon, Incheon Mayor Yoo Jung-bok and Executive Chairman Hong Yoon-chul, along with other attendees, are taking a commemorative photo.
[Photo by Incheon City]

At the opening ceremony on the first day, attendees included Yoo Jeong-bok, Mayor of Incheon and Forum President; Yoo Hong-rim, President of Seoul National University; Kim Eun-mi, President of Ewha Womans University; Seo Seung-hwan, President of Yonsei University; and Henry Gonzalez, Deputy Secretary-General of GCF. The first keynote speech was delivered by Ji Young-mi, Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, who emphasized the necessity of global health cooperation to respond to the threat of the next pandemic and ensure the safety of citizens and cities in her presentation titled "Global Health Ultra-Risk Response Measures in the Post-Pandemic Era."

Following this, Jeremy Rifkin, Chairman of the U.S. Foundation on Economic Trends and author of several works including "The Third Industrial Revolution," known for his sharp insights into humanity's future, warned in his second keynote speech at the opening ceremony, "If we continue development as we do now for about 20 more years, all wild flora and fauna will disappear from the Earth." He added, "We should not try to make the Earth fit us; rather, we must adapt to this planet. Furthermore, as a species, we must embrace all living beings as part of our family to truly move toward a new healthy era."

Other speakers include Lawrence O. Gostin, active in the Biden administration, WHO, and World Bank for COVID-19 response; Colin Janssen, Director of the Marine Youth Research Institute at Ghent University in Belgium and a world-renowned scholar in marine environment and climate response, ranked in the top 1% of cited researchers globally; and Aleida Guevara, daughter of Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara and practicing pediatrician from Argentina.

Additionally, government officials from ASEAN member countries, all ambassadors to South Korea, and ambassadors from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait will attend the forum to discuss quarantine and healthcare cooperation plans with the Incheon Songdo Biomedical Cluster and local companies for next pandemic response. They will also review advanced technologies and service cases of the Songdo Smart City.

Notably, 30 officials including the mayor and city staff from Bogor City, Indonesia, which is known for the "Lido Smart City" project?Indonesia's version of the Dongtan New Town Project?will participate to directly experience the development of Songdo Smart City and the Biomedical Cluster, and discuss cooperation plans between Incheon and Bogor City.

Mayor Yoo stated, "This World Health City Forum is a place to seek practical solutions to overcome crises humanity faces such as the next pandemic and climate crisis. We will actively promote cooperation between Incheon, which has the world's largest biopharmaceutical cluster, and developing countries."

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