Attendance at Tree Planting Event, Kim Dong-yeon Says "May the Trees Planted Today Become Seeds for Climate Change Response"

On the 5th, Gyeonggi Province held a Hope Tree Planting event at Gachon University in Seongnam City to commemorate the 79th Arbor Day.

At the event, Gyeonggi Governor Kim Dong-yeon said, "I hope today's tree planting event will become a significant seed in responding to climate change," adding, "Gyeonggi Province is promoting RE100 in businesses, industries, residents' lives, and the public sector through the RE100 declaration, and we will lead the central government to follow Gyeonggi's proactive climate change response. When Gyeonggi changes, Korea changes."

Governor Kim also mentioned that he had planted a ginkgo tree, the symbolic tree of Gyeonggi Province, at the Jeju 4·3 Peace Park on the 3rd, stating, "During the Jeju 4·3 Uprising, about 30,000 people, more than 10% of Jeju's population, were sacrificed," and added, "Gyeonggi also has a painful history with Seongam Academy. I have reflected deeply on the human rights that were sacrificed or violated by state authority."

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon (far right) is taking a commemorative photo with attendees after holding a tree-planting event at Gachon University on the 5th in celebration of Arbor Day.

The site at Gachon University where the event was held was restored after a landslide (1.8ha) caused by heavy rain in August 2022.

Through this event, Gyeonggi Province and Gachon University plan to plant about 2,100 trees of seven species, including Cornus officinalis and king cherry trees, which are excellent for landscape creation, to restore approximately 5,000㎡ (0.5ha) of damaged natural scenery.

About 100 people participated in the event, including Lee Jin-chan, Deputy Mayor of Seongnam, Choi Mi-ri, Senior Vice President of Gachon University, Kim Seong-nam, Chair of the Agriculture and Maritime Committee of the Gyeonggi Provincial Council, and Gachon University students.

As a pre-event, a calligraphy performance titled "Planting the Future of Korea, the Opportunity of Gyeonggi at the Center of Change" was held. It expressed Gyeonggi Province located at the center of lush green mountains and trees, symbolizing the significance of this commemorative event and Gyeonggi's will to respond to the climate crisis and contribute to carbon neutrality.

Meanwhile, to celebrate Arbor Day, Gyeonggi Province will hold a tree distribution event for residents. On the 18th at 1 p.m. at Oido Museum in Siheung City, on the 19th at 10 a.m. at the Peace Plaza of the Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office in Uijeongbu City, and on the 20th at 10 a.m. at Gangssibong Natural Recreation Forest in Gapyeong County, about 2,000 seedlings of five species, including Cheonrihyang and camellia trees, will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.

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