"Sharing Solutions to Global Plastic Pollution"... Seoul City Hosts International Climate and Environment Forum

Proceeding with the theme of 'Plastic Zero'
Sharing city-specific measures including establishing international agreements
Participation of experts from international environmental organizations

The Seoul Metropolitan Government is collaborating with domestic and international cities, environmental organizations, and experts to seek solutions for global plastic pollution.

On the 7th, Seoul announced that it will hold the '2024 Seoul International Climate Environment Forum' at Seoul City Hall under the theme 'Plastic Zero, My New City.'

Previously, the international community agreed at the 5th United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) held in Nairobi, Kenya, in March 2022, to establish a 'legally binding international agreement on plastic pollution' and decided to conduct five sessions of the 'Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee' (INC). The final negotiation session will be held on the 25th of this month in Busan.

In line with this, Seoul plans to use this forum to share leading plastic reduction efforts by cities worldwide and expert responses, aiming to develop practical solutions to plastic pollution. The forum will feature participation from nine global cities including Seoul, Tokyo, Beijing, and Bangkok, as well as international environmental organizations such as C40 and ICLEI East Asia Secretariat, along with domestic and international experts who will present efforts and innovations to reduce plastic pollution. The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group is a voluntary coalition of major cities worldwide that recognize the seriousness of climate change and work together to address it. Mayor Oh Se-hoon currently serves as a C40 Steering Committee member (Vice Chair).

The forum will begin with a keynote speech titled 'Plastic International Agreement and the Circular Economy Society' by Professor Jang Yong-cheol of the Department of Environmental Engineering at Chungnam National University. Professor Jang will emphasize the need for a societal transformation to reduce plastic pollution and will discuss the city's practical directions and social system transition efforts to adapt to the changes brought by the upcoming final meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee and the agreement.

The following session, chaired by Alisa Raz, Deputy Director of C40 East Asia and Oceania, will proceed under the theme 'Blueprint for Solving Plastic Issues in Future Cities.' Zhu Shu, Head of ICLEI East Asia Secretariat, will also participate with a presentation on 'International Community Efforts to Stop Plastic Use.' Additionally, lectures by domestic and international experts are scheduled. Choi Pyung-soon, EBS PD and author of 'Anthropocene: The Age of Humans,' will speak on 'Plastic in the Anthropocene Era,' and Oh Yoon, Director of External Cooperation at the Green Climate Fund (GCF), will present on 'The Relationship Between Climate Change and Plastic Pollution Through the Global Marine Environment.'

Yeo Jang-kwon, Head of Seoul's Climate Environment Headquarters, said, "This forum, held ahead of the establishment of a legally binding international agreement on plastic pollution, is an opportunity to share diverse efforts and insights from cities worldwide to reduce plastic use." He added, "Seoul will also take the lead in protecting the global environment by minimizing plastic generation and increasing recycling rates."

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