(Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Korea, 30.May.2021) — As responding to climate change emerges as the biggest issue in the international community, the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit will be held at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) in Seoul from 30-31 May 2021.
The P4G Seoul Summit is the third of the four major international conferences on the environment this year. It comes between the Leaders Summit on Climate hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden in April, and the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) to be held in November.
The P4G Summit is a platform for public-private partnerships that can complement these inter-governmental climate responses. The summit aims to create a model to deliver both climate action and economic growth and help developing countries achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), through the P4G Partnership involving governments, businesses and civil groups.
Under the theme of “Inclusive Green Recovery towards Carbon Neutrality” the second P4G summit will be attended by about 68 world leaders including
▲British Prime Minister Boris Johnson
▲German Chancellor Angela Merkel
▲French President Emmanuel Macron
▲Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang
▲President of the European Council Charles Michel
▲Ethiopia’s President Sahle-Work Zewde
▲Indonesian President Joko Widodo
▲UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and those of P4G partner countries, as well as leaders of international organizations including Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), and Tony Clamp, Director a.i. of Green Climate Fund’s Private Sector Facility.
The P4G Seoul Summit consists of Summit Sessions involving state leaders and Thematic Sessions in which governments, international organizations, private companies, civil society organizations and academia will take part. President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea will declare the opening of the summit on May 30 and preside over the Leaders’ Dialogue on green recovery and carbon neutrality on May 31. In particular, the Seoul Declaration, which emphasizes the importance of green recovery, carbon neutrality and international solidarity, will be adopted at the summit.
The five Thematic Sessions, scheduled for 31 May, will address the five areas of the U.N. 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that P4G is focusing on – water, energy, food and agriculture, cities, and a circular economy. Experts and ranking officials in those areas will deliver keynote speeches and participate in panel discussions.
First, the Water session will be hosted by the Ministry of Environment under the theme of “Carbon-neutral Smart Water Management for Climate Resilience.” It will be a venue to share water management policies and technologies for realizing carbon neutrality. Starting off with a keynote speech on carbon-neutral water management technology and good governance strategies, the session will feature a panel discussion led by the P4G Hub on ways to strengthen partnerships to supply clean water and make good use of governance. Han Jeoung-ae, Korea’s Minister of the Environment, will deliver her opening remarks and Kalanithy Vairavamoorthy, Executive Director of the International Water Association (IWA), will preside over the P4G Hub-led discussion.
The Energy session will be hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy under the theme of “A Greener Planet with Innovative Energy Solutions,” which will be an opportunity to explore carbon-neutral energy solutions based on real cases. Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the IEA, and Michael Bloomberg, CEO of Bloomberg L.P., will give presentations on “Global Carbon-neutrality and the Future of Energy” and “Harmony between Energy Carbon-neutrality and Inclusive Growth,” respectively.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs will host the Food and Agriculture session under the theme of “Resilient and Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems.” At the session, global leaders in green growth will discuss ways to cooperate for sustainable agriculture and food systems and strengthen partnerships. Qu Dongyu, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and Agnes Kalibata, U.N. Secretary-General’s special envoy to the 2021 Food Systems Summit, will present on “Development of Partnerships for Global Food Security” and “Transforming Food Systems to Achieve 2030 SDGs,” respectively.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will host the Cities session under the theme of “Partnerships for Smart and Resilient Green Cities,” to discuss the role of smart cities and global public-private partnerships to respond to climate change. The session will include presentations by Noh Hyeong-ouk, Korea’s Minister of Land, lnfrastructure and Transport, on “Climate Change Response and Carbon Neutrality Measures of Cities,” and by Flemming Møller Mortensen, Denmark’s Minister for Development Cooperation, on “City Resilience: Eco-friendly Cities’ Response to COVID19 and Water Crisis.”
Lastly, the Circular Economy session will be held by the Ministry of Environment under the theme of “Circular Economy Measures towards a Zero Waste Society.” It will serve as an opportunity to delve into the roles and responsibilities of all stakeholders, including companies, citizens, international organizations and governments, and present relevant policies, technologies, knowledge, experiences and action plans. Minister of Environment Han Jeoung-ae will introduce the “Carbon Neutrality and Circular Economy Policy Direction of Korea” through her opening remarks, and Lea Wermelin, Danish Minister of the Environment, will deliver a keynote speech on “Circular Economy Strategy to Achieve the European Green Deal.”
The Summit Sessions will be held virtually via video conferencing for the safety of participating leaders amid the COVID19 pandemic. The Thematic Sessions will be held both in person and virtually. The summit’s official video, “wake up call,” and the official campaign song, “We Are One,” have been released before the summit to boost public awareness of the event.
The P4G Seoul Summit Preparatory Office said, “The summit will be participated in by 68 national leaders and heads of international organizations. We will be using a video conference system based on Korea’s cutting-edge information communication technology, so that all participants can be immersed in a lively conference experience and focus on discussions on green recovery, carbon neutrality and global partnership.”
People can watch the summit programs on the virtual event platform on the P4G Seoul Summit’s official website (2021p4g-seoulsummit.kr). All sessions will be live streamed through the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit’s virtual platform and official YouTube channel (@2021P4GSeoul-summit). Video clips of the sessions will be uploaded on the official website after they are over.
※ 2021 P4G Summit Seoul (https://2021p4g-seoulsummit.kr)
The P4G Summit was launched in September 2017, led by Denmark, as a global initiative to accelerate the response to climate change and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) based on public-private partnerships. Of the 17 SDGs, set out by the United Nations and the global community in 2015 with an aim of achievement by 2030, P4G specifically targets five objectives related to climate change responses (Food and Agriculture, Clean Water, Clean Energy, Sustainable Cities, Circular Economy). Twelve member countries – Bangladesh, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Kenya, Mexico, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, South Africa, and Vietnam – and international organizations (including the World Economic Forum and the Global Green Growth Institute) and private companies participate in the summit.
P4G:
- A consultative body participated in by governments, companies, and civil societies
- Puts an emphasis on action-oriented public-private cooperation
- Composed of countries playing the role of a bridge between developing and developed countries
- Seeks to build a sustainable business model (a bridge between development and investment)
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