2012 Yeosu Expo Korea
By Dr. Cho Dong-oh
Korea Maritime Institute
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The 2012 Yeosu Expo will be held in Korea’s beautiful south coast city. Yeosu is known for its clean port, which is conveyed through its Expo theme “The Living Ocean and Coast: Diversity of Resources and Sustainable Activities.”From May to August of that year, about 8 million members of the global family are expected to visit the Expo to listen and talk about the development and conservation of our oceans.
The main reasons Yeosu’s theme and bid appealed to judges is the growing sense that we humans are depleting the ocean’s resources and causing rising sea levels and coastal disasters. Yeosu itself embodies harmony between development and conservation — a beautiful port city surrounded by some 300 beautiful islands and the miles upon miles of picturesque coastline and seas within the vast National Hallyeosudo and National Archipelago marine parks.
Yeosu and the surrounding area is also home to several industrial complexes, including the Yeosu National Industrial Complex, one of the world’s largest petrochemical production sites. The Gwangyang Steel Works and Port of Gwangyang, Korea’s second-largest container port, lie just across the bay.
This harmony between the Yeosu area’s pristine marine parks and vibrant industry make it the ideal place to prove development and conservation are not mutually exclusive.
The 2012 Yeosu Expo has two unique programs to sustain its goals: The first is the “Yeosu Declaration,” which aims to recognize and resolve urgent issues caused by climate change. The declaration will be announced during the Expo and will address the interdependence of human beings and the conservation of oceans and coastlines and international cooperation to halt the dwindling of resources and the sharing of eco-friendly technology.
The Yeosu Declaration will mark a new era in the history of the Expo by accentuating the importance of sustainable development for the world’s oceans and the need for countries, international organizations and NGOs to collaborate.
The second program is the “Yeosu Project,” an international effort to identify solutions for urgent ocean-related issues facing developing countries.
The project will begin in 2008 and is set to be carried on well beyond the 2012 Expo. Participants will conduct feasibility studies, R&D and educational activities on pending marine-related issues..
Several of the proposed research projects deal with rising sea levels, providing environmental cleanup training and the application of marine technology.
A committee comprised of members from international organizations and experts in related fields will select the most appropriate projects. About $100 million will be raised by governments, business, and international organizations, such as the UNEP, IMO, IOC and UNCSD proyecta .
The Korean Government will invest $10 million for the Yeosu Project, of which $2 million will be used for feasibility studies.
The Expo is expected to raise public awareness of the oceans and expand related R&D and investment in education and training. It will also address sustainable development of coastal waters. recetas
Furthermore, the Expo will enhance marine technology for sustainable development of ocean resources, such as seaweed-based CO2-reduction technology, oil pollution response technology, fisheries stock recovering technology, tide and current power generating technology, and marine environment protection technology. desatascos madrid
For the Expo’s success, Korea’s public and private sectors should make every effort to invest in transportation and tourism infrastructures. The Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group’s interest in the Yeosu Project is a great sign. The active participation of businesses is essential, as is the focus on international cooperation and technology development.
http://www.kois.go.kr/News/News/NewsView.asp?serial_no=20080116010