‘Seoul Declaration’ Adopted by Mayors of International Cities at C40 Seoul Climate Summit

SEOUL, South Korea - Mayors of major metropolitan cities around the world adopted the “Seoul Declaration” at the Third C40 Large Cities Climate Summit held last week in the capital city of Korea. Announced on the final day of the three-day Summit, the Declaration calls on major cities to convert into low-carbon areas by cutting greenhouse gas emissions to the largest extent possible. The Declaration also reaffirms the cities’ commitment to making collective efforts to combat climate change. Mayor Se-hoon Oh of the host city said at the closing ceremony that the Declaration will add momentum to the promotion of the vital roles of cities in addressing climate change.

The Summit provided opportunities for cities to discuss climate concerns under the theme, “Cities’ Achievements and Challenges in the Fight against Climate Change.” New policies and technologies were discussed and past experiences of each city were addressed. Mayors and delegates from 76 cities in 41 countries participated in the third biennial Summit. Over 50% of the world’s population live in cities, which now account for 75% of global energy consumption and 80% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

During the Summit, former U.S. President Bill Clinton announced that Seoul has been evaluated as the most advanced amongst all C40 cities in building retrofit projects, citing a report issued by the Clinton Climate Initiative, a project of the William J. Clinton Foundation.

The “Seoul Declaration” is an agreement that includes details of many cooperative methods. The Declaration has not only set low-carbon objectives as the common goal with established action plans for urban climate change, but also has articulated follow-up plans to report the results of efforts during the next Summit. The Declaration is expected to become a turning point in the countermeasures for climate change within international cities in the future, as it comes before the Conference of the Parties, scheduled in Copenhagen in December 2009, when the decreased level of greenhouse gas emission after 2013 will be determined.

The next C40 summit will be held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 2011. Related Link: www.c40seoulsummit.com Contacts: Sunny Chung eschung@seoul.go.kr Annie Lee kaki76@prain.com

Source: Seoul Metropolitan Government

Sunny Chung, eschung at seoul.go.kr, or Annie Lee, kaki76 at prain.com, for Seoul Metropolitan Government