The Ministry of Environment (Minister Kim Wansup) announced that the launch ceremony for the ‘30x30 Alliance,’ a coalition aimed at expanding protected areas and restoring degraded lands, will be held on June 4 at the International Convention Center Jeju (located in Seogwipo, Jeju).

The 30x30 Alliance includes participation from the Ministry of Environment and its affiliated agencies, private sector companies such as Samsung Electronics, POSCO DX, Hyundai Rotem, Sansu Greentech, and Sphere AX, as well as international organizations like the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), along with academia and civil society groups.*

* (International organizations) IUCN, Ramsar Regional Centre - East Asia, Korean National Commission for UNESCO

(Civil society organizations) World Vision, Naturing, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), National Nature Trust, Korea Association of Ecological Restoration, Professional Engineer Nature Environmental Management Association

The alliance aims to join forces to fulfill the international commitment to protect 30% of the planet’s area and restore 30% of degraded land by 2030, while also achieving the targets set in the National Biodiversity Strategy.

At the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity held in Canada in December 2022, the United Nations adopted the “Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF),” calling for global action to halt biodiversity loss. The framework includes a commitment to conserve 30% of the world’s land and oceans as protected areas and restore 30% of degraded ecosystems by 2030.

In December 2023, the Korean government also established the 5th National Biodiversity Strategy through inter-ministerial collaboration, outlining plans to designate 30% of the national territory as protected areas or Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs)* by 2030, thereby building an effective and systematic conservation framework.

* Areas that are not officially designated as protected areas but are managed in ways that contribute to biodiversity conservation.

Accordingly, the 30x30 Alliance will focus on expanding OECMs and will actively carry out initiatives based on the specific roles of each participating organization.

First, the Ministry of Environment and its affiliated agencies will identify region-specific candidate sites for OECMs and facilitate collaborative projects between companies and institutions. Companies will participate in biodiversity enhancement activities such as creating wetlands and forests or restoring degraded areas. Academia and civil society organizations will provide advisory support for these initiatives.

Following the launch ceremony, a forum will be held where Sihombing Siska Martina, Senior Officer at the IUCN, will present international trends on OECMs. Next, Heo Hak-young, Senior Researcher at Korea National Park Service, will introduce a guidebook on OECMs; Son Seung-woo, Associate Research Fellow at the Korea Environment Institute, will present strategies for corporate-biodiversity coexistence for a sustainable future; and Lee Jae-ho, Researcher at the National Institute of Biological Resources, will speak on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) with a focus on nature capital protection and disclosure.

Vice Minister of Environment Lee Byounghwa stated, “The degradation of the natural environment and loss of biodiversity are issues directly linked to human survival.” He added, “We hope that the newly launched alliance will serve as a valuable opportunity for public-private cooperation in restoring the natural environment and enhancing biodiversity. We look forward to continued interest and active participation from companies and organizations.”

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