The government hosted an opening ceremony of Green Future Week (24th to 29th of May) on the 24th of May before the "2021 P4G Seoul Summit for Green Future (30th to 31st of May)."

The opening ceremony was held at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) for 20 minutes from 19:30 to 19:50, featuring ▲ the opening video, ▲ congratulatory remarks by the National Assembly Speaker, ▲ opening remarks by the Minister of Environment and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and ▲ Our Promise for Climate Action. 

The opening video titled "The Voice of the Future Urging Climate Action" urged everyone to take action to build a green future for children and youth.

Six participants (children, teenagers, and youth) demonstrated the urgency for carbon neutrality by highlighting that we are facing the last opportunity to start the transition to a sustainable society.

As a response to the voice of the future generation, Park Byeong-seog, Speaker of the National Assembly said in his video message, "2050 carbon neutrality is a path we must pursue to pass down a healthy Earth to our next generation," and that "The National Assembly will make efforts to solidify legal and institutions to respond to climate change." 

Chung Eui-yong, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, said in his opening remarks that "It is the time for international society to Act Now for Our Green Future," adding, "This will hopefully be a good opportunity to make more substantive changes based on creative ideas and the future generation's participation through special sessions."

Han Jeoung-ae, the Minister of Environment, said in her following opening remarks, "Setting this year as the first to implement carbon neutrality, the focus will be on forming the foundation for implementation."

Following the congratulatory and opening speeches, the opening ceremony ended after participants shared their green promises under "Our Promise for Climate Action."

"Our Promise for Climate Action" aimed to convey everyone's promise towards climate action as a response to "The Voice of the Future Urging Climate Action." More than 100 participants including the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Environment, and representatives of businesses, civil society, and future generations* showed their commitment messages on the screen, promising to take climate action.

* (Business) Kim Hyung-soo, Treeplanet CEO, (Civil Society) Vandana Shiva, International Forum on Globalization (IFG) Leader and Board Member, (Future Generation) Park Seo-jung

Following the Opening, the Green Future Week will begin, featuring a total of 10 special sessions reflecting the ongoing global dialogue and climate and environment, as well as Korea's recent policy interests. The Green Future Week is designed to seek ways to achieve "inclusive green recovery for carbon neutrality," the theme of the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit.

All programs of the Summit including the Green Future Week Opening will be available for viewing at the 2021 P4G Seoul Summit Virtual Venue, which anyone can easily access via the official Summit website. 

* 2021 P4G Seoul Summit Official Website: 2021p4g-seoulsummit.kr