Environmental resilience in practice for 2012 WCC on Jeju

By Chang Hoon Ko

The first World Environment Jeju Forum took place on February 10-11 at the International Convention Center. Its purpose was the development of key themes for the policy agenda of the 2012 World Conservation Congress (WCC), which will be held on Jeju Island.

The primary organizer of the WCC is the International Union of the Conservation of Nature (IUCN.)

Miguel Pellerano, President of the 2012 WCC Preparatory Committee, reviewed the impact of previous WCCs on global conservation. He expects the 2012 WCC to be one of commitments, plans and actions for the development of environmental resilience on a global scale.

Maurice Strong, former Under-Secretary General of the United Nations and a key speaker at the forum, anticipates International Environmental Law to be one of the most important issues on the WCC agenda.

Marine environmental protection laws are particularly relevant to Jeju. As a result of human activities both inland and in the coastal regions, marine ecosystems and resources are rapidly deteriorating.

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea calls for a comprehensive codification of all international marine law to include provisions for the protection of the marine environment, an act which can only be affirmed by international governments.

Strong proposed the necessity for Jeju Island's selection as headquarters of the new World Environment University, intended as a global network of centers of knowledge and excellence in environmental and related fields.

This initiative is presently in development, with the cooperation and support of Jeju Provincial Governor Woo Keun-min, the Central Government of Korea, and IUCN as well as other leading international organizations.

Geoffrey Lipman, former Assistant Secretary General of and current Advisor to the United Nations World Tourism Organization and a speaker at this forum, identified another focal point for 2012 WCC.

Lipman proposed ``green-growth’’ combined with what he terms ``travelism’ ― an amalgam of ``travel’’ and ``tourism’’ as a positive, values-driven change agent. He believes it will reshape environmental education for sustainable development through a harmony between environment and tourism.

Several related programs are in the process of being developed at the World Environment Island Institute (WEII) of Jeju National University (JNU) as ``Peace Island Initiatives’’ (https://www.peaceisland.asia).

The World Environment and Island Summer School (WEISS), scheduled for July 25 to August 20, is collaborated by JNU and the Korean National Commission for UNESCO and UNEP.

Related events include the Jeju Ocean Swim, in which Jeju’s diving women and community members participate to raise awareness of marine environmental issues.

Another event, the Global Peace Bultuk Tribunal, is modeled after the ``bultuk’’ or gathering place for the economic cooperatives of Jeju’s famed diving women. The Tribunal is part of the Peace Island Bultuk Culture Festival scheduled for July 27-31.

The WEII will also consider organizing the ``Islands of 20 Summit’’ to support the enactment of international environmental law and gain the endorsement of G-20 countries during the global marine festival period in July of 2012.

The writer is professor and director of World Environment and Island Institute, Jeju National University.