Mayor Park Won-soon of Seoul and President of ICLEI speaks at the High-Level Action Day at COP21 in Paris on Dec. 5.

Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon presided over the Joint Meeting of ICLEI Council and ICLEI Global Executive Committee at Paris City Hall on Dec. 6, which adopted the ICLEI Declaration to the Ministers at COP21.

Building on the Seoul Declaration and Strategy 2015-2021, ICLEI committed to scale up local climate action, mobilize political commitment and action towards climate-friendly human development, facilitate transparency and accountability in municipal actions and empower and advocate transformative climate action, the declaration stated. 

Mayor Park and the president of ICLEI delivered this commitment at the High Level Action Day at COP21 on Dec. 5. In his address, Mayor Park cited the “One Less Nuclear Power” Project that was launched by Seoul in April 2012, as an example of ensuring sustainability following the ICLEI Declaration. He said 14 months after the project was launched, Seoul reduced 2 million TOE of energy, an equivalent to the amount produced by one nuclear power plant. Based on the achievement, Seoul declared the second phase of the project in August 2014 with the goal of raising Seoul’s energy self-reliance from 4.7 percent to 20 percent and reducing 4 million TOE of energy, equivalent to the energy produced by two nuclear power plants by 2020, Mayor Park said. 

“Seoul citizens are becoming owners of solar power plants by directly participating in solar power generation through installation of mini solar PV, energy cooperative activities, an raising solar fund,” he said. “Seoul has also established an ambitious goal of reducing 10 million tons of carbon by 2020. This is Promise of Seoul, which was announced at the occasion of ICLEI World Congress held in Seoul in April this year. Seoul's carbon reduction actions to achieve this Promise begins from citizen participation.”

Mayor Park called on other cities to mobilize for sustainable action, announcing his commitment as ICLEI President, to lead ICLEI Members through the Green Climate Cities Program and other initiatives such as Compact of Mayors and to mobilize more local and subnational governments to expand the reach of the ICLEI global network.

“Let's remember this saying, ‘Think globally, act locally.’ We can overcome the climate change crisis that we are facing by enhancing connection between the cities. We need to end the time of plenty and start the time of saving. If we walk together, a new path will open, and if we dream together, the dream will come true. Let's walk together on the path to turn this crisis into an opportunity,” he said. 

Some 1,300 dignitaries, including Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and Michael R. Bloomberg, U.N. Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change, participated in the High Level Action Day. 

ICLEI is the world’s leading network of over 1,200 cities and local governments committed to building a sustainable future. Park serves as the President of ICLEI for two years from April.

Mayor Park made a trip from Dec. 3-7 to participate in the Joint Meeting of ICLEI Council and ICLEI Global Executive Committee.

Seoul Mayor Park and other delegates of ICLEI participate in an event sponsored by ICLEI. (Photos:SMG)