Representatives from 190 countries assembled in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the Rio+20 Summit, also known as the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development from June 20-22. President Lee Myung-bak, Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan, Ministry of Strategy and Finance Minister Bahk Jae-wan, and Environment Minister Yoo Young-sook  represented Korea at the meeting. 

Also joining the government leaders were representatives from Korean NGOs for the global event, which had its first meeting in 1992. This third meeting addressed such issues as the green economy, which can support the sustainable growth of the world economy.

The Korean delegation worked hard to promote the green economy and sustainable development as means to expand green growth all over the world and take deep roots.

The delegation’s activities at the event focused on inducing an international political agreement to have the entire world transform to a green economy by adopting a declaration at the green summit under the title “The Future We Want.”

President Lee in his keynote address, called for a Green ODA Initiative to support emerging nations to take up green growth by introducing Korea’s experience for green growth through diverse sideline events and a high-level roundtable discussion in which Environment Minister Yoo participated.

The Green ODA Initiative is to spur increases in ODA, especially those related to green growth, to 30 percent by 2020 from 14 percent in 2010. The Korean delegation presented a blueprint for a green growth partnership to boost its image as a leading green growth country.

The delegation led the High-Level Policy Forum on the Development Framework for a Green Economy jointly with UNESCAP on June 19 in which Environment Minister Yoo delivered her opening speech introducing examples of successful policies for the green economy such as the green purchase system and the green card.

President Lee called for the need of green growth as a strategy to realize sustainable growth in order to prevent another global economic crisis and the widening gap between the rich and the poor. He said green growth is a means of life as a new growth engine that can solve environmental and energy problems and climate change. 

Lee said, “The challenge we face today is a global one and, therefore, we have to solve it on a global dimension, as it is an implementation strategy to realize the three targets of sustainable growth °™  economic development, social integration, and environmental preservation.

He said Korea has decided to support the emerging countries’ green growth until 2020 under its Green ODA, whose total funds will be increased to more than $5 billion, and Korea will set up a global green growth partnership following the East Asia Climate Partnership, which ends this year.

The agreed outcome document spells out action points such as the need to establish sustainable development goals and mobilize financing for sustainable development, as well as the promotion of sustainable consumption and production, among others. 

It also stresses the need to include women, NGOs, and indigenous groups in the sustainable development agenda, and calls on the private sector to engage in sustainable corporate business practices. 

In addition to the outcome text, there were over 400 voluntary commitments for sustainable development by member states in the lead-up to the high-level meeting of Rio+20, which officially started with an address by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. 

“The spirit of compromise is the mark of a good consensus, and crucial if all countries are to be on board, take ownership, and share a collective commitment,” said China’s Sha Zukang, secretary general of the Rio+20 Summit. “This is the only way forward if we want to harness the necessary action for advancing together on a path of sustainable development.”