Woori Financial Group announced on Oct. 10 that Chairman Sohn Tae-seung had been invited to Europe for four days from Oct. 4.
During his visit, Chairman Sohn discussed international cooperation for responses to climate change and nature’s recovery with international ESG organizations, such as United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the United Nations Environment Program Financial Initiative (UNEP FI), International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
First of all, Chairman Sohn discussed sustainable land and forest management activities in a meeting with Ibrahim Thiaw, deputy secretary-general of the UN Deputy and secretary-general of the UNCCD in Germany.
“Land is our valuable natural asset, and the degradation of land affects not only mankind but also ecosystems on which all living things depend,” Secretary-General Thiaw said. “Even though Woori Financial Group is a private company, its support is very encouraging.”
In particular, Chairman Sohn met with Eric Usher, head of the UNEP FI at UNEP FI Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
In the meeting, Sohn and Usher discussed international cooperation for tackling the global climate crisis and promoting nature’s recovery.
Through the meeting, Woori Financial Group joined the Net Zero Bank Association (NZBA).
The NZBA is a global interbank leadership coalition that aims to achieve “net-zero” by 2050. Its members consist of 117 banks from 41 countries. The banks’ combined assets amount to trillions of U.S. dollars.
UNEP FI head Usher showed a deep interest in Woori Finance Group’s implementation of the Principles of Responsible Banking (PRB) and participation in the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD).
He also welcomed the Korean financial group to the NZBA as a new member with open arms.
Afterwards, Sohn moved to the IUCN and WWF Headquarters in Gland, Switzerland and met with IUCN Deputy Secretary-General Lee Seong-ah and WWF Director-General Marco Lambertini, respectively.
During the visit, Sohn pledged to support a variety of programs to overcome the climate crisis and preserve biodiversity in an eco-friendly way.
“In recent unstable environments such as a global energy crisis and inflation, solidarity and cooperation with the international community is growing in importance day by day,” Chairman Sohn said in the meetings with global ESG leaders.
“I hope that our solidarity and cooperation will lay the foundation for a great journey to save our planet.”
Meanwhile, the UNCCD Secretary-General and UNEP FI head highly praised Woori Financial Group’s practical activities in the field of coping with the climate crisis and nature conservation, and asked Sohn to participate in the global leadership group as a representative of the financial sector in Asia.
In the meantime, The Woori Financial Future Foundation of Woori Financial Group announced on Oct. 13 that it will kick off a culture and art program for public health workers who have been battling the COVID-19 pandemic.
Participants will be selected by receiving applications from public health workers such as nurses, nursing assistants, and patient transport service personnel working in public medical institutions such as national hospitals across the country through an NGO group.
The programs prepared for the participants consist of customized cultural and artistic performances to help them recover and heal themselves. Free admission tickets to music concerts, plays, and art exhibitions will be given to the participants.
“I would like to express my deep gratitude to those who are working hard to protect the lives and safety of the people,” Chairman Sohn said.
“We have prepared this program to provide them with an opportunity to help them reenergize themselves through art and cultural events.”
The Woori Financial Future Foundation was established to lay the foundation for sustainable growth at a time when the fulfillment of social responsibilities and role of finance is more important than ever.
It is a non-profit foundation set up with donations from all 15 Woori affiliates including Woori Bank and Woori Card.
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