News & Photos

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Songpa has been named a winner of the Globe Award




Songpa, showered with a variety of accolades in recent years--UNEP Liveable City, WHO Safe City and WHO Healthy City designation--has attained yet another stellar
 achievement by receiving the Globe Sustainable City Award, organized by the multinational nonprofit Globe Forum.  
The result was announced on March 28, 2011; the award ceremony took place at the Stockholm Waterfront Congress Centre, Sweden on May 11, 2011.

Since 2007, the Globe Award has honored the exemplary commitment that individuals and groups have made for sustainable development.  
The Globe Award consists of four categories: Research, Innovation, Reporting and City.  In 2011, a total of 35 cities around the world, including Songpa, the Republic of Korea, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Murcia, Spain and Tampere, Finland, competed to become the most sustainable city.  Jan Sturesson (Sweden), Member of the World Economic Forum, C. S. Kiang (China), Professor at Peking University, Marilyn Hamilton (Canada), Founder of Integral City Meshworks and TDG Global Learning Connections, and four other reputable experts participated in judging.

Songpa, Korea’s first entry for the Globe Award, has been accredited and recognized for its leading role in the Low Carbon Green Growth initiative through the operation of Solar Energy-Sharing Plants, the formation of Green Villages, the enhancement of bike-friendliness, the cultivation of eco-leaders, the implementation of Eco-mileage and the administration of the Urban Agriculture Institute and citizen-managed farms. 

Jan Sturesson, Jury Chairman, highly valued the enthusiasm and collaboration that Songpa has shown to bring creative ideas to life.  He also mentioned that he felt deeply impressed by the Solar Power Plant project that aims to offer cheap electricity to the needy and was fulfilled through the combined efforts of non-governmental organizations and private and public sectors.

“It is our great privilege to have been chosen as a recipient of the Globe Award, following the win of the 2009 International Awards for Liveable Communities.  
These will help us move toward improved sustainability,” said Park Chun-hee, Mayor of Songpa, “I am extremely delighted that we have seized the opportunity to enhance the image of Songpa as Korea’s representative environmentally-friendly venue, while we are poised to host the 2011 International Awards for Liveable Communities in October.  We will do our best to ensure the success of this event.”  
The Embassy of Sweden in Seoul (Ambassador: Lars Vargo) posts news featuring the 2011 Globe Award Laureate Songpa on its website (www.swedenabroad.com/seoul).

Established in 2003, under partnership among Audi (Germany), Teito (Finland), Cisco (the United States), the European Regional Development Fund, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency and many other corporations and associations, the Globe Forum has provided viable and supportive solutions for sustainable progress and promoted the Globe Award.  
The Globe Sustainable City Award commenced in 2009.  Cardiff, the United Kingdom and Curitiba, Brazil were crowned in 2009 and 2010, respectively.


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