South Korea's Green Growth Strategy: Where It Stands and Where It's Going

In the two and a half years since President Lee Myung-bak announced his “me first” strategy for accelerating green growth in Korea, he has inked numerous bilateral clean energy agreements, overseen passage of a law laying the groundwork for his sweeping strategy, and accepted several international awards for his leadership in the green growth arena. However, his administration has also revised plans for a cap-and-trade system in the face of opposition from the Korean private sector, showing the difficulty in swaying business leaders to “go first” in green growth when they perceive potential competitive disadvantages. Co-hosted by the Center for U.S.-Korea Policy and Korea Economic Institute, this conference will examine the successes and challenges of Korea’s green growth implementation, the private sector’s role in bringing about a low-carbon economy, and the regional context of Korea’s green growth efforts. Panelists will also consider where there is crossover in the U.S. and ROK approaches to climate change and clean energy development, and the potential for future collaboration.

Agenda

9:00-9:15 am. Introductory Remarks

Ambassador HAN Duck-soo (invited)
ROK Ambassador to the United States

9:15-9:45 am. Keynote Speech: What is Green Growth? The South Korean Context

YOUNG Soo-gil
Chairman, Presidential Committee on Green Growth

10:00-11:00 am. The Private Sector Role in Green Growth: Challenges and Opportunities

LEE Jeongjoon
Research Fellow, LS Industrial Systems

HWANG Joo-ho
President, Korea Institute of Energy Research

11:00 am-12:00 pm. ROK Green Growth in a Regional Context

CHUNG Suh-Yong
Professor, Korea University
Member, Presidential Committee on Green Growth

Trevor HOUSER
Director, Energy and Climate Practice, Rhodium Group
Visiting Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics

12:15- 1:30 pm. Luncheon Keynote Speech

Matthew SUMMY
President and CEO, Illinois Science and Technology Coalition