Engineering industry seeks climate change response strategies

2024.06.13. The Fair Economy — The Korea Engineering and Consulting Association (chaired by Lee Hae-gyeong) announced that it held an international forum on the 12th at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. The event brought together some 300 experts from industry, academia and research institutions under the theme "Exploring the Engineering Industry's Response Strategies to Climate Change (The Role of Engineering in Responding to Climate Change)."

According to the association, the forum was organized to mark its 50th anniversary and to prepare for the next 50 years, bringing together the engineering industry, academia and the research community to seek joint strategies for tackling the pressing challenges posed by climate change, one of the world's biggest issues.

In his welcoming remarks, Lee Hae-gyeong, chairman of the association, emphasized the need for technological development to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in engineering projects and for a shift in mindset during the design process. He stressed that joint efforts are needed to establish design standards and methods for facilities that can adapt resiliently to climate change.

In congratulatory remarks, Lee Jae-seok, a director at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, said the global economic order is rapidly shifting toward a low-carbon economic system. He praised the industry's efforts to respond to climate change across all areas of engineering, from infrastructure and power generation facilities to cutting-edge new towns and industrial complexes, and pledged that the government would spare no effort in providing policy support.

The forum's keynote speeches were delivered by Kourosh Kayvani of the global consulting group HKA and Teddy Masanori Kartasasmita of NIPPON KOEI, Japan's leading engineering firm. In the panel session that followed, Lee Ju-heon, a professor of civil engineering at Joongbu University, served as moderator, leading a discussion of climate change-related issues and a Q&A session with the audience.

The panelists included Kim Yeong-ho, head of the Water Resources and Disaster Prevention Division at Dasan Consultant; Kim Hae-dong, professor in the Department of Environmental Science at Keimyung University; Yoon Seon-gwon, a research fellow at the Climate Change Research Division of the Seoul Institute; and Jeon Deok-u, lead of the Circular Economy Sector at the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI).