By Lee Kap-soo

Gyeonggi-do Governor Kim Dong-yeon met with Helen Clarkson, CEO of The Climate Group, to explain Gyeonggi-do's commitment to overcoming the climate crisis and becoming carbon neutral, and to propose international cooperation on Oct. 4. 

He also expressed his intention to join the Under2 Coalition, a global coalition of local governments on climate change policy, of which The Climate Group is the secretariat.

During a meeting with Helen Clarkson, CEO of The Climate Group, at the Roh Moo-hyun Civic Center in Seoul, Gov. Kim Dong-yeon said, "Gyeonggi-do is the most proactive province in addressing climate change. The central government of South Korea is now carrying out policies that are lagging behind in climate change, and we are trying to play a role as a local government while strongly opposing it." "If you have good opinions and suggestions on what local governments should do, we will learn well," he said.

Helen Clarkson said, "We are focusing on reducing carbon in industry, transportation and power. We are launching a new Steel Zero campaign to declare that all steel consumed by 2050 will be low-carbon steel." 
Helen Clarkson, who also serves as the secretariat for the Under2 Coalition, a coalition of 170 local governments around the world working on climate policy change.

In addition, Governor Kim said, "I think it is important to inform the public about the Under2 Coalition and international cooperation, and to show how lives are changing by putting it into practice." "I think the role of local governments is twofold: international cooperation and practice. We are preparing for the Under2 Coalition. We are preparing for the Under2 Coalition, and we want to show the change to the people."

Helen Clarkson added: "We are grateful for the interest in joining the Under2 Coalition. "I'm sure there are many companies in Gyeonggi-do that are very active in our RE100 campaign, and it would be great to find out what obstacles they face in achieving their goals and see if we can address them at the provincial level." 

Governor Kim noted the importance of Gyeonggi Province's role as the center of Korea's RE100, and promised to strengthen cooperation with the global RE100 implementation with the Climate Group for sustainable energy policies.