Yeosu City Council discusses strategy to host 2028 UN climate summit
Yeosu City Council announced it will host a strategy forum Sunday afternoon to discuss how to secure the city's bid to hold COP33, the 33rd Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
COP33 is scheduled for 2028. South Jeolla Province and South Gyeongsang Province — together forming the South Coast and South-Central region — have designated Yeosu as their joint candidate city and are actively pursuing the bid.
A COP33 South Coast and South-Central Region Bid Committee has already been launched, bringing together six cities and counties in South Jeolla Province — Yeosu, Suncheon, Gwangyang, Goheung, Boseong and Gurye — and five in South Gyeongsang Province — Jinju, Sacheon, Namhae, Hadong and Sancheong — along with more than 30 civic organizations.
COP33 is to be held in the Asia-Pacific region. India is preparing its own bid, while within South Korea, Yeosu, Jeju Island, Goyang in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon are all vying to be the domestic host city, intensifying competition.
The forum, to be held at 4 p.m. Sunday at the council's small conference room and led by council members Park Seong-mi and Park Suk-hee, aims to develop a joint response strategy for the South Coast and South-Central region and strengthen the bid's competitiveness through inter-regional solidarity and cooperation. Participants are expected to include council members, Yeosu citizens, relevant city departments, officials from the Jeonnam-Gwangju integrated special city, the COP33 Bid Committee and the Yeosu Declaration Practice Committee.
Yang Chun-seung, standing director of the Korea Socially Responsible Investment Forum, will deliver a keynote presentation on strategies for winning the COP33 bid for South Korea and Yeosu, covering arguments to persuade the central government and a roadmap for a just industrial transition.
A panel discussion and question-and-answer session will follow, moderated by Lee Sang-hun, with the participation of Jeong Seok-man, co-chair of the COP33 Bid Committee; Jo Cheon-rae, adjunct professor at Chonnam National University; Park Mun-hee, head of Yeosu's climate and ecology division; and council member Park Suk-hee.
The forum will address two main topics: a joint response plan and inter-regional coordination strategy for the South Coast and South-Central region, and ways to build a cooperative framework among the central government, local governments, the National Assembly and experts.
Yeosu City Council Speaker Ju Jae-hyeon said the forum, scheduled for a Sunday afternoon during the Liberation Day holiday, reflects strong interest from all sectors, given that hosting COP33 has long been a goal for Yeosu and the broader South Coast and South-Central region. "I hope this forum will serve as an opportunity to develop practical response strategies for bringing COP33 to Yeosu," he said.
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