Gyeonggi Province to Host '8th International Clean Air Forum' in Pangyo on the 27th

Gyeonggi Province will host the '8th International Clean Air Forum 2026' with the theme 'Beyond Clean Air: Responding to Climate Crisis (Air·Beyond·Climate)' at DoubleTree by Hilton Pangyo on the 27th.

The International Clean Air Forum commemorates the 'International Day of Clean Air (September 7)', designated by the United Nations at Korea's proposal, and is hosted by Gyeonggi Province to establish an international cooperation foundation for resolving environmental issues such as climate change and air pollution. This year marks the 8th edition of the forum.

This year's forum will be attended by approximately 200 participants, including government officials from local governments in the Asia-Pacific region such as Cambodia's central government and Kampot Province, China's Jiangsu and Guangdong provinces, and Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia, as well as officials from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP), the World Health Organization's Asia-Pacific Centre for Environmental Health (WHO ACE), and domestic and international experts and residents.

This year's forum theme is 'Beyond Clean Air: Responding to Climate Crisis', which is characterized by broadening the scope of discussion beyond air quality improvement to include climate crisis response.

The forum consists of three parts: the opening ceremony, insight sessions, and international sessions. At the opening ceremony, Governor Choo Mi-ae of Gyeonggi Province will deliver the opening address, followed by a keynote speech by Park Tae-woong, chairman of the Green Society Forum, titled 'Carbon Governance Rewritten by AI'. Commendation plaques will also be presented to the international organizations UN ESCAP and WHO.

In the insight session, a panel discussion by domestic experts will be held on the theme 'Climate and Air, One Crisis'. In the international session, domestic and international experts, local government officials, and representatives from international organizations will discuss solutions to climate and air problems and joint response measures under themes such as 'Asia-Pacific Air Quality Innovation Starting from Gyeonggi Province' and 'International Community's Commitment to Clean Air'.

In particular, prior to this year's forum, from the 25th to 26th, Gyeonggi Province will collaborate with the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to operate a 'Gyeonggi Province Climate Crisis and Air Pollution Reduction Excellence Policy Dissemination and Cooperation Program' targeting local government officials in the Asia-Pacific region. Participants will share Gyeonggi Province's climate and air policies and best practices, visit relevant sites, and discuss sustainable joint cooperation measures among Asia-Pacific regional local governments in air quality data and monitoring.

Cha Seong-soo, director of the Climate, Environment and Energy Bureau of Gyeonggi Province, said, "Since climate change and air pollution affect areas beyond borders, they are problems that cannot be solved by efforts of individual regions alone." He added, "We hope that this forum will serve as an opportunity for Gyeonggi Province, local governments in the Asia-Pacific region, and international organizations to share policies and experiences and jointly explore sustainable cooperation measures."