Part 1 - Green Korea June 2011

In the two and a half years since President Lee Myung-bak announced his 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 Korea Economic Institute and the Center for U.S.-Korea Policy, Asia Foundation, this conference examined 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 also addressed a possible crossover in the U.S. and ROK approaches to climate change and clean energy development, and the potential for future collaboration.