The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF; Minister MOON, Seong-Hyeok), in collaboration with Busan Metropolitan City and Busan Daily News, announced the hosting of the 15th World Ocean Forum (WOF* 2021) from Oct 26th (Tuesday) to 28th (Thursday) at Lotte Hotel Busan.

* WOF: World International Ocean Forum

In the upcoming 15th World Ocean Forum, Minister MOON, Seong-Hyeok of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Mayor PARK, Heong-Joon of Busan Metropolitan City, CEO KIM, Jin-Su of Busan Daily News as well as 100 experts from the diverse fields of marine environment, fisheries, shipping, ports and shipbuilding will be joining us in line with COVID19 infection prevention measures. Overseas attendees are expected to attend the forum online, and the sessions will be streamed live via the official website (www.wof.kr) and YouTube.* Anyone interested will be able to take part in the forum.

* Search for ‘World Ocean Forum’ via the YouTube search bar

The forum will be held under the theme of ‘The Future of Everything: Ocean Transformation,’ consisting of a keynote session, 12 thematic sessions, and 2 special programs. Around 80 speakers and panel members from 17 nations, including the US, England, and Indonesia, are expected to hold active discussions about the massive changes triggered by COVID19 and the future of the oceans during the forum.

Mauro F. Guillen, the author of the global bestseller ‘2030: How Today’s Biggest Trends Will Collide and Reshape the Future of Everything’ and the Director of the Cambridge Judge Business School in England will be visiting Busan in person for the keynote session to present his perspectives on the future of our society impacted by population ageing and climate change. Subsequently, Managing Director General UM, Woo-Chong of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Danish Ambassador to Korea Einar Jensen will take part in the panel discussions.

In particular, a special session on marine policies will be held from 1:00 PM on Oct 27th, the second day of the forum, with the marine policy managers of key marine nations, including the US, France, EU, and Indonesia, under the theme of ‘Marine Policy Trends, Performance, and the Future of Key Global Nations’ to share the policy experiences of the nations and to discuss ideas on how to collaborate on the global issues of climate change and marine waste.

Moreover, a day prior to the forum, at 3:00 PM on Oct 25th, a discussion on the importance of marine ecosystem conservation, held between filmmaker Craig Foster of My Octopus Teacher, this year’s Academy Award winner for Best Documentary, and Tyler Rasch, a local television personality and environmental activist, will be made available to the public via online media.

The forum will also feature additional events, including online B2B transactions among shipbuilding and marine companies of Canada, Norway, England, Denmark, and Korea as well as social media events regarding the marine environment.

Minister MOON, Seong-Hyeok of Oceans and Fisheries commented in his welcome speech that “this is a time where we need to fully prepare our future generations for the crises and challenges faced by mankind, including COVID19 and climate change” and hoped that “this World Ocean Forum would become a foundation where all our wisdom comes together, in leading us towards a brighter future through our oceans.”

More details on the World Ocean Forum 2021 can be found on the World Ocean Forum website (www.wof.kr).

< Summary of World Ocean Forum 2021 >