- 1,000 experts from 60 nations attend the 7th International Marine Debris Conference -

 The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (Minister CHO, Seung-Hwan) announced that it will be hosting the 7th International Marine Debris Conference from September 19th (Monday) to 23rd (Friday) at Busan BEXCO.

 The International Marine Debris Conference is one of the oldest and most influential international academic events in the field of marine waste, which provides a venue for worldwide marine debris experts to come together as well as share issues and ideas on solutions. This is a non-regular conference that was first held in 1984 in the US, with 6 rounds of conferences held to date only in the US. This year’s event is being hosted in Korea, the first host nation outside the US, in recognition of Korea’s efforts in reducing marine debris.

 More than 1,000 marine waste experts and policymakers from roughly 60 nations have registered for the biggest conference of its kind in history, co-hosted by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the UN Environment Programme and managed by the Korea Maritime Environment Management Corporation. More sepcifically, this year’s conference received much attention as the first event to bring together marine waste experts from around the world since last March, where the member states resolved at the UN Environment Assembly to establish the first international convention to end plastic pollution.

 The upcoming conference will last for 5 days, cover 9 themes and more than 800 presentations over a total of 110 technical sessions. This marks a 40% increase in the number of presentations from the 6th conference, providing proof of the rapid rise in global interest in the issue of marine debris.

 The event, extending over 5 days, consists of a diverse number of programs, including the official opening and closing ceremonies, technical sessions, expert panel discussions, and poster presentations. In addition, the event will also include other side events to facilitate exchanges between the participants, such as a gala dinner, site visits, movie nights, and nights out in Busan. Furthermore, other events will take place during the conference week to raise public awareness of marine environment preservation, including the central events of the marine environment mobile classroom experience, banryeo beach national competition, and the international coastal cleanup day.

 During the opening ceremony on the first day, Minister Cho Seung-Hwan of Oceans and Fisheries, Mayor Park Heong-Joon of Busan Metropolitan City, CEO Han Gijun of the Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation will kick-off with their welcome speeches on behalf of the host nation, which will be followed by the welcome video message of Administrator Richard W. Spinrad of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, congratulatory messages from actor Park Jin-hie, Stray Kids of JYP Entertainment, and the keynote speech by Kristal Ambrose, an internationally renowned marine environmentalist. Moreover, a stakeholder panel discussion will also take place under the theme of ‘plastic pollution and marine debris.’

 In line with the theme of the event of the minimize the emission of waste, the use of single-use products will be strictly excluded and the reductions in plastic usage will be calculated and announced. Reusable containers and mugs will be provided for all luncheons and dinners, banners and exhibition booths will utilize eco-friendly paper, all resources used for the events will be recycled, and all food waste will be composted.

 Minister Cho Seung-Hwan of Oceans and Fisheries declared that “the 7th International Marine Debris Conference will become a venue for communication and exchanges for all experts of the world to come together and discuss ideas to resolve the ever-increasing issue of marine waste.” He also added that Korea “will become a leader in the management of marine debris with the successful hosting of the event.”