Background and Objectives:
Through Seoul National University, UN-HABITAT has maintained a close partnership with the Republic of Korea since the turn of the century when Hanam City first adopted the Sustainable Cities Programme Environmental Planning and Management (SCP-EPM) approach. This is now being disseminated nationally through a Sustainable Cities Programme Eco-city network in the Republic, with Seogwipo City taking the lead since March 2005 in cooperation with the Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Construction, Seoul National University and UNDP.

In December 2005, Jeonju city and Gangwon Province (with 18 cities and counties) signed letters of intent to join the network, to replicate and scale up lessons learned from Hanam and Seogwipo cities. Support to Gangwon Province commences early 2007.

The objectives are to introduce and further adapt the UN-HABITAT Sustainable Cities Programme-Environmental Planning and Management process, to support the development of a network of eco-cities in Korea based on participatory urban environmental management and to build broad-based partnerships.

Activities:
The main activities include:

• Introducing the lessons learned from Hanam, especially the Sustainable Cities Programme Environmental Planning and Management training materials through a series of workshops.
• Supporting the city to prepare a City Environmental Profile defining key environmental issues of concern to be addressed through civic/municipal partnerships.
• Preparing proposition papers for a broad-based city consultation.
• Conducting the city consultation and establishing issue-specific working groups.
• Negotiating and agreeing upon issue strategies.
• Designing and implementing neighbourhood-based demonstration projects for sustainable development, and building local capacities.
• Documenting application of the process and results-based impacts.
• Revising the training materials into a customized training manual for other Korean cities.
• Sharing the lessons learned through the Eco-City Network, and agreeing upon a national replication strategy with national partners.
• Attending international conferences, such as the Havana Sustainable Cities Programme Conference in June 2005 to learn from peer SCP cities’ experiences.

Results: 

• SCP/EPM toolkits adapted, which were customized and introduced to the city partners.
• Draft Environmental and Water Resource Profiles prepared.
• Cross-sectoral City Consultation Committee established.
• Water Resource Management working group established, including civic society.
• A number of water resource management-based demonstration projects were designed and constructed, including rainwater roof catchments, cleaning of river banks and increasing water utility in greening and cooling the city.
• New sustainable development issues under consideration for implementation through the cross-sectoral working group process.
• Gangwon Eco-City project document approved and funded, to commence 2007.