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The OECD's 2008 Ministerial Meeting and a global conference on corporate sustainability management will be held side by side in Seoul for two days from Tuesday. The sustainability conference is co-hosted by the United Nations Global Compact, the UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative and the UN Principles for Responsible Investment. Businesspeople, scholars and investors from around the world will gather in the Korean capital for in-depth talks on the Internet and the environment, two key variables of the future economy.
¡ß Maximizing the Internet as a growth engine
The first OECD ministerial meeting to be held in Asia will be attended by 37 ministers and vice ministers from 42 nations, including U.S. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin and OECD Secretary General Angel Gurría. CEOs of global companies will also come, including Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe and Google vice president Vint Cerf. Korea Communications Commission Chairman Choi See-joong will give the opening address while SK Group chairman Chey Tae-won will deliver a keynote speech.
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Internet experts share their vision on the future of the Internet economy and discuss ways to enhance online creativity, confidence and convergence at a pre-event forum prior to the OECD Ministerial Meeting at COEX convention center in Samseong-dong, Seoul on Monday. /Newsis
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The ministerial conference held at COEX convention center in Samsung-dong will discuss ways to maximize the Internet as a growth engine to enhance quality of life. Agreements will be adopted as the Seoul Resolution on Wednesday. The KCC will provide WiBro (wireless broadband) service to participating top officials so that they can experience the technology, and a World IT Show will be held on the sidelines at COEX from Tuesday through Friday.
¡ß Focused talks on environment, SRI
The conference on corporate sustainability management opening at the Grand Hyatt Hotel will mainly concern the environment. Executives, academics and investors from around the world will discuss such issues as a shift to a low-carbon economy, climate change and changes in environmental standards and practices in the post-Kyoto Protocol era. The other main topic alongside the environment will be socially responsible investment, or SRI, which is investing in firms that practice sustainable management and value the environment, human rights, labor rights, anti-corruption efforts and structures of transparent governance. The Seoul conference will focus on transparent governance, applicability of SRI to Asian firms and Asia's labor environment.
Participants include UNGC Executive Director Georg Kell, Fuji Xerox president Toshio Arima, UNEP Finance Initiatives head Paul Clements-Hunt, SK chairman Chey Tae-won, Woori Bank governor designate Lee Jong-hui and Pulmuone CEO Nam Seung-woo. Officials from over 150 pension and state funds and financial institutions -- the global movers and shakers -- will also attend. The participants will vow to promote the environment and SRI for sustainable economic development in Asia in a Seoul Resolution they will adopt Tuesday.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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