interviewwith) mr#park#won#soon,#mayor&of&seoul by:$inger ... ·...

Global Utmaning är en fristående tankesmedja. Vi är ett kvalificerat nätverk från samhälle, näringsliv och forskning som verkar för lösningar på de globala utmaningar som rör ekonomi, miljö och demokrati.

Birger Jarlsgatan 27 ·∙ 111 45 Stockholm ·∙ 08-‐787 2150 ·∙ [email protected] ·∙ www.globalutmaning.se

Interview with Mr Park Won Soon, Mayor of Seoul By: Inger Jägerhorn

Q: What was it that caused Seoul to embark on a program for sustainability in the first place? A: Development-‐centered policies, which put economic growth at the center, have had devastating consequences on our environment. The impact of climate change such as abnormal weather conditions does not only affect one city or one country but threatens the sustainable living of the entire humanity. In addition, although national and local government’s policies focused on competition and development have enabled us to enjoy materialistic affluence, the side effect includes weakening of the bonds in our personal life and in the communities. Against this backdrop, Seoul city government announced ‘sustainable development’ as the core principle underlying the city administration to pursue sustainable growth and higher quality of living for our citizens. In the development and implementation of policies and plans, the city government will take a balanced approach taking into consideration the implications on the economy, the society, and the environment. In addition, Seoul will act as a responsible member of the international society by implementing the agreed upon actions in regards to sustainable development. Q: Seoul is known for its Cheonggyecheon River Restoration Project. How did the work to construct the Plan start? How was the decision made? A: In the modern times, the Cheonggyecheon stream was covered up with roads and elevated overpass. Then, after years passed by, the roads became decrepit and reached the point where large-‐scale rehabilitation was necessary. After heated discussions and debate, the Seoul city government decided to restore the Cheonggyecheon stream so that the stream can serve its original function and the traffic congestion problem in the downtown area can be solved. Q: How much did you personally participate in launching and realizing this plan? A: The Chunggyecheon restoration project was initiated by the then-‐Seoul mayor, Lee Myung-‐bak. I was not involved in the project.



Q: Was central government helpful? A: The Cheonggyecheon stream is classified as a local stream which is managed by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Therefore, there was no financial or administrative support by the central government. Q: Can you identify special individuals or a specific group that conducted the endeavor in Seoul? Are they still engaged in the project? A: Currently, the “Citizen's Committee for Cheonggyecheon (Stream) Restoration Project” exists to make suggestions on ways to improve Cheonggyecheon. Individuals and groups that started the committee back in 2005 serve as advisors to provide support and counseling. Q: Which were the biggest challenges in realizing the Plan? And how did you overcome them? A: The biggest challenge was to handle the traffic volume that passed through the elevated overpass above Cheonggyecheon. The city government judged that if the roads are removed or if there are traffic obstructions, then the drivers would avoid passing that area. Thus, the city government came up with various measures aimed at traffic dispersion including improving the transit system in the surrounding areas, managing the traffic demand in the downtown area, and expanding the passenger-‐carrying capacity of the public transportation. Q: Where did you find the best supporters for the plan? How did you engage them in your work? And who were the main sceptics? A: The private sector first formed a committee to discuss the restoration of the Cheonggyecheon stream. These people took the initiative to persuade the storeowners who opposed to the restoration project and made great contributions throughout the entire process. Through several dialogues with the storeowners, the Seoul city government came up with various measures to reduce the inconvenience that the storeowners faced and provide subsidies and loans to support their relocation to a traditional market nearby. Through this process, the city government was able to build trust, thereby smoothly implement the project. Q: How did you promote commitment and responsibility at the local level? How did you engage the great public, the inhabitants of Seoul? A: During the construction process, we continuously promoted the significance of restoring the stream to the citizens. Upon completion of the project, we held an opening ceremony and a festival to draw the interest of the citizens and encourage them to visit the newly opened



Cheonggyecheon. We also made souvenirs with the parts of the old facilities. In addition, we encouraged citizen participation by building a wall made of tiles with drawings by the citizens. Q: Please mention a couple of achievements that you are particularly proud of -‐ and some field where you would like to have done better! A: My two years in office can be described as a process of “Making Seoul a city for the citizens and by the citizens.” I tried to approach city administration from the citizens’ perspective and adopted rational, universal principles that made sense to the public. The administrative paradigm has shifted towards more civic engagement. I have introduced innovative ways to communicate and cooperate with the citizens. For example, now there is a signature box for citizens in documents produced at the Seoul city government. I also made sure to take care of the citizen’s wellbeing in all different. In fact, I have announced more than 40 major policies since my inauguration. Above all, I solved several, difficult issues that led to conflicts among citizens such as the reconstruction of the New town, Dongdaemoon design plaza, Floating Island, and Yongsang International district. In the past, the administrative focus of the Seoul city government was on expansion and quantitative growth. I shifted the focus towards more citizen-‐centered, future-‐oriented city administration to improve the overall quality of life of our citizens, including welfare, health, job, housing, economy, culture, and tourism. There is now a universal free lunch for students to cutting the tuition of University of Seoul in half. The ‘2030 Seoul Plan’ and the ‘Seoul Welfare Standard’ which received the UN Public Service Award were part of the long-‐term vision for Seoul. Going forward, the city government will step up efforts to make Seoul a leading international city where the citizens have ownership and enjoy high quality of living. With such vision, I am sure that Seoul will become a forward-‐looking, sustainable city. Unfortunately, I feel that 2 years and 8 months is not enough for me to realize my philosophy and vision, which is why I plan to run for reelection next year. I have great aspirations for Seoul and I am committed to making Seoul a competitive city with high living standards and a cosmopolitan city which is loved my citizens across the world.



Q: How do you define good leadership? What advice would you give the leaders/mayors in other cities concerning leadership? A: Instead of taking the center stage, a good leader puts the members of the organization at the forefront. One individual leader can no longer solve all the problems that an organization faces. The same goes for the municipal government. Now, the Mayor, the public servants, and the citizens all need to work together. In other words, collective intelligence and governance are the pillars of good governance. Therefore, a good leader or a good Mayor is someone who knows how to encourage participation and cooperation of the public through effective communication. Currently, the Seoul city government is run by the citizen’s participation, cooperation, and support. Seoul established an SNS center for the first time among the local municipalities and opened up various channels to listen to the voices of the citizens including the Seoul Speakers' Corner, honorary vice mayor system by sectors, One-‐day mayor system, and a twitter account. Through these channels, we gathered the public’s opinion and translated them into our city policies. Followers of my SNS account such as Twitter, Facebook, and Kakao Talk will soon top 1 million. The comments and replies by the citizens serve as an important cornerstone in running the city administration. Civil petitions are immediately received and handled through the SNS Center, thereby realizing “speedy administration.” In fact, the civil request-‐processing rate of Seoul’s SNS Center reaches 98% which is unparalleled in the world. In addition, based on advanced, smart technology, Seoul has adopted an ‘Open government system’ to openly disclose public information and data. By simply clicking on the ‘Open API’ on the Seoul city government website, citizens can access all the documents produced in fields such as welfare, safety, job creating, housing, public transportation, environment, culture, and education. All administrative information and budget information, which amount to some 50,000 documents, are uploaded on the ‘Open API.’ By fully utilizing the open public information and data, citizens will be able to not only improve their living standards but also contribute to realizing a sharing economy and a creative economy. The long-‐term vision of Seoul, the “2030 Seoul Plan” which is the master plan for urban development, and the Seoul Welfare Standard, which won the UN Public Service Award, are all the result of civic participation and cooperation throughout the entire process of planning and executing.



Now, there are less conflict and disputes in Seoul. The reason behind this is civic participation in the city administration. I believe a good leader is someone who empathizes with the team members and communicates with them to encourage participation and cooperation. Q: How is this project followed up? Have you developed the plan further? What has happened in Seoul after the year 2005 when the project was completed? A: The authority to manage the streams in Seoul is delegated to the administrative districts. However, the city government revised the ordinance so that it can directly oversee the management of Cheonggyecheon. The Cheonggyecheon Management Team was established under the Stream Management Division of the Urban Safety Office to ensure that the citizens and tourists enjoy Cheonggyecheon without any inconvenience. Also, a wide range of cultural amenities such as a cafe, a gallery, a movie square are provided along with educational programs so that Cheonggyecheon is recognized as a tourist attraction where citizens can enjoy both the natural environment and various cultural activities. Restoration of Cheonggyecheon led to reduced urban heat island effect, creation of wind paths, and less dust in the downtown area, thereby improving the urban environment. Also, the ecosystem was restored with more green space and greater number of animals and plants living in the streams with increased habitat space. Cheonggyecheon is now known as a living stream in the middle of the city that energizes and enriches the lives of the citizens and tourists from home and abroad. Q: How do you promote sustainability at national and local level? A: To promote sustainable development at the national level, the central government announced the 1st National Strategy for Sustainable Development and Implementation Plan. In 2011, the 2nd Basic Plan for Sustainable Development, which included plans to ensure social equity and sustainability of environmental resources was released and is being implemented by the relevant divisions. To seek sustainability in city administration, the city government laid the institutional foundation by enacting an ordinance in 2013 and launching an advisory board composed of experts from the economic, social, cultural, and environmental circle. Going forward, Seoul will step up efforts to establish a Master Plan on Sustainability, systematically manage the



sustainability index of the city through continuous assessment, and diligently implement the agreed terms with the international society. Q: Seoul has, as a city, rather special characteristics. Do you think that the experiences from Seoul can be applied in other cities abroad? In what ways? A: Seoul is a dynamic capital city which boasts 600 years of history, a beautiful natural landscape, and state-‐of-‐the-‐art ICT. However, in the past, Korea was under the Japanese colonial rule and experienced the Korean War. Thus, Seoul was one of the poorest countries in the world in need of aid from the international society. From the ashes of the Korean war, Seoul accomplished remarkable growth and development and has become a leading metropolis in the world. In just half a century, Korea has transformed itself from an aid recipient to a donor country. We believe now is the time for us to give back to the international society and share our experience to solve global challenges. Seoul has great policies to share in fields such as public transportation system, water and sewage system, e-‐government, and urban planning. We also learned valuable lessons through trial and error during the urban development process. By sharing the administrative experience and precious lessons learned from failure, Seoul city government seeks to pursue mutual prosperity and help other cities reduce the risk of failure. Every year, the city government invites public servants from our overseas sister cities in the developing countries to enroll in master degree courses or short-‐term training courses. Going forward, Seoul plans to compile a book on the city’s urban development process and advanced policies to share with other cities and establish a policy advisory board to offer customized consultation and policy support to those cities that request for our help. As such, Seoul is committed to contributing to the development of cities world wide and strengthening friendship through proactive policy sharing. Q: What is your advice to other cities to achieve a good result in city planning? What capacities and institutions are needed? A: At the end of the day, the success of urban planning depends on the negotiation with the citizens and the level of social consensus formed as a result. Given that urban planning is a process to transform the city and prepare for the future, we need to encourage the participation of the citizens as much as we can. In this regard, establish the institutional foundation to gather public opinion and form a social consensus is crucial.

interviewwith) mr#park#won#soon,#mayor&of&seoul by:$inger ... ·...

Documents