World business leaders to gather in Seoul and set path for low carbon future after COP15
B4E summit to take place in Seoul, South Korea, in April 2010; B4E summit is the first major gathering discussing environmental action post-COP15 and is hosted by UNEP, the UN Global Compact, WWF, and the Korean Ministry of Environment; Newly upgraded B4E website goes live today (www.b4esummit.com)
Tweet-- Closely following the COP15 climate conference in Copenhagen, the 4th annual Business for Environment Global Summit (B4E) is set to play a crucial role in advancing the dialogue on environmental action in early 2010. Co-hosted by UNEP, the UN Global Compact, WWF and the Korean Ministry of Environment, and held in Seoul, Korea, the summit will coincide with Earth Day 2010, running from April 21st through the 23rd.
B4E is the largest gathering of leaders from business, government, NGOs and the media, with an expected 1,000 people to attend in person and thousands more to be linked by video and web conference.
The summit marks the first major multi-stakeholder gathering of leaders, post-Copenhagen, with in-depth discussions on proposals leading to a low carbon future. B4E will reflect on the outcome of COP15, leadership from business, and discuss areas such as resource efficiency, renewable energies, new green business models and climate strategies.
Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director, said:"Governments have a central role in fostering a Green Economy by sending the right market signals and by implementing imaginative market mechanism reforms. The challenge for business is how to translate this evolving landscape into low carbon, resource efficient goods and services. This is the kind of creativity, innovation and acumen that B4E will be catalzying and showcasing in 2010."
"B4E is a critical event to advance environmental action, innovation and advocacy," states Georg Kell, Executive Director of the UN Global Compact. "What makes this event truly valuable is that it brings together the public and private sectors at the highest levels."
The 2010 B4E summit will attract high profile international business leaders and environmentalists, including Sir Richard Branson, Chairman of Virgin Group and Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize winner and Founder of the Greenbelt Movement. CEOs and top executives from the Dow Chemical Company, LG Electronics, Siemens, Coca-Cola, Nalco and Hitachi will also participate in the summit.
As part of the summit, there will also be large gatherings of international NGOs and youth from global universities and schools where feedback and analysis will be provide to complement the B4E proposals.
B4E will be webcast worldwide and be open to live comments and questions for speakers at the Summit in Seoul. Organizers will ensure that event is green in practice by providing a paper-free media centre, and local transportation through hybrid vehicles and bicycles. Furthermore, speakers and participants from around the world will be able to engage in the summit via broadband television and social networking outlets.
The B4E Global Summit is held in conjunction with the UNEP Champions of the Earth awards, to be presented by the UN to outstanding environmental leaders at a gala dinner on 22 April 2010.
For more information please visit the new B4E website. (www.b4esummit.com).
B4E is supported by the Dow Chemical Company, LG Electronics, Siemens, and CNN among others.
Notes to Editor
About the United Nations Environment Programme (www.unep.org)
UNEP is the United Nations agency for addressing environmental issues at the global and regional level. Its mandate is to coordinate the development of environmental policy consensus by keeping the global environment under review and bringing emerging issues to the attention of governments and the international community for action.
About United Nations Global Compact (www.unglobalcompact.org)
Through the power of collective action, the Global Compact seeks to promote responsible corporate citizenship so that business can be part of the solution to the challenges of globalisation. In this way, the private sector - in partnership with other social actors - can help realize a more sustainable and inclusive global economy.
About the World Wild Life Fund (http://www.worldwildlife.org/)
WWF is the world's leading conservation organization, working in 100 countries for nearly half a century. With the support of almost 5 million members worldwide, WWF is dedicated to delivering science-based solutions to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth, halt the degradation of the environment and combat climate change in ways that benefit people and nature alike. Visit www.worldwildlife.org to learn more.
