Quite a bit of traveling lately — including my third trip to Asia in as many months.  This latest one brought me to Seoul in mid-June on behalf of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).  Three UN groups — UNEP’s Finance Initiative, the UN’s Global Compact, and Principles for Responsible Investment — held a joint conference in Seoul, and UNEP invited me to give a presentation about the low-carbon economy to a joint session of the three groups, as well as one about Asian emissions markets in the plenary session of their own meeting.  I was also interviewed by Chosun Ilbo, Korea’s largest newspaper, and they used a quote about some of the serious potential impacts associated with climate change in their article about the conference.

Ms. Youkyeong Lee

While in the city I also had a chance to check out the Cheonggyecheon Stream environmental restoration project, an internationally known city planning effort.  Seoul tore down a major multi-lane overhead highway system running right through the heart of the city, and physically restored the stream underneath, adding walkways, artwork, fountains, waterfalls, etc.  One of my former students, Youkyeong Lee, was kind enough to give me a tour of the area, and we walked for several kilometers along the new promenades, checking out the highlights and sights along the way.  We ended up at a traditional Korean ‘bibimbap’ restaurant, serving beef & vegetables over steamed rice — along with a nice cold beer.  Definitely a really great way to experience Seoul…  so thanks much, Youkyeong!

Guarding the DMZ

On this visit I also managed to secure a place on one of the U.S. Armed Forces USO tours of the DMZ, and went up to Panmunjeom to see the border area with North Korea.  All of the blue buildings straddling the border are administered by the UN, while silver ones are run by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, or North Korea).  You can see two of the Republic of Korea (ROK, or South Korea) soldiers standing guard, one half sheltered by the building (their normal stance), with a North Korean soldier walking by in the distance.

Roger in the DPRK

I stepped over into North Korea (inside one of the blue buildings), but I was protected there by an ROK soldier (& yes, I’m the one not in full Tae Kwon Do stance!).  We then went down to visit one of the four infiltration tunnels discovered since the 1970s.  They claimed that it measured 2 m x 2 m, and that 30,000 men could pass through in an hour — but if our group was any indication, that’s probably a bit of a ‘high-end’ estimate.  I kept banging my head on the ceiling, and was quite pleased to get out.  I’m guessing that I don’t have much of a future in coal mining.