Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown and Chair of the Planning, Environment and Parks Committee Councillor Richard Hills leave next week for a four-day trip to Busan, South Korea.

The Mayor and Councillor Hills will attend the World Climate Industry EXPO 2023 from 25th – 27th May.

The Mayor was invited to join the ‘City Summit’, a Roundtable discussion on “Green Smart Cities” and “Carbon Neutrality” and will present Auckland’s carbon-neutral strategies and successes while learning from other cities about their approach to the environment. Mayor Brown will also sign the “Joint Declaration of the City Mayors Roundtable” reaffirming Auckland’s climate commitments.

Mayor Brown and Councillor Hills will also visit exhibitions on the latest energy technologies and policies and attend a leader’s summit on Carbon-Free Shipping. Councillor Hills will also attend “The New York Times, A New Climate” as part of the programme.

As the second largest city of the Republic of Korea, Busan is also one of the country’s most important marine cities, with its port being the sixth busiest in the world.

Busan has been a valued sister city of Auckland since 1996 and the Mayor hopes his visit will contribute to that ongoing relationship, and provide ideas about innovative and efficient ways for cities to tackle climate change.

The theme of the conference is "Rising above the Climate Crisis towards Sustainable Prosperity".

The Mayor departs Auckland on the morning of Thursday 25th May and returns the morning of Monday May 29th.

Auckland Council Chief Sustainability Officer Matthew Blaikie will also be part of the delegation. There is no cost to the ratepayer.

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