Busan is good

7th Busan Citizens’ Happiness Conference Sharing the Significance and Achievements of “World Design Capital Busan 2028” with Citizens!

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that on the afternoon of the 27th at 3:30 p.m., the 7th Busan Citizens’ Happiness Conference (hereinafter referred to as “the Conference”) was held at the Kiswire Center 2F Wire Museum under the theme “Designing the Future through Design: World Design Capital Busan 2028.”

This Conference was the first official communication with citizens following the designation of Busan as “World Design Capital 2028,” prepared to design the future of the city together with citizens based on participation and empathy.

The event was attended by more than 70 participants, including Mayor Park Heong-joon, Kim Jae-woon (Chairman of the Construction and Transportation Committee of the Busan Metropolitan Council), Lee Gap-jun (Mayor of Saha-gu), design experts, and members of the Citizen Empathy Design Group, who exchanged a wide range of views.

The “Busan Citizens’ Happiness Conference” is a communication platform initiated in the latter half of the 8th mayoral term, where Mayor Park Heong-joon directly meets with citizens to hear their opinions on everyday life–oriented policies and reflect them in municipal governance.

The event proceeded in the following order: presentations of outstanding local public design cases by Yeongdo District and Haeundae-gu, announcement of action tasks to realize “World Design Capital Busan 2028,” and a citizen discussion session.

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Busan Metropolitan City presented its promotion plan at the Conference under the theme “Designing the Future through Design: World Design Capital Busan 2028,” focusing on three overarching goals and six implementation tasks:

• ●Global design culture and tourism city attracting the world first

• ●Design city of challenge and innovation shaping urban lifestyles

• ●Design-leading city driving industrial innovation

Key action tasks included:

• 1.Establishing dedicated design organizations and providing incentives
  Dedicated design departments will be established in all 16 districts and counties. Incentives necessary for implementing public design projects will be provided to those establishing such organizations.

• 2.Utilizing design to solve urban issues in regeneration, transportation, and environment
  By incorporating design into complex urban issues such as urban regeneration, social integration, transportation, and environment, the city will enhance citizens’ quality of life. A citizen-participatory public design diagnostic system will be developed, and projects such as Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) and universal design will be expanded.

• 3.Citizens as the main actors in creating a vibrant city
  Various public design citizen participation programs will be developed and expanded to enable citizens to directly participate in solving local issues, fostering public consensus on design.

• 4.Creating a world-class, sophisticated city
  Urban emptying projects will be expanded around key gateway areas such as Busan Station and Sasang Station to reorganize unnecessary public facilities. At Dadaepo Beach, Busan will collaborate with world-renowned designers to create unique and refined street designs. Major hubs such as Hwamyeong Ecological Park will also be developed into global nighttime landscape attractions to enhance the city’s brand value.

• 5.Building a global design ecosystem communicating with the world
  By strengthening solidarity with international design cities, hosting international exhibitions and conferences, and expanding designer exchange programs, Busan aims to grow as a global design hub. In particular, signature programs of the World Design Capital will be actively planned and operated to establish Busan as a platform city communicating with the world.

• 6.Establishing a Busan-centered integrated design implementation platform
  An integrated design implementation platform centered on Busan will be built to promote convergence with diverse fields such as culture and architecture. Through online and offline sharing platforms, communication with global citizens will be expanded, and participatory design programs will encourage global engagement.

All 16 districts and counties expressed strong support and willingness to cooperate with the City’s policy, committing to strengthening their design capacities and building a sustainable cooperation system.

Mayor Park stated, “The designation of ‘World Design Capital Busan 2028’ is a precious achievement accomplished by all citizens together and a turning point for Busan to leap forward as a global design hub. Together with citizens, we will continue to design the city’s future and improve quality of life, creating Busan as ‘a city where people would want to live again, even if born anew.’”

He added, “We will focus the City’s administrative capacity so that this designation as World Design Capital can become the starting point for transformative changes in citizens’ lives.”