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Busan Metropolitan City to Accelerate Its Leap as a Design City: “2028 World Design Capital Busan” Signing Ceremony to Be Held

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Busan Metropolitan City announced that it will hold the official signing ceremony for “2028 World Design Capital Busan” tomorrow (March 27) at 3:00 PM at Nurimaru APEC House in Haeundae, together with the World Design Organization (WDO).

This signing ceremony marks the first official event to inform the world of the beginning of Busan’s journey to innovate the city through design and transform citizens’ lives, following its final selection as World Design Capital in July of last year.

Nurimaru APEC House, the venue of the event, symbolizes Busan’s international status as a place where world leaders once gathered to discuss shared prosperity. The ceremony reflects Busan’s ambition to leap forward as a global design hub city.

The ceremony will be held under the theme “Inclusive City, Engaged Design” and will include the appointment of honorary ambassadors, the reading of a joint declaration with citizen representatives, the signing of the official agreement, the unveiling of the official 2028 WDC Busan logo, and a design talk session with citizens.

Through the signing of the agreement between Busan Metropolitan City and the World Design Organization (WDO), both parties will reaffirm their commitment to active cooperation in realizing the vision of World Design Capital Busan.

The joint declaration will be read by participants including children, university students, seniors, and representatives of design companies, symbolizing a shift beyond expert- and administration-led approaches toward a citizen participation-centered model.

The official logo reflecting Busan’s identity will be unveiled for the first time and will be used as a symbol of design projects across the city through 2028.

An appointment ceremony for honorary ambassadors, aimed at further enhancing the global recognition of World Design Capital Busan, will also take place.

In the latter part of the ceremony, a design talk session will be held to directly hear the voices of citizens regarding the 추진 of World Design Capital Busan.

The city plans to listen to opinions from citizens attending the event and discuss ways to address urban challenges through design.

The entire event will be broadcast live via the World Design Capital YouTube channel and will also be available for replay afterward.
https://www.youtube.com/live/p0nmx0h7Mxk?si=kxQgULM6j2muiYkB

Starting from this ceremony, Busan Metropolitan City will actively promote various related projects centered on three key directions—empathy, connection, and innovation—to realize the vision of World Design Capital Busan.

Through empathy, citizens will share their experiences to identify urban issues, while connection will link citizens, the city, industry, and nature through design to explore new solutions.

Based on this, the city plans to derive creative, design-based solutions to strengthen future competitiveness and drive innovation.

To this end, the city will first identify projects worth approximately KRW 21.5 billion in 2026 and continue to develop and expand various World Design Capital initiatives to enhance urban competitiveness.

The city will operate the “Future Busan Design Group” and the “Citizen Empathy Design Group,” enabling citizens to participate in all stages of project planning and execution as key actors in driving urban change.

Building on such citizen participation, the city plans to further advance projects such as the Urban Space Renewal Project, the Happy Toilet Project, and the Premium Busan Street Design Project to improve public spaces and living environments and increase citizens’ sense of impact.

In addition, the city will operate citizen participation programs, including the “Global Busan Design Fair” (tentative name), and support initiatives such as strengthening the global capabilities of local designers and supporting design development for small and medium-sized enterprises to establish a foundation for growth in the regional design industry.

Furthermore, through projects such as environmental improvement in parks and recreational areas, the establishment of an AI-based recycling design platform, and support for the production of customized eco-friendly goods, the city will strive to create a sustainable urban environment.

Mayor Park Heong-joon stated, “The ultimate goal of this signing ceremony is to improve the quality of life by making citizens’ daily lives more convenient through design,” adding, “Through differentiated city branding and creative approaches, we will lead innovation that allows the warmth of design to permeate every corner of the city.”