BMW holds a Seoul event with stakeholders

Students from universities discuss sustainability issues with officials from BMW during the two-day BMW Group Dialogue 2019 held in Seoul from Wednesday. [BMW GROUP]

A BMW Group Dialogue 2019 event was held in Seoul for two days from Wednesday.

The German company sponsors the event several times a year in different cities to share ideas with local stakeholders on sustainability issues, including climate change, supply chain and corporate social responsibility.

While the event has been running since 2011, it is the second time the program has been held in Korea.

The Seoul event was held under the theme of “Responsibility in Times of Transformation,” with some 100 BMW experts, local stakeholders and students from universities in partnership with the automaker taking part.

During the meeting, BMW announced the results of a recent survey of 500 people from different age groups with various social and cultural backgrounds.

The carmaker said 79 percent of the respondents in Seoul said they consider sustainability issues when purchasing cars, while 92 percent of the respondents said they consider cutting emissions one of most important responsibilities of a carmaker.

The BMW Group said it plans to cut carbon dioxide emitted by new cars released in the European Union by up to half of 1995 levels by 2020, adding that it is focusing on electric mobility to meet those goals.

Ursula Mathar, BMW Group vice president of sustainability and environmental protection, said the company’s hopes put sustainable business models into practice in different cities.

The Seoul event was the third such dialogue between BMW experts and local stakeholders in 2019. Earlier this year, similar events were held in San Luis Potosi, Mexico and Tel Aviv.

BY KIM JEE-HEE [kim.jeehee@joongang.co.kr]