Learn to go green at Gangwon Forestry Exhibition

Guest Reports

Published: 09 May. 2023, 18:55

Learn to go green at Gangwon Forestry Exhibition

[GANGWON FORESTRY EXHIBITION 2023 ORGANIZING COMMITTEE]

Event will have activities for everyone to relax and learn

Aerial view of the main venue of the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023 [GANGWON FORESTRY EXHIBITION 2023 ORGANIZING COMMITTEE]

The Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023 will be held from Sept. 22 to Oct. 22 in four cities, including at the Goseong World Jamboree Center located in Gangwon’s Goseong-gun. It is looking to further Gangwon’s presence by combining peace with the history, culture, life, and ecology of forests, which account for 63 percent of the nation’s land area and 81.2 percent of Gangwon. As it attracts local festivals in the autumn season with its foliage, the synergy effect is expected to be even greater. There will be plenty of events to enjoy, with forest-related exhibitions, academic events, busking and hands-on activities. In addition, five exhibition halls will be displayed: Green Earth Hall, Peace & Forest Hall, Cultural Heritage Hall, Healing Hall and Forestry Industry Hall.

Kim Dong-il, standing vice chairman of the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023 Organizing Committee, said, “As the climate crisis accelerates and the value of forests grows, the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition will be a meaningful opportunity in the move toward sustainable development and the desirable coexistence between humans and forests.” He added, “I highly recommend visiting the Forestry Exhibition, which is full of educational performances and various events while you can also enjoy the natural scenery of the mountains, seas and valleys of Gangwon.”

“2023 will be a promising year for Gangwon as it holds the world’s first forest-themed expo and becomes reborn as a special self-governing province while it lays the groundwork for Gangwon’s breakthroughs,” said Gangwon Gov. Kim Jin-tae, also serving as president of the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition Organizing Committee. “We ask for many people’s participation in the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023 with lots of interest and support for its successful hosting.”

What is Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023?

Gangwon Forestry Exhibition will take place in the province for 31 days from Sept. 22, under the theme of “Seeking the Future of the World and Mankind in the Forest.” Its event locations are Gangwon World Jamboree Center as the main venue, and the sub venues are located in Goseong, Sokcho, Inje and Yangyang. As the world’s first forest expo full of forest-related historical, cultural, ecological and environmental content, it is pushing to share multifarious forest-related resources and data as well as strengthen exchanges and cooperation, with the aim of creating new growth engines by fostering the sustainable forest industry. The Gangwon Forestry Exhibition was approved as an international event by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance in November 2020, while it has decided to push back its schedule by about a year and four months, taking into account huge wildfires during the springtime. The decision was aimed at minimizing the possibility of accidents and the risk of Covid-19 infection, and its new schedule from spring to autumn is expected to be greater for attracting local festivals and tourists. With the extended preparatory period, Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023 is meticulously arranging well-filled and abundant events that all visitors can be satisfied with.

Why is Gangwon holding the Forestry Exhibition?

Forests account for 63 percent of the nation’s land, and 22 percent of Korea’s total forests are in Gangwon. In other words, forests take up 81 percent of Gangwon-do’s total area. Also, it has 22 out of 100 of the top famous mountains selected by the Korea Forest Service and 15 out of the 50 selected forests. It holds the title for the area with the most famous mountains and forests in Korea. In addition, Gangwon is the most suitable area for heightening the value of forests with its experience and know-how, since it has restored and cultivated forests damaged from exploitation during Japanese colonial era, making them into magnificent forests they are today. Gangwon does better than any other place in terms of forest fire restoration, including for Uljin Samcheok’s large forest fire, which caused 168.9 billion won ($126.2 million) in property damage and 20,923 hectacres of forest loss last year, as well as Sokcho and Goseong’s large forest fires that caused immeasurable property damage and deforestation. Also, Gangwon carried out pest control in the Mount Geumgang area, in the northern part of Gangwon, in 2015, as the place that best implements the value of forests. With the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023, Gangwon is taking the lead in supporting the coexistence of humans and forests.

How much are these forests worth?

According to the National Institute of Forest Science, the public value of Korea’s forests is 259 trillion won a year as of 2020, which is 11.7 percent of the gross domestic product and 4.99 million won worth of public interest a year per citizen. This figure was calculated by converting 12 public interests into economic values, taking into account absorption and storage of greenhouse gas, head-water conservation, forest landscape and recreation. The economic value of greenhouse gas absorption and storage is 97.6 trillion won, accounting for the greatest portion, followed by forest landscape, forest recreation, soil erosion prevention, forest water purification, head-water conservation and oxygen production. Since the evaluation began in 1987, the value of forests has increased by more than 7.5 percent annually. This proves the importance of forest value grows as climate change and ecological crises accelerate further around the world, and the issue of healing and recreation through forests has gotten more attention as well.

What to do at the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023?

Under the theme of forest history, culture, ecology and industry, the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition will be full of various forest-related programs including exhibitions, hands-on experiences, academic events and a variety of attractions. The exhibition offers multifarious things to see, enjoy and learn about, and visitors can enjoy various foods at its food truck or culinary hall. It is an ideal spot to make pleasant memories with friends and loved ones on a cool autumn day in September this year.

Exhibition Hall

There are five exhibition halls ─ the Green Earth Hall under the theme of “Encountering the Forest of Hope,” the Peace & Forest Hall under “Speaking about the Forest of Peace,” the Cultural Heritage Hall under “Feeling the Forest of Humanity,” the Healing Hall under “Enjoying the Healing Power of Forests” and the Forestry Industry Hall under the theme of “Cultivating a Forest of Growth.” In particular, the main exhibit of the Green Earth Hall has a great realistic video that will be projected on the four walls and floor in a 30-meter-wide, 40-meter-tall room. The video shows the past, present and future versions of the forest, which is the only answer to the climate crisis. The Peace & Forest Hall offers stories about the demilitarized zone (DMZ) where co-existence and peace are embraced, while including forest restorative processes for places devastated by tough times including during the Japanese occupation and the 1950-53 Korean War. At the Cultural Heritage Hall, visitors can enjoy history by looking at actual tree rings and media art work displaying the picturesque scenery of Gangwon’s scenic spots. A healing camp will be held at the Healing Hall along with a performance in a fantasy forest square, expressed through paper art, and a medicinal ingredient exhibit and Bonsai experience. The Forestry Industry Hall offers information on related forestry industries and a whole range of products including organic forest products and processed forest products, smart forestry, processed lumber and forestry leisure such as hiking and camping. Exhibition halls of ESG leading corporates in the forest field will also be shown. With the outdoor exhibition hall, various forestry equipment not easily accessible by the average person will be displayed, and visitors can enjoy a realistic experience by demonstrating cutting and moving trees using large equipment.

The Green Earth Hall serves as the main exhibition hall out of the five halls, pointing to forests as the key to solving the climate crisis. [GANGWON FORESTRY EXHIBITION 2023 ORGANIZING COMMITTEE]

The Peace & Forest Hall will cover the Inter-Korean forestry journey, under the theme of “Speaking about the Forest of Peace.” [GANGWON FORESTRY EXHIBITION 2023 ORGANIZING COMMITTEE]

Visitors can experience the forest at the healing camp and forest-related recreation areas at the Healing Hall. [GANGWON FORESTRY EXHIBITION 2023 ORGANIZING COMMITTEE]

Auxiliary Events in connection with Autumn Festivals

Multifarious special performances including singer performances at the opening and closing ceremonies, an arts and forestry music concert, a forest fringe and healing U festival and a mime performance will be shown to provide abundant attractions to boost the mood of the festival to the fullest. Various hands-on events will also be held throughout the main venue and sub venue that will appeal to all ages. Visitors can enjoy forestry or lumber culture activities, single-day woodworking classes and florist classes at the main venue. Visitors can undergo diverse experiences as many festivals will be held: the DMZ peace exploration tour, Goseong online themed stamp tour in Goseong, “The Forest of Life” lights scenery, a sports climbing event in Sokcho, a Baekdudaegan Mountain Range Forest Commentary Contest, the Inje Forest Product Festival in Inje, a Woodworking Workshop for families in the forest of healing, and a national woodworking contest in Yangyang. The times for each event will be adjusted from spring to autumn to go along with the local autumn festivals.

Academic Events

Academic events will be held four times concurring with an exhibition, while domestic and foreign experts share their opinions and come to a mutual understanding on the themes of forest and environment. It will be participated in by the International Exchange of Forest of Northeast, Forest Environment and cure, South and North Korea Forestry Cooperation, Forest & Peace, and Cultural Legacy of Forest. The Asian Forest Cooperation Organization and Korean Society of Forest Science will participate in its academic event in Goseong for two days from Sept. 22, the opening day of the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition 2023. The participation of the International PEN Korean Centre is expected in Inje for two days from Oct. 5, while the National Institute of Forest Science will participate from Oct. 12 for two days. The Gangwon Forest Forum and Forest Science Research Institute of Gangwon Province will participate in Yangyang for two days from Oct. 18.

Observatory, Symbolic Sculptures, Healing Square

The Adventure Observatory, which is a pine cone-shaped observatory 45-meters high and 1.2-kilometers long will be built. It serves as a good point at which visitors can enjoy a mountain view with the East Sea at a glance, as it is a landmark observation platform of Gangwon Forestry Exhibition with a motifs of a pine cone and seed. In addition, Korean Pine Nut, which is a 9-meter-high symbolic sculpture, is installed near the main gate. Visitors can enjoy taking pictures in the photo zones at each of the main exhibition halls, squares and flower gardens, soaking up the atmosphere of the forestry festival. The healing square with a large lawn, will display a wide range of unique wooden houses and camping equipment for visitor’s relaxation, while its spectator experience center will provide places for play and sports, including children’s zip lines and rock climbing.

The Adventure Observatory is a pine cone-shaped landmark observatory at the Forestry Exhibition. [GANGWON FORESTRY EXHIBITION 2023 ORGANIZING COMMITTEE]

How to make Admission Tickets purchase?

Tickets are currently available online from the YES24 website, and offline at the organizing committee and Nonghyup Bank. Tickets are 10,000 won for adults aged 19 to 64, 7,000 won for teenagers 13 to 18, and 5,000 won for children aged of 7 to 12. Admission is free for those aged under 7 or over 75. Discounts are applied to groups, residents of Gangwon, companies and organizations in Gangwon, and serving policeman and active-duty soldiers. Details can be found on the Gangwon Forestry Exhibition website at www.gwfe.or.kr and on the official social media channels including Instagram, Facebook, Naver Blog and Youtube.

BY PARK YE-EUN [park.yeeun@joongang.co.kr]