MEET THE PEOPLE

Along with the rising importance of overseeing climate risk, the finance industry is looking into green finance, attempting to direct financial resources to environmentally sustainable projects. Korea's largest guarantee insurance provider Seoul Guarantee Insurance is one financial instition that seeks to promote sustainability through ways such as approving higher guarantee limits for ESG-certified companies. In this interview, SGI's Risk Management team leader Noh Kyu-young

The growing usage of technology in our daily lives has inevitably led to its greater environmental footprint. In response, search engineering companies have made an effort to make search systems more energy-efficient as part of their broader ESG commitments. One such company is AXZ, a spin-off company of Kakao that operates the major Korean search service Daum. In this interview, Ryu Dong-ho at AXZ's AI Search Service Development Team discussed how his team works to increase

The urgent need for multilateral commitment to address the climate crisis has pressured several industries to reduce their carbon footprint. One such industry is the aviation sector, wherein decarbonization has become one of the most pressing financial and operational challenges. In this interview, Noh Kyu-young at Korean Air's Finance Team discussed the airline's recent carbon reduction efforts and the rising regulatory pressure that airlines are challenged to comply with. H

With the rising climate crisis comes a greater risk of extreme weather events, which no longer solely impact individuals in vulnerable residential areas, but also the greater scheme of finance. As climate risk increasingly translates into financial risk, construction companies are seeking ways to assess and manage these exposures, a challenge particularly relevant to organizations like the Construction Workers Mutual Aid Association in Korea. In this interview, Yoon Seok-jun

The growing importance of ESGs in the business sector has given greater responsibility to banks to serve as a first-line advisor to corporations in helping them self-assess their ESG levels, identify gaps, and prepare for formal certification. In this interview, Hana Bank's ESG Consulting Manager Ji Byung-Heun presented how the bank facilitates ESG compliance among businesses, as well as the banking industry's increasingly important role in driving the climate agenda forward

C02gether recently launched a petition campaign demanding Songpa-gu to release carbon footprint reports of large-scale gatherings, such as concerts and sports events. Indeed, our concern for emissions released in K-pop concerts is also shared by entertainment agencies that profit from concerts, as these companies are also held responsible to fulfill ESG values. In this interview, Oh Eun-hye at one of the most leading entertainment agencies in Korea discussed several ways the

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects are becoming widely explored as the next solution for carbon reduction. Accompanying its growth is the collaboration with oil and gas industries, where certain technologies are being shared to construct carbon capture facilities and plants. SLB is one company that facilitates such collaboration by providing a wide range of technologies and services for oil and gas development, now working with several CCS project applications. Jeong D

With the growing importance for businesses to uphold ESG values, there is also an increasing reliance and collaboration made with consulting firms that assist businesses in maintaining ESG reports. Hwang Kyung-mo at PwC Finance Transformation department is one of many consultants who work with several businesses from manufacturing to service-based. In this interview, Hwang discussed his experience creating efficient systems for companies to adopt to better achieve higher ESG

As several sectors of the industry share responsibility to reduce carbon emissions, the agricultural sector also aims to reduce its carbon footprint. For such reduction to be made, a significant shift in the technology used must come first. In Korea, the public institution of Agricultural Technology Promotion Agency plays a key role in assessing agricultural machinery. Through this interview, Han Tae-ho, as the leader of his team in the agency, discussed ways agriculture can

As climate goals form to pass on a sustainable Earth for the next generation, there is also a growing responsibility for youth to take action for the climate. This responsibility is being taught from a young age in Korea, where climate education is slowly introduced in the elementary school setting. Kim Jin-han, a science teacher at Seoul Guhwon Elementary School, is one of many who cultivates responsible future global leaders through his classes. Through this interview, Kim

What speaks louder than any environmentalist's speech is quantifiable carbon reduction data. In today's era of expanding carbon reduction strategies, carbon footprint calculations play an imperative role in assessing the effectiveness of reduction efforts. More importantly, such calculations can also communicate the importance of daily climate action by presenting data to encourage habit changes that were overlooked. 2PM Lab is a leading Carbon Technology Engineering Startup,

As the world increasingly relies on AI, climate experts note the growing concern of the carbon footprint produced by such AI data centers. Yet, technology is also continuously evolving to adapt to the need for more efficient data centers that operate on renewable energy. In this interview, Aiden Oh from Absolix discussed energy savings achievable in data centers and renewable energy usage involved in manufacturing its glass substrates products. What kind of company is Absolix

In an era of worsening climate change, life in global communities have been affected in every possible way, including the overlooked impact on humanity's health. With the rising public health concerns of the changing climate, the study of environmental health science has evolved to address the impact of climate change on health systems. In this interview, Han Seon-young, an educator of the Environmental Health Center at the University of Seoul, discussed the unique interdisci

Due to the increasing energy demand across several sectors of the industry, strategies to expand renewable energy are also rapidly developing. While CCS may tackle the large-scale reduction of carbon emissions, compact technologies and scientific methods address emission reduction on a closer scale. In this interview, Kim Dong-jin, a PhD Researcher of Materials Science and Engineering at Korea University, emphasized how materials scientists strive to improve the energy effici

In today's industrialized world, countless factories operate to keep up with the growing demands of manufacturing. While carbon emissions from factories' operations are one of the largest contributors to rising emissions, minimizing carbon footprint in the construction of factories itself is yet another goal. In this interview, Sung Doo-sik, a project engineer at Hanwha Engineering & Construction discussed his insights of environmental regulations and the need for better poli

ESG ratings present a prominent system of holding businesses accountable for societal values, yet still present a dilemma of sacrificing cost-efficient business models. To help address such challenges, ESG rating consultants have engaged in more interactions with businesses to best advise strategies. In this interview, Jung Sun-Ah at the Korea Institute of Corporate Governance and Sustainability (KCGS) shared how the institution uniquely evaluates and assists businesses in ad

Corporate sustainability is a crucial yet one of the most challenging aspects of tackling the climate crisis. While international and domestic standards on companies develop over time, many still lack comprehensive strategies for long-term business model transitions to sustainability. In this interview, Jung Seung-eun at PwC Sustainability discussed how the department aims to strategize emission reductions across entire value chains and her personal insights on methods to add

Extending one's personal vision of achieving carbon neutrality to other people's lives is a complex task, yet a much-needed job for an entire society to accomplish net-zero goals. As a current greenhouse gas consultant and previously an environmentally-friendly lifestyle campaigner, Park Kyu-ri is a passionate climate leader who continues to spread her enthusiasm for sustainability. In this interview, Park shared thoughts about the need for businesses' increased commitment fo

While carbon capture is an innovative technology to achieve net-zero by removing emissions from the atmosphere, several challenges lie in its expansion for industrial usage. Kim Kyu-nam is a researcher who focuses on scaling carbon capture technologies from lab research to real-world, industrial production. Dr. Kim expressed that achieving net-zero requires both transitioning to clean energy and removing unavoidable emissions through carbon capture and expressed concerns for

Climate action starts from cutting-edge technologies that can reduce carbon emissions, but those technologies must first be granted patents to be commercialized. In Korea, the Ministry of Intellectual Property assesses whether newly invented technologies are truly innovative and significant and issue patents. Kwon Goo-bum at the Ministry's Intellectual Property Office, formerly known as the Patent office, discussed the growing development of climate-related technologies such