Keynote Speech at Geneva/Fribourg Forum, Spreading Jinju K-Entrepreneurship
Visit to the Studio of the Late Artist Lee Seongja in Tourette, France
Signing of Cultural Exchange Agreement with Tourette City
Attendance at UCCN Annual Meeting in Braga, Portugal
Joo Kyu-il, the mayor of Jinju, Gyeongnam, has embarked on an overseas business trip from the 26th to the 5th of next month, visiting six cities in three European countries?Switzerland, France, and Portugal?for eight nights and ten days. The purpose of his trip is to promote Jinju K-Entrepreneurship and attend the UNESCO Creative Cities Network Annual Meeting.
From the 26th to the 29th, Mayor Joo will visit Geneva, Switzerland, to participate in the 'UN Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day' event. He also plans to deliver a keynote speech at the 'Geneva/Fribourg Forum' held at the Fribourg School of Management.
The 'UN Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day' was established by the UN General Assembly in 2017 to raise global awareness of the importance of SMEs in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This year's event, under the theme 'The Evolution of UN Sustainable Development through SMEs: Human-Centered Impact,' will be held at the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Office at Geneva.
In a rare occurrence for a local government leader, Mayor Joo has been invited as a speaker for two consecutive years, in 2023 and 2024. On the 27th, at the United Nations Office at Geneva, he will present Jinju's role in building a startup ecosystem and contributing to sustainable development through Jinju K-Entrepreneurship, and promote the excellence of Jinju K-Entrepreneurship's human-centered approach to a global audience.
On the 28th, he will participate in the 'Geneva/Fribourg Forum' held in Fribourg, where he will deliver a keynote speech on Jinju K-Entrepreneurship in a session themed 'Cases of Entrepreneurship through Confucianism and the Protestant Reformation.' He also plans to sign a letter of intent with the host city, Fribourg, to foster the spread of K-Entrepreneurship and promote educational and cultural exchanges as friendly cities.
On July 1, after traveling to France, Mayor Joo will visit 'Milky Way' (Eunhasu), the atelier in Tourette, southeastern France, where world-renowned artist Lee Seungja, a native of Jinju, lived and worked during her lifetime.
'Milky Way' is a building personally designed by Lee Seungja, which was designated as 'Architecture Contemporaine Remarquable' (Remarkable Contemporary Architecture) by the French government on May 29. Former and current mayors of Tourette will accompany Mayor Joo during his visit to Milky Way.
The city of Jinju plans to use Mayor Joo's visit to Tourette as an opportunity to sign a friendly city agreement to promote and support cultural exchanges between the two cities, laying the foundation for mutual cultural and artistic development.
From July 2 to 3, Mayor Joo will attend the '16th UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) Annual Meeting' held in Braga, Portugal.
The UNESCO Creative Cities Network Annual Meeting is a gathering where mayors and representatives from 350 cities in over 100 countries share challenges and form new partnerships for sustainable urban development. Jinju is participating this year as the chair city of the UNESCO Creative Cities of Crafts and Folk Art Cluster, a position it was selected for in May.
During the annual meeting, Mayor Joo has been invited by the UCCN Secretariat as a panelist for a closed forum of mayors, where he will deliver a speech to mayors from around the world on 'Enhancing Urban Competitiveness through the Creativity and Innovation of Youth.' He also plans to promote Jinju in meetings with the mayor of Ballarat, Australia, and key UNESCO officials.
Mayor Joo stated, "During this overseas trip, I plan to introduce our city's vision of 'Prosperous Jinju, Happy Citizens' to the world and promote Jinju K-Entrepreneurship," adding, "By enhancing Jinju's brand value and global interest, I hope this will serve as an opportunity to attract more international tourists."
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