"Praise Makes Even Whales Dance"... Suyeon Lee, the Garden City Bureau Director, Recognized by Mayor Oh Sehoon

Oh Sehoon Praises Suyeon Lee, Director of the Garden City Bureau,
for Her Year-Long Efforts at the Opening Ceremony of the
2025 Seoul International Garden Expo at Boramae Park

On the afternoon of the 22nd, Seoul Mayor Oh Sehoon introduced key participants at the opening ceremony of the '2025 Seoul International Garden Expo' at Boramae Park, first standing up and greeting Suyeon Lee, Director of the Garden City Bureau.

Oh Sehoon, the Mayor of Seoul, is the first person to serve four terms as Seoul mayor and is considered the foremost expert on contemporary Seoul.

Because of this, the vice mayor, directors, and bureau chiefs always work under high tension. If a report is not made properly, they are immediately called out, making the work environment extremely demanding.

Amidst this, there are not many senior officials among Seoul’s directors and bureau chiefs who have received public praise from Mayor Oh.

This appears to be due to Oh Sehoon's style, which, although he is a former politician, is closer to that of an administrator.

At 3 p.m. on the 22nd, the 10th Seoul International Garden Expo was held at Boramae Park in Dongjak District. Before introducing the main guests, Mayor Oh said, "The person who prepared this event is from the Department of Horticulture, right?" and called Suyeon Lee, Director of the Garden City Bureau, to stand up. Lee responded, "No, I'm from the Department of Forest Resources," and stood up to greet the audience.

Director Lee, who has been preparing for this event for a year, graduated from the Department of Forest Resources at Seoul National University’s College of Agriculture and passed the first local civil service exam. She has held key positions in Seoul such as media spokesperson, Seoul-ro 7017 operations manager, deputy mayor of Jungnang District, director of Seoul Grand Park, welfare planning director, and acting welfare bureau chief, earning a reputation as an idea-driven executive.

Last year, although her position is in administration, she served as Director of the Garden City Bureau and hosted the 9th Seoul International Garden Expo at Gwangjin Naru on the Han River, attracting about 7.8 million visitors and gaining significant popularity.

Building on this momentum, Director Lee created 111 large and small gardens on a 400,000-square-meter site at Boramae Park for this year’s expo.

Following Mayor Oh Sehoon's vision to transform all of Seoul into a garden, the city is holding garden expos at Boramae Park this year, following last year’s event at Gwangjin Naru on the Han River, and plans to hold the expo at Seoul Forest next year.

This year marks the 10th edition of the 'Seoul Garden Expo,' which began in 2015, and the city has prepared the largest area, longest duration, and most extensive content ever. The goal is to transform all of Seoul into a living, breathing garden, focusing on respect and love for nature rooted in the city’s history, culture, and the lives of its citizens.

The number of gardens, which was 90 last year, has increased to 111 this year, with even more diverse participants. From the planning stage, public-private cooperation and coexistence have been at the core, resulting in the number of corporate and institutional gardens increasing from 21 last year to 33 this year. Gardens have also been created with the participation of other local governments and Seoul’s 25 autonomous districts.

Through this expo, Seoul is highlighting the role of gardens in connecting people and nature. In the artist gardens, where domestic and international experts participated, two invited gardens emphasized 'naturalness,' and five competition gardens interpreted the theme of 'The Third Nature' in diverse and interesting ways. 'The Third Nature' refers to gardens that exist at the boundary between the first nature (primordial nature) and the second nature (artificial environments such as cities and farmland).

Awards for the competition gardens selected through the international competition, including "The Third Platanus Forest" (Yanghee Lee and Sehoon Oh, Korea), "Nesting" (Till Rehwaldt and Garth Woolison, Germany and Czech Republic), "Garden of Eternal Life" (Yoonbin Kim, Korea), "The Last Meal" (Kihan Kim, Korea), and "Waterrooots!" (Alessandro Trivelli, Italy), will be presented at the opening ceremony.

The 33 corporate, institutional, and local government gardens created under themes such as 'life, ecology, circulation, sustainability, and coexistence' each reflect the unique identity of their creators, adding to the enjoyment for visitors.

In particular, there will be booths where visitors can experience a variety of Seoul’s cultural and policy content in one place. Visitors can explore an interactive exhibition hall (Haechi House) introducing the city’s flagship policies, the 'Seoul Story Garden' expressing Seoul’s companionship and charm as a garden, read books in the 'Book-Reading Boramae Garden,' view sculptures at '2025 Sculpture City Seoul,' and enjoy performances at 'Every Corner Live,' among other cultural and artistic programs.

Writer Jung Won

The expo, which will continue for five months, is also expected to revitalize the local economy and promote mutual growth. At the venue, there will be a garden market (industry fair) with more than 70 garden and leisure-related companies, as well as food trucks linked to small businesses, the 'Seoro Market' for direct trade between urban and rural areas, the 'Happiness Market' selling products made by people with disabilities, and various booths selling local forest products and more.

In addition, visitors participating in the 'Garden Stamp Tour' can receive discounts at stores in Dongjak and Gwanak districts near Boramae Park. During the expo, Dongjak District will also issue a special 'Dongjak Love Gift Certificate' at a 10% discount, which can be used at stores near the venue.

At the opening ceremony, under the leadership of Director Suyeon Lee, nearly all green space officials from Seoul City Hall and the 25 autonomous districts, including Park Miae, Head of the Garden City Policy Division, participated with great enthusiasm and dedication.

Director Lee, an administrative official, is known for her strong consideration for her subordinates in the green space service, having served as Director of the Garden City Bureau, the highest position for green space officials.