Surpassing Last Year’s Asia-Pacific Runner-Up Sydney, Ranks 15th Among 151 Cities
The Only Korean City Participating in the Index
International Recognition for Climate Crisis Response and ESG-Based Policies
Strengthening Global Standing
Goyang Special City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Lee Donghwan) announced on the 26th that it has risen one place in the final evaluation of the 2025 Global Destination Sustainability Index (GDS-I), surpassing last year's Asia-Pacific runner-up, Sydney, to achieve 15th place (Top 10%) among 151 cities worldwide.
This year, the city’s evaluation score increased by 2.75% compared to last year, and the score gap with Melbourne, Australia-the top city in the Asia-Pacific region-was only 1.38%, demonstrating Goyang’s competitiveness among the global elite.
The GDS-I is an international index that evaluates 76 criteria across four areas-environment, society, supply chain, and dedicated city marketing organizations-for major MICE cities around the world.
As responding to the climate crisis and strengthening sustainability have emerged as core tasks for MICE cities globally, cities are actively participating in the GDS-I evaluation to verify their adherence to international sustainability standards and enhance their global competitiveness.
As a result, the number of participating cities increased from about 100 last year to 151 this year, making the competition even fiercer.
Since 2017, Goyang Special City has been the first and, to date, the only city in South Korea to participate in the GDS-I evaluation, consistently achieving results amid intensifying global competition each year.
This achievement is the result of Goyang Special City’s concrete efforts and policies, including ▲ carbon-neutral exhibition and conference operations, ▲ implementation of policies based on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles, and ▲ establishment of collaborative systems within the local community, all of which have been internationally recognized.
Additionally, the city ranked first in the Asia-Pacific region for two consecutive years in 2022 and 2023, and was featured by the BBC as one of the “Five Cities Making the World a Better Place,” further enhancing its global stature. Although its ranking dropped somewhat last year, this year the city improved its position by strengthening collaboration between related agencies and municipal departments centered on Goyang Convention Bureau and by implementing policies that meet international standards.
Mayor Lee Donghwan stated, “The GDS-I evaluation is not simply a ranking competition, but a process to verify how a city realizes environmental, social, and economic sustainability for future generations. Building on this achievement, Goyang Special City will continue its policy innovation to grow beyond the ‘sustainable MICE capital of Korea’ and become a global MICE hub city.”
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