5,000 Citizens Gather on November 8
Declaration of 'Ulsan, the Garden City'
"Full Potential as a Global Event"
AIPH On-Site Inspection Team Praises Ulsan
The Ulsan city government announced that the '2028 Ulsan International Garden Expo Grand Festival for Success Celebration,' held on November 8 at the Taehwagang riverside in Nam-gu, concluded successfully with the participation of over 5,000 citizens.
This event, themed 'Ulsan: A True Landscape Painted by Industry,' was organized to wish for the successful hosting of the 2028 Ulsan International Garden Expo and to officially declare, together with citizens, the new urban vision of 'Ulsan, the Garden City.'
The festival began with a performance by the children's choir 'Unistella' and a show by calligraphy artist Kim Soyoung.
The stage for 'In the Flower Garden,' featuring national singer Jung Hoonhee and 142 members of the citizen choir, created a moving moment as more than 5,000 citizens at the venue sang along together.
After the song, Mayor Kim Dukyum and a student representative from Unistella took the stage to officially declare 'Ulsan, the Garden City,' proclaiming a new urban vision where industry and nature coexist.
Mayor Kim stated, "For the past 60 years, Ulsan, as the industrial capital, has been the heart of Korea's economy, and now, by adding gardens to industry, we are being reborn as a garden city on the global stage. With the power that achieved the miracle of the Taehwagang River, we will open the future of our new city."
During the event, Unistella members presented illuminated balls symbolizing seeds of hope to the guests, and 17 guests placed these on a sculpture inscribed with 'Wishing for the Success of the 2028 Ulsan International Garden Expo,' lighting them up in a symbolic performance.
This was followed by congratulatory performances from popular trot singers such as Park Jihyun, Song Minjun, Park Haemi, and Shin Youngsook, as well as renowned musical actors, filling the Taehwagang riverside with a festive autumn night atmosphere.
Notably, a delegation from the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH), the official approving body for the expo, also attended the event to share the garden city vision with citizens.
The AIPH delegation visited Ulsan from November 7 to 9 for a two-night, three-day schedule to officially inspect the preparations for the 2028 Expo.
This visit marked the first official on-site inspection since Ulsan was approved as the host city for the International Garden Expo at the 76th AIPH Annual Congress held in Warsaw, Poland, in September of the previous year.
The delegation consisted of five members, including Secretary General Tim Briercliffe as the head, Takahiro Yamada (Japan), Yuphei Wang (China), Karen Tambayong (Indonesia), and Elena Terikova (France), as well as three others, including officials from the Korea Flower Association, making a total of eight members.
They closely inspected the Taehwagang National Garden, Samsan-Yeocheon Reclamation Site, and Namsan-ro Culture Square, reviewing garden creation plans, progress on infrastructure construction, and citizen participation program plans.
Secretary General Tim Briercliffe commented, "Ulsan is presenting a unique urban model that combines industrial landscapes with garden culture. The 2028 Ulsan International Garden Expo has the full potential to become a world-class international event that will attract global attention."
Ulsan city plans to accelerate its transformation from an industrial city to a garden city, using this grand festival and the AIPH on-site inspection as momentum, and to further intensify preparations for the successful hosting of the 2028 Expo.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
