Incheon, South Korea August 11, 2009 The global launch of the pictorial history Chemulpo to Songdo IBD: Korea’s International Gateway took place on Thursday August 6 at Incheon Korea’s historic Chemulpo Club. Hosted by author Don Southerton and sponsored by Gale International, the event was attended by notables including Incheon Mayor Ahn Sang-soo, Gale International chairman Stan Gale, and former Ambassador Donald Gregg. Also attending were local officials, Korean and American guests, and the media.
Chemulpo to Songdo IBD: Korea’s International Gateway documents 125 years of life in the port area through first hand accounts and historic photographs. Fittingly, the book’s launch was held at the foreign settlement’s former gentleman’s club, which was built in1901.
After warm opening remarks by Stan Gale, author Southerton shared his inspiration for writing the book—one built on collaboration. In fact, Southerton noted the early trade settlement and surroundings were home to Europeans, Americans, Japanese, Chinese, and Koreans. Likewise, the book was a collaboration of Korean and American teams. Building on this theme Southerton pointed out that today’s nearby Songdo International Business District (IBD) was, too, a diverse international collaboration of firms including Gale International, POSCO E&C, Kohn Pederson Fox, and most recently CISCO.
Joining Southerton on the podium, Mayor Ahn Sang-soo was presented with a copy of the book. The mayor then shared his vision for the city becoming one of the world’s top ten cities.
Following the book presentation, Southerton, conducted a tour for the American VIPs of Jayu Park and the historic Chinatown district.
Plans call for the book to be donated to Korea-focused organizations and universities in the U.S. and Korea. A full schedule of book promotion events is also planned.
About the Author Don Southerton has held a life-long interest in Korea and its rich culture. His previous books center on culture, entrepreneurialism, and early U.S.-Korean business ventures. Southerton extensively writes and comments on modern Korean business culture and its impact on global organizations. His firm, Bridging Culture Worldwide, provides consulting and training to Korea-based global business.
About Gale International Gale International is a premier international real estate investment and development company with headquarters in New York and offices in Boston; Irvine, California; Seoul and Songdo, South Korea.
Don Southerton announces the release of a new pictorial history titled Chemulpo to Songdo IBD: Korea’s International Gateway. The book showcases 125 years of commerce, trade, and interaction in the nation’s first foreign trade hub, Incheon. The bilingual work is author Don Southerton’s latest writing on Korea and weaves key historic events with photographs and first-hand accounts, past and present.
Located on the western coast of Korea, Incheon has played a significant role in the history of the region since the late 19th century. Once called Chemulpo, as Korea opened its borders to the West, the backwater port quickly became home to a diverse group of foreign merchants, traders, entrepreneurs, and sojourners.
A century later, under the direction of Mayor Ahn Sang-soo and the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority, the city’s waterfront region is again becoming an international community and center for business and trade. The book also highlights Songdo IBD, a 10-year project being developed by Gale International and POSCO E&C. The project seeks to make South Korea the preeminent business hub of East Asia.
Southerton notes, “With the world turning its attention to the Incheon Global Fair and Festival and the Grand Opening of Songdo International Business District sharing the port’s rich heritage is timely.”
In researching the book, the author explains, “Photographs from archives in Korea and the U.S. have been included, along with engaging stories about daily life in the port town from the past 125 years. To best showcase the port’s early progress, many of the photographs have been digitally reproduced from the original plates shot over 100 years ago.”
Finally, Southerton points out that the book shares the role of the foreign community in humanitarian efforts and the introduction of new technologies and innovations.
On August 6, 2009, a formal release will take place at the former Chemulpo Club in Incheon, Soon after, media events will follow in the U. S.
The global release of Chemulpo to Songdo IBD: Korea’s International Gateway is sponsored by Gale International.
About the Author Don Southerton has held a life-long interest in Korea and its rich culture. His previous books center on culture, entrepreneurialism, and early U.S.-Korean business ventures. Southerton also extensively writes and comments on modern Korean business culture and its impact on global organizations. His firm, Bridging Culture Worldwide, provides consulting and training to Korea-based global business.
Media preview of the book and select photographs are available by contacting the author.
Contacts For additional information and author interviews.
By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor and Chief Blogger
I’ve been sharing previews of my soon to be released book Chemulpo to Songdo IBD. The book will document the region’s amazing 125 history beginning with opening of the port–then called Chemulpo–to the West. I was pleased that preserving Incheon’s past was a priority for Mayor Ahn Sang- soo according to this timely Korea Times interview.
Chemulpo early 1900s
INCHEON ― The major seaport city of Incheon is eager to demonstrate to the world that it is a global city of economic and cultural vigor through the “Visit Incheon 2009” campaign.
Mayor Ahn Sang-soo, 63, said that Incheon will see 20 million visitors by 2014. In an interview with The Korea Times, the CEO-turned-politician elaborated on Incheon’s potential to emerge as one of the world’s 10 must-visit cities in the next five years.
Incheon’s Role in Global Korea
Incheon has been closely associated in recent years with showcase development projects, particularly in the form of a Free Economic Zone (FEZ) currently underway in reclaimed areas of Songdo and others.
Ahn stressed, however, that Incheon is much more than economic and developmental pursuits. On the occasion of the Visit Incheon 2009 campaign, he wants to renew the world’s attention on the city’s history, culture and nature.
“Incheon housed many of Korea’s first modern institutions,” said Ahn in introducing the city’s identity as one of modern Korea’s first global cities.
“It was Incheon that linked the country to the world and simultaneously initiated foreign settlement in Korea with the historic opening of ports in 1883.”
Incheon port managed more than half of Korea’s foreign trade between the years 1880 and 1910, according to historical records.
“Korea’s first post office, bank, hotel, among other modern facilities, were established in Incheon during those early years of modernization,” Ahn said.
Reviving Historical Legacies
The city plans to restore these historical legacies as part of efforts to distinguish itself as a unique tourist destination, setting itself apart from areas with just a commercial focus.
On May 22, the city announced that it has designated a cultural cluster of buildings with modern historical value as part of initiatives to boost the city’s tourism industry.
The city will establish a tour route that passes through one of the nation’s first post office, a sub-branch of Japan’s First (or Dai-ichi) Bank and eight other signature establishments testifying to the city’s role in Korea’s modernization.
Songdo International City
By the early 1900s, thousands of Korean, Japanese, Chinese, and Westerners had transformed the port, then known as Chemulpo, into the trade hub of the region. During those times, there were more foreign residents, mostly Japanese and Chinese, in Incheon than in Seoul.
It is perhaps no surprise that a city with such a distinct historical background should be the nation’s frontrunner in building an international city where the use of English in classrooms, business conferences and shopping centers could possibly become the norm.
One of the three districts of the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ) with Cheongna and Yeongjong, Songdo International City, 64 kilometers from Seoul, it is the largest development project of its kind in Korea as Northeast Asia’s new multicultural center of business and education.
By 2014, the Incheon Free Economic Zone will house more than 300 Northeast Asian business headquarters, 30 international organizations including those affiliated with the United Nations, and extended campuses of 15 foreign universities.
“At least within the boundaries of the free economic zone, English should be the common medium of communication,” Ahn said on the possibility of adopting English as an official language. “Those working in our schools, shops and even public administrations should be able to communicate in English.”
The city administration has adopted programs to equip their officials with better English-speaking skills.
“English is important because Incheon’s foreign population is expected to reach 200,000 around the time the IFEZ is completed in 2020. We are hoping that more students, researchers, scholars and workers from abroad will relocate to the IFEZ,” he said. The current population of Incheon is approximately 2.7 million.
Meanwhile, to achieve a balanced development for the rest of Incheon with the IFEZ, the older parts of the city are undergoing multiple redevelopment projects.
2009 Incheon Global Fair & Festival
As widely publicized, the coastal city is the host of the world’s first exhibition on urban development models which will take place in Songdo for 80 days starting Aug. 7.
Incheon first perceived the idea for the exhibition around 2004. “We thought that it would be a good idea to create a venue for sharing with the world our roadmap for the IFEZ as well as our experience in redeveloping the older parts of Incheon,” Ahn explained.
The organizers will invite representatives of business and government as well as urban planners to explore futuristic urban development models and lifestyles utilizing up-to-date digital technologies. Incheon is aiming to attract half a million foreign tourists, particularly from neighboring countries China and Japan.
“We are living in an age where the competitiveness of each city ultimately translates to the entire nation’s competitiveness. Exploring ways to adjust urban development to the environmental and energy needs of the 21st century is an immensely important issue,” Ahn said
The event will feature exhibitions, conferences and festivals organized around five main subjects ― Development of New City, Environment and Energy, Advanced Technology, Tourism and Leisure, and Culture and Art.
Organizers said that the event is expected to generate 530 billion won in added value and contribute to attracting more foreign investment for the IFEZ. More than 100 cities around the world will participate.
Transformation from Chemulpo to Songdo
Ahn says that there are plenty of other reasons to visit Incheon this year.
As he invited the world to come and witness the city’s transformation from Chemulpo to Songdo, he also stressed Incheon’s richness in natural beauty and cultural legacies.
It is not commonly known that Incheon is surrounded by 150 Islands, some of which are famed for their scenery and have recently attracted many tourists with “Island Stay” programs. Combining all the islands, Incheon is actually slightly bigger than Seoul, according to Ahn.
Incheon is also home to age-old temples such as Bomunsa and Jeondungsa. Additionally, it is the only city in Korea with an extensive Chinatown.
Photo courtesy of the Moffett Collection, Special Collections, Princeton Theological Seminary Library
By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor and Chief Blogger
Joong Ahn Daily recently interviewed Incheon mayor Ahn Sang-soo. The article shared the mayor’s vision for the city and the importance of Songdo IBD projects such as the Jack Nicklaus golf course.
The future of Incheon is built on vision and synergy, according to its ambitious mayor.
Ahn Sang-soo, the mayor of the port city, says he is set on transforming Incheon into a global hub of finance, business and culture.
The final facelift of Incheon is not scheduled until 2020 with the completion of three free economic zones: Songdo, Yeongjong and Cheongra.
But the mayor is impatient to get going. “Just after 2014, it’s going to be one of the best 10 high-end cities in the world,” the mayor said in an interview with the JoongAng Daily. By then, 80 percent of the development will be complete.
Ahn’s vision calls for a city housing more than 300 multinational corporations in the free economic zones. They will be complemented by 13 international agencies, including institutions under the United Nations.
The Asia and Pacific Training Centre for Information and Communications Technology for Development is already operating and five others are in the discussion stage, Ahn said. To display its vision, the city will hold a Global Fair and Festival. The 80-day festival, themed “Lightening Tomorrow,” will offer visitors a journey to the future. Kicking off on Aug. 7, it expects to host participants from 100 countries.
“A future city can’t be described in a single word,” Ahn said. “It’s a mix of everything.”
The city Ahn envisions is one where almost everything can be accessible within 30 minutes.
“In the past one would have to go downtown to work and go to the suburbs to live,” Ahn said. “You had to commute which isn’t good for the new generation. Almost all cities have the same paradigm.”
When fully developed, Incheon’s new zones will closely integrate residential, business, medical and educational facilities.
Ahn says the future Incheon will be a city that offers a pleasant living environment and is economical. “Spending is important when vitalizing the economy,” he said. “But residents should not be burdened by additional costs” for accessing work and cultural facilities.
“A city once built lasts for 100 to 200 years,” Ahn said. “Therefore, one needs to be cautious when developing a city since it is difficult to undo what has been done.”
The mayor showed confidence that the upgraded Incheon will be a paradigm for future cities. Similar cities will include positive aspects of Singapore, Shanghai, New York and San Francisco, the mayor said.
As Incheon transforms, the mayor expects its current population of 2.75 million to increase up to 3.5 million by 2014. The central government recognized the potential of the country’s third-largest city when it designated Incheon’s free economic zones in 2003.
However, the mayor said the city is not in competition with Seoul. Rather, he stressed synergy would be generated by the two cities in areas including education, medicine, high-tech and logistics.
Ahn said the synergy would extend to the North Korean city, Kaesong, where there is access to low cost real estate and less expensive labor.
In fact, connecting Kaesong, Incheon and Seoul is one of Ahn’s key goals.
By linking the three, he hopes to form what he calls a “Golden Peace Triangle,” that will not only contribute economically, but also bring peace and stability to North and South Korea.
The mayor said once the 1.8-kilometer (1.1-mile) bridge is built from Ganghwa Island, which is part of Incheon, to the mainland, products manufactured from Kaesong could be transported to the international airport in less than an hour. Products could also be delivered to Incheon’s port.
The mayor is a glass-half-full optimist. He even sees a silver lining in the current economic crisis.
“Potential investors have mentioned that after this financial crisis, China, India and Korea would emerge as countries good for investment,” Ahn said.
Dubbed CIK, the countries will be front runners in economic recovery because of their rapid growth and efficient infrastructure, the mayor said.
“In the past they [investors] weren’t constrained because they could succeed anywhere,” Ahn said. “But after the crisis, you have to choose safe investments.”
He said Incheon is such an investment not only because it has free economic zones but because it has logistical advantages thanks to the international air and sea ports.
The city also has a geographic advantage as it is located close to the two major Asian economies – China and Japan – with access to a market of over a billion.
Incheon already has secured several prominent global investors, including Gale International and Portman Holdings.
Portman is jointly building Songdo’s signature 151-story skyscraper, Incheon Tower, with Hyundai Engineering and Construction and Samsung Engineering and Construction,
The skyscraper is scheduled for completion in 2014 when Incheon hosts the Asian Games.
“Elsewhere in Korea you cannot see towers like in Incheon,” the mayor said.
Incheon not only aims to be a top financial or business center in Asia, but wants to be a center for service industries, including education, health, tourism and culture.
“We are going to have more than 10 foreign universities,” Ahn said.
North Carolina State University, the State University of New York, University of Southern California and Delaware State University are some of the foreign schools that plan extended campuses at Incheon.
Additionally, a prominent U.S. hospital is negotiating with the city to establish services there.
The mayor said some U.S. students will study courses at the universities for a year or more. Classes will be in English, although some of the staff will be Korean.
The city is also in talks with New York’s Guggenheim Museum to set up a branch in Songdo.
On a more leisurely note, famous golfer Jack Nicklaus is designing an 18-hole golf club in the Incheon Free Economic Zone. The mayor said Nicklaus told him that he has designed more than 250 golf courses in the world but only allowed his name to be used in five. The Incheon course is one of those.
The mayor said the city has decided to hold a Senior PGA tour October next year.
The city also plans an Art Center similar to Sydney’s Opera House. It will be run by the internationally famed maestro Chung Myung-whun.
Additionally, Incheon is strengthening its entertainment efforts. The Paramount theme park, currently under construction within the Songdo free economic zone, is scheduled to be completed in 2011.
All of these lofty ambitions will be on display this summer, as Incheon hosts Global Fair and Festival 2009.
The primary goal of the event is to promote Incheon as a brand.
“I hope more than 7 million visitors from home and abroad participate in this occasion,” Ahn added.
Another event to be held this summer is a marathon that will take place on the recently constructed Incheon Grand Bridge, which stretches 21 kilometers. The mayor is also planning to hold an evening event where 20,000 participants would enjoy a lunchbox dinner on the bridge.
The bridge, which is the longest in Korea and the fifth longest in the world, is to temporarily open for the festival in August. It will be in full operation in October.
