By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor
This video does an awesome job showcasing Songdo IBD –a smart connected community. Cisco, too, has embraced Songdo IBD and its potential.
In this second video, Dr. Jorge Nelson hosts an informative vodcast about International School Songdo’s 21st century model for education– a key aspect being smart city technology.
A Green Lifestyle
By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor
Green and sustainability are key aspects of Songdo IBD. A vision of the community is to provide a model for Korea and the world. I found this SERI (Samsung Economic Research Institute) report on Korea Green relevant.
Policy Proposals to Promote Green Lifestyles
By Do Gunwoo
Korea’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent in the next decade will be supported by plans to promote “low carbon green living” through support systems, changes in lifestyle, and public awareness. Korea is now pursuing policies but the public response has been less than desired. Some measures, such as the energy consumption label system, can be improved for increased public awareness and participation and greater institutional assistance.
Korea, which had no obligation to set an emissions reduction target under the Kyoto Protocol, has voluntarily and aggressively pursued green growth policies at home and, to encourage international participation in tackling climate change, adopted the toughest of internationally recommended standards. Specifically, the government is targeting a 30 percent reduction in Korea’s “business as usual” (BAU) emissions by 2020, the highest level recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for developing countries.1
IMPORTANCE OF GREEN LIVING
In the short term, Korea is not in a strong position to dramatically slash greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the industrial sector, as its energy consumption and GHG emissions have risen alongside robust economic growth, and its core industries are mainly of the energy-intensive secondary type. On the other hand, the cost of reducing emissions is relatively low for transportation, commercial, and household sectors compared with the industrial sector. Consequently, making lifestyle changes can make a big difference in reducing energy consumption and GHG emissions in the short term.
To reduce GHG emissions from the transportation, commercial, and residential sectors, it is important to expand the scope of green living. The Korean government has pursued comprehensive and systematic measures in cooperation with the private sector and in connection with national campaigns at relevant government ministries to champion green living. Moreover, the government plans to strengthen incentives to encourage voluntary participation by individuals such as points-for-cash systems, and also to create a support system to enable a systematic pursuit of green living. By raising awareness that green living can be economically beneficial to individuals as well as ease the effect of climate change, the government aims to encourage Koreans to actively contribute to green growth through their daily lifestyles. Therefore, it has become all the more important for the government to instill habits of conservation and green living.
CONDITIONS FOR GREEN LIFESTYLES AND POLICY INITIATIVES
Conditions for Proliferation of Green Lifestyles
According to the government’s five-year plan on green growth (2009–2013), Koreans gained a heightened awareness about the severity of the energy crisis and climate change after the government’s vision on low carbon green growth was released in 2008. However, the plan said that green living was not yet put into practice sufficiently, and there are not enough concrete action programs despite the various ministries’ campaigns for green living.2 The challenges that need to be overcome include the gap between public awareness and practice of green lifestyles, the absence of a support system on green consumption, the lack of participation in community campaigns, widespread NIMBY (“not in my backyard”) attitudes, and the lack of school curricula on the environment.
However, the spread among companies of a green living movement and a well-being culture increased attention on the LOHAS (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability) culture, and greater need for education on climate change following the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Convention on Climate Change in 2009 could all positively affect the spread of the green lifestyle movement.
Green Living Policy Initiatives
The government recently announced a plan to promote low carbon, green living as a way to achieve a green revolution in life through fundamental changes in lifestyle and public awareness.
As part of a strategy to pursue low carbon green living, the government has already started a nationwide enlightenment campaign called “Green Start Movement,” which encourages the reduction of GHG emissions in the non-industrial sector through voluntary participation and practice. It has also launched a campaign called “Green Energy Family Movement” in which businesses, non-government organizations, local governments, public institutions, and the public participate voluntarily.
In July 2009, a new Carbon Point System3 was introduced as an incentive for energy conservation. It calculates the amount of electricity, gas, water, and waste material people save in GHG equivalents and rewards points that can be cashed in. An increasing number of households are expected to join the program, contributing to the spread of the green living movement.
Moreover, a Carbon Cash-Back System4 has been introduced. It offers points to consumers who purchase certified low-carbon products that emit less carbon while being produced or in use. Consumers who visit stores practicing the reduction of GHG will also receive points as an incentive.
It is projected that various policies with stronger incentives for green living such as Carbon Labeling and Green Store Certification System will emerge. Therefore, it is expected that consumers will have a wider choice of environment-friendly products and producers will participate in the new consumption trend.
Nurturing industries related to environment-friendly homes and buildings is also high on the government green action agenda. The government plans to offer various incentives to buildings that adopt its green standards on thickness of walls, windows and doors, and heights of ceilings and make the criteria mandatory for contractors who build more than twenty-home complexes. The construction-related initiatives expand the government’s green strategy beyond the past focus on transportation (e.g. promoting the use of bikes and early commercialization of electric vehicles). A dramatic transformation in basic lifestyles and related industries is expected.
WAYS TO ESTABLISH GREEN LIFESTYLES
So far, this paper has looked at the reasons the Korean government emphasizes the importance of living green and why it focuses on policies for green growth and lifestyle.
Considering the government’s reduction goals and the condition of the industry, Koreans may be asked to make a steeper reduction than the government-proposed 10 percent reduction of GHG emissions in daily lifestyles to achieve the reduction target by 2020. To do so will require changes in conventional lifestyles and public awareness. This paper suggests ways to change public perception, improve participation, and provide institutional assistance so that government strategies can be more effective.
Strengthening Green Education
It is necessary to create and distribute a textbook that explains the purpose, meaning, and economic and social repercussions of low carbon green growth so that young students can fully understand the concept and severity of climate change at an early age.
Although educational material regarding green growth will be included in elementary school curriculum, the government needs to make a more concrete and systematic plan. In the first phase, the government needs to create and distribute a textbook aimed at elementary and pre-school children. To produce meaningful educational results, it is desirable to focus efforts to target lower-grades (first to third grades).
Texts should be organized with varied content so that children can understand the means to reduce GHG emissions in schools, homes, and communities; help the environment; and contribute to green growth. On a gradual basis, such education should be extended to secondary schools and, in the mid- to long-term, lead to the creation of textbooks that fit various ages and classes.
Moreover, the government needs to consider designating pilot schools for pursuing green education in which various activities help children experience the phenomenon of low carbon green growth and understand its importance. In the pilot schools, activities such as writing green diaries, publishing green newspapers, and holding green discussions should be performed with creativity.
In the short-term, the government needs to start creating a green environment and establishing a soft infrastructure through pilot schools for green education. In the mid- to long-term, it needs to include green education in school curricula to expand nationwide. Rather than pursuing green education in all schools, it is more effective to designate schools that operate a pilot program, find problems, and devise ways to improve.
The government can also consider establishing a close network with the media and businesses to gain a wealth of experience and to compensate for the shortage of budgetary and human resources. It can also consider visiting industrial sites and inviting experts as one-day green teachers.
Establishing Networks and Strengthening the Role of Local Regions
To achieve the national vision of low carbon green growth, it is important to promulgate the importance of promotion and participation, as well as that of physical infrastructure. Therefore, it is necessary for the government to take advantage of human networks to lay the foundation for a low-carbon society.
The Green Start Network5 movement takes a top-down approach in which the government takes the lead in nurturing green leaders, launching campaigns to reduce GHG emissions, and conducting various events. However, public response to participating in the movement has been tepid; changes in perception have been slow. Small-scale networks such as regional communities can be effective and practical in establishing and spreading the culture and standards necessary for low-carbon lifestyle by using social networks. Therefore, it is desirable for the government to improve the operational approach of the Green Start Network in a way that private companies and subordinate groups can participate voluntarily and establish small-scale networks to start action for achieving low-carbon society. In other words, the government needs to introduce bottom-up methods in the Green Start Network and expand the scope of projects.
So far, projects have been confined to action program contests, establishment of experience centers, and promotional activities. By establishing small-scale networks at the city and township levels, the government can consider providing education for reducing GHG emissions, evaluating the amount of emissions, and using the results in public relations and educational activities.
Operating green community centers and automated bicycle rental system are among the fastest ways to spread green living. Two cases in point: the city of London installed the London Green Homes community center to provide information on reducing GHG at home as well as tailored home remodeling services; and the city of Paris commissioned the installment and operation of a bike rental system to JCDecaux, outdoor advertising company. Paris is reaping profits without investment costs.
Provision of Information on Energy Costs
Delivering information on energy costs to consumers can act as an incentive to save energy and help reduce energy consumption in households and businesses. In that respect, a labeling system can be an effective means to help consumers choose what products to buy by simplifying the products’ often complex environmental impact and manufacturing technology. The government is providing information and inducing consumers to choose products through Energy Consumption Efficiency Grade Label and Carbon Label.
Under the current Energy Consumption Efficiency Grade Label, manufacturers are required to attach 1st Grade (low consumption) to 5th Grade (high consumption) efficiency labels on consumer electronics, lighting equipment, cars, and other manufactured goods that consume lots of energy. If products fall below the minimum energy efficiency standards, manufacturers are banned from production, sales, and fined up to a maximum of ₩20 million (approximately $17,000). Since July 2009, carbon dioxide emissions per hour are included in the label.
Likewise, the United States has various measures to improve energy efficiency such as Energy Guide Label, Energy Efficiency Standard, Federal Energy Management Program, and Energy Star Program. The US Energy Guide Label6 gives estimated electricity cost of using products, encouraging consumers to save energy voluntarily.
It would be more effective if Korea’s energy consumption labels provided information on energy costs rather than, as at present, list various complex and incomprehensible figures. The Korean government should also provide such information on energy costs more broadly in other labeling systems.
Keywords
green growth, green lifestyle, green education, energy label, energy consumption, GHG emissions
Notes
1. The IPCC recommended emissions reduction targets of 15–30 percent of BAU projections for Korea and other non-Annex I countries.
2. Noksaekso˘ngjang 5kaenyo˘ngyehoek (2009~2013) [Five-Year Green Growth Plan (2009–2013)], ROK Presidential Committee on Green Growth, July 2009, p. 321, .
3. Compared with the average usage of electricity and water for the past two years, saved energy is converted into GHG emissions by using GHG coefficient (1kwh = 424 g CO2), and points are offered accordingly. The ROK Ministry of Environment has stated that 10 g of CO2 equals one point, which is around ₩3 (roughly $0.0026).
4. Under the Carbon Cash-Back System, allied manufacturers and retailers offer consumers a certain percentage of sales prices as “carbon points,” and consumers use accumulated points to purchase products, participate in public programs, and use public transportation. A pilot program has been in operation since May 2009, and it is expected that the program will begin in earnest from 2010.
5. Green Start Network is a public—private partnership whereby members from all walks of life participate to practice Green Start Movement, which started in October 2008 to reduce GHG emissions in non-industrial sectors. Fifty-five organizations and groups such as the Ministry of Environment, civic groups, and economist circles are developing action programs for reducing GHG emissions and pursuing educational and promotional activities. It is composed of national, regional, and business networks.
6. The US Federal Trade Commission requires manufacturers to attach labels that describe the energy cost and efficiency of thirteen products such as air conditioners, refrigerators, boilers, and washing machines. The US Department of Energy bans the production and sales of twenty products such as motors, refrigerators, air conditioners, boilers, and lamps that fall below the minimum energy efficiency standard.
DO Gunwoo is a research fellow at SERI. His current research fo-cuses on environmental economics, public finance, and climate change. He was previously a deputy director at the ROK Ministry of Finance and Economy and visiting scholar at Vanderbilt University. He holds a PhD in Economics from Korea University. Contact: dokorea@seri.org.
Translation: JOO Hye-Sun
As the holidays approach, you may wish to greet your Korean colleagues with:
Sae hae bok man i ba deu say yo! (Season’s Greetings)
(I will modify the Romanization for easier pronunciation).
Hint: Break the greeting into: sae hae bok—mah ne—bah deu say yo
In South Korea, the government recognizes Christmas December 25 as a public holiday. Christians, who make up about 30% of the population, celebrate the occasion as a religious holiday.
Like in the West, both Christians and non-Christians may engage in some holiday customs such as gift-giving, sending Christmas cards, and setting up decorated trees in their homes.
Each year I see more signs of commercialism in Korea with stores and buildings displaying Christmas decorations and offering holiday sales. What may surprise some is that public and company Christmas trees and decoration stay up way past the holiday. In fact, many stay in place to the Lunar New Year.
Sae hae bok man i ba deu say yo! works well and is a common seasonal greeting. For those wanting to wish someone Merry Christmas use Sung tan jul chuk ha.
If you have a specific holiday question, please feel to contact us by email.
On behalf of myself and Songdo IBD CityTalk, have a happy holiday season!
Sae hae bok man i ba deu say yo!
Interested in Korean history, Incheon, and Songdo IBD? ‘Tis the season, so a high quality complimentary web version of the pictorial history book is available online. Click Here. The book was crafted bilingual, Korean and English.
Perspectives from a speaker, humanitarian, and businessman who has made “shaping the world’s future” his lifelong passion.
Joseph Chung
by Joseph James Chung
Coming straight from my home in Silicon Valley, California, I arrived in Songdo hoping to discover the world’s most compelling city. You may ask, what might such a city look like? I was looking for a city that could support a collaborative international community capable of solving the world’s greatest challenges. An entire city well poised to help shape and implement innovative and practical answers to global issues such as finding a cure for cancer, eliminating extreme poverty, developing capable leaders, or constructing the most efficient educational models for people of all ages, is a compelling city to me.
I arrived in Songdo ready to put this new city to the test. Quite naturally, I applied a three step process. The first step was to identify the true intent of the people involved in its development. The second step was to reach out to the pioneers — the people working on the ground — of this community to see what type of response I received. The third step was to investigate the city’s infrastructure and practical matters such as size compared to demand, support for transportation and information flow, and geographic location.
Steps One and Two are integrally connected:
Identifying the true intent of people backing the city by reaching out and working with the pioneers of the community.
My questions were, “Is this city just a flash in the pan? Another glorified tool to obtain money from investors? A castle in the sky?”
Having worked with leaders from several industries and sectors and some of the top talent and faculty developing in the Harvards, Stanfords, Yales, Johns Hopkins’, and MITs of the educational world, and having built teams, organizations, and companies with these leaders, I felt prepared to begin looking for answers to my questions. My approach to answering questions did not include going straight to the people-at-the-top (Mayors, Directors, and Government Officials), who are often surrounded by the typical political and practical barriers people in their positions face. I figured at this point, there was little relevant information I could learn from them, which I couldn’t read on a website.
Thus, I jumped right toward the people doing the groundwork behind developing this city.
The first leader I met was Don Southerton, an American born and educated historian on South Korean business and culture. Don Southerton wrote the book on Songdo from a historical perspective, leading readers into its future vision. The first conversation I had with him was highly educated, inspiring and authentic. The articles and books he wrote came from a passion that money couldn’t buy. Not only this, but his passion came out in his willingness to point me along my journey to discover what Songdo is really all about. Whoever brought him on board was either very lucky or really cared about doing their homework.
The second leader I met was Dr. Jorge Nelson, an expert educator pushing the envelope in education that should have been pushed several decades ago. Of course, I learned that Dr. Nelson has been pushing the envelope on education for several decades indeed. His passion and abilities clearly shine through in a sector (education) that desperately needs it. With the jaw-dropping, highly qualified faculty team he leads, I would beg to be his next door neighbor and put my children through his school any day. I might even consider going through K-12 (what Dr. Nelson now calls K-100) again with him at the helm. As of now, I consider myself lucky to be teaming up with International School Songdo to develop model workshops led and created by facilitators from top Universities around the world. Whoever brought Dr. Nelson on board to become the Headmaster of International School Songdo was once again either extremely lucky or really did their homework to maintain the high quality touted as being the very fabric of Songdo.
The third leader I met was Michel Ouimet, a multi-faceted and talented visionary well grounded in the arts of wise long term and strategic short term investments. Yet his work does not stop with his immediate role as CFO of the International School, but is powerfully manifested through his passion to build a community. Everyone is invited to play basketball in the school’s state-of-the-art gym on Wednesdays, be a contributing musician during music nights in his apartment building, and many more community oriented events. At this point in my endeavor to find the world’s most compelling city, I began to believe maybe the creators of this city were onto something special. Maybe Songdo would truly grow into its role as a global leader. Or, maybe the people that brought Michel aboard were just really lucky again. But meeting Michel, after discovering Songdo and connecting with Don and Jorge, was like watching a grand slam in the first inning of the World Series. It was like watching a highly practiced and prepared team, coming powerfully together for the big opening.
Michel Ouimet, Dr. Jorge Nelson, Joe Chung
Thus, I decided to pull the wild card. There’s no way a city with the slightest hint of inauthenticity could respond positively to this next move. I approached Songdo’s centrally located and first 5-star hotel with a request for a highly integrated, millenium-paced (meaning very fast-paced) partnership to help the city bring several world-class conferences to its doorsteps beginning as early as 2010. I did not think they would agree. Overstaffed and underoccupied given the timing of Songdo’s development, the Sheraton Incheon Hotel had already taken the necessary risks associated with being a first mover in a city that showed great potential. Therefore, either Sheraton’s investors were out of their minds or maybe they really actually knew what they were doing. Either way, if they had over-exerted themselves and weren’t focused on the main objective of a truly fast and successful launch, they would have easily overlooked my request and busied themselves within the much slower and traditional model of growth that all other cities and companies drably inspire from their people. Yet upon meeting with Sheraton’s head of Sales, Mun-Hee Park, and later the General Manager, Alain Rigodin, we began collaborating and I discovered the same common thread of passion-fueled movement integrated with reason-based action-planning truly existed within them, as it had within Don, Jorge, and Michel.
These five instrumental leaders gave me the confidence to wrap up the research completed for steps one and two. But the work was just beginning. In the very nature of conducting my research and being prepared to fully support a worthy endeavor, I was lucky to begin building a working relationship with these leaders and pioneers creating the city on a day-to-day basis. And in my line of work, coming across happy, inspired people working on the city means that the creators of this city have achieved no small feat in putting these teams together and creating these conditions for our success.
Step Three: Investigating the City’s Infrastructure.
Public Transportation and road infrastructure often reveals the first sign of weakness in a city. How fast and efficiently can you get around in this city? Unfortunately, the extremely critical and analytical portion of my research abilities were not able to find any weaknesses here. State of the art, near silent, subway lines, inside of state of the art (glowing light-bubbles included) subway stations, one-way fares equivalent to three US quarters, parks and open space encouraging walking instead of riding, a 20 minute bus ride to an International Airport where you can get to 1/3 of the world’s population within a 3.5 hour flight in any direction, taxi cabs arriving within 3 minutes of calling them (sometimes I think these cabbies have telepathy as they come zooming down the road 100 meters away, shortly after you call them), and my very favorite — the motion-detecting (only moving when you are on them) ultra-green, environmentally friendly escalators. Additionally, in future years there will be a high-speed train launched to transport people between Songdo and Seoul within 20 minutes.
Now onto observing supply as compared to demand in cities that have come from the ground up. With previous development of planned-cities, there have been few parameters in place to stop overbuilding. Some metropolises spread out of control. High supply, such as Dubai’s 70,000 units which came onto the market in late 2009 contributed to the current debt crisis occuring in Dubai today, which some experts estimate at up to $90B USD of troubled debts.
However, with Songdo, I have not observed over-building. The size of land in the main International Business District is limited, tightly knitted together and compact (though spacious with park space). The pre-planning and preparation of this city were unparalleled. Parties involved certainly completed their due diligence as they built Songdo.
Information flow in my version of a compelling, global city, is a must. Thus I will review language and technology.
Considering first the language of Songdo, my experience is that it truly is an English-speaking, International community. Of course Korean will be spoken widely but so far, I have not experienced an immediate need to learn the Korean language while working in Songdo. Other languages that I imagine will be used around the city, given its geographical location between China and Japan, are Mandarin, Japanese, and Cantonese. Once again, this mixture of languages and the International nature of the city, strengthens the necessity and usability of English as the main language used to get around in Songdo.
In terms of the technology backing information flow in Songdo, we are lucky to be sitting on the technological infrastructure created by Korea. People ride around on subways while having video phone conversations with each other or watching television on their handheld phones. This super high speed of data transfer can only mean one thing. Songdo city is extremely well poised to have its roots in Korean technology.
Enter companies such as Cisco. Cisco has developed dedicated lines for communication within the city of Songdo. Currently having implemented its best technology between important locations in the city, Cisco will be opening up the opportunity for people in Songdo to “telepresence” with each other and people and institutions from around the world. This instant form of communication can be likened to Skype Video conferencing x 100,000. These dedicated lines make it possible for data transfer at the speed of light from one point in the city or world to another. The technology behind this allows us to see even the most vivid details of the person you are communicating with and as you extend your boardroom, conference table, or dining table from Asia to Africa, India, Europe, North America, South America, or anywhere else in the world you’re looking to connect to. In Songdo, the world is truly at your fingertips.
Conclusion:
Others might glow red with instant content in a city that is abundant in wealth and profitability through the development of new technologies. But trust me, wealth and technology are just the beginning in a city like Songdo. Songdo is not a flash in the pan, it is not a glorified tool to obtain money from investors, and yet in a special way, it is indeed a castle in the sky. But this, I have found, is a very good thing. As Henry David Thoureau put it, “If you have built castles in the air… that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them,” and that foundation is exactly what we as people, have the opportunity of becoming in Songdo. Afterall, people should be the very foundation of any community, and the fact that Songdo was built with this purpose in mind (that we have this opportunity to become the foundation of this new city), attains for Songdo’s initial creators my most sincere and appreciative thanks for having the audacity for such a vision and the ability to bring it this far.
I first journeyed here to find out if Songdo might be the “world’s most compelling city.” Call me over the top, but after doing my research “A new hope for humanity” is a much more accurate title for a city like this. You might soon find Songdo replacing San Francisco as my new “current city” on my facebook page (so long as my buddies in Silicon Valley can keep up as Facebook recognizes Songdo as one of the world’s newest major cities).
And, I would encourage anyone with an appreciation for advance, quality, community, true learning, adventure, and forward movement to come out and join me!
By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor and Chief Blogger
Songdo IBD’s master plan recognized that world class education was vital. In turn, International School Songdo (ISS) was built to set a new standard for education–embracing true 21st century pedagogy and Classroom 2.0 mindset. Today that vision is reality, the school and its staff sharing this vision with educators globally. In fact, the school is in the fore front of virtual/ web based learning–strongly supported by Cisco and Cisco Webex technology.
This new video, hosted by ISS headmaster Dr. Jorge Nelson, shares ISS’s vision.
By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor and Chief Blogger
Songdo IBD and Cisco are a great fit. I support both. This Economic Times article shares “Why” Cisco is investing heavy in the project.
Technoholik: Can Delhi ever be an Incheon?
23 Oct 2009, 0544 hrs IST, Abhimanyu Radhakrishnan, ET Bureau
When the folks at Cisco called up last month, inviting me to cover a conference on ‘Sustainable Cities of the Future’ in Incheon, South Korea, I was a bit confused. Firstly, why in the world was a company that mainly makes routers and switches hosting an urban issues conference mainly for Mayoral delegations from around the world?
Secondly, why did they think Technoholik would be interested? Well, it seems that Cisco sees itself as an “infrastructure” company and they want to expand the definition of that word – which brings roads, bridges, buildings and electricity to mind – to include IT as a fundamental component. I was still skeptical, but when they assured me that there would actually be live demos, it seemed like it could make interesting viewing for our television show on ET NOW.
Cisco had chosen Seoul’s twin city as the showcase since Incheon was rebuilding itself for the 2014 Asian Games (it incidentally pipped Delhi in the final round of voting). On arriving at Incheon airport, which serves as Seoul’s international airport as well, my mind began to race. How did the city that I had just arrived from, even think that it stood a chance?
The already modern city of Incheon wasn’t just upgrading – it was building an entire new district called Songdo , largely reclaimed from the sea, as part of a new Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ) to take advantage of its imminent fame as Asian Games host.
The advantage of building from scratch of course, is that they can incorporate the kind of futuristic tech that folks like Cisco are hoping will be a part of every major city in the near future. We’re not talking about flying cars. But if your traffic lights and electric grid are on a network, while your automobile number plates have smart tags embedded, cities can save power by switching off street lights when no cars are on certain parts of the road. Plumbing and gas lines can be maintained better with sensors while energy consumption can be monitored and optimised .
Lets take buildings as another example. At the construction stage itself along with laying ducts for electricity and gas, builders of the future will lay network cables and sensors into the steel and concrete itself. One such developer in Songdo, GALE International , actually had a ‘wired’ building up and running, which was entirely IP-enabled .
The resident could control every light switch, door, security camera, window shade and appliance from a set of touchscreen panels in the house. This wasn’t just for convenience – the main draw was the ability to see how much energy the apartment was consuming (and more importantly , wasting) so that adjustments could be made by allowing natural light and heat using window shades, switching off parts of the central AC, and turning off unused power sources. This was being done both for individual dwellings and for common areas of the building.
The “media room” of course had a videoconferencing unit (Cisco’s high-end “TelePresence” system, what else!) built into the large-screen home theatre. The interesting thing was that one could access various services via the large LCD TV in a sort of “municipal app store” way. One could dial in and videochat with the local police department , the school, civic services, supermarkets or just browse the interactive options they offered.
Cisco in fact hopes to convince cities that such an approach could actually generate additional revenue apart from providing basic services more efficiently. You can see this futuristic building and some more examples of urban tech from Incheon on the Technoholik show this weekend! In fact my two days in Incheon seemed even more of a mirage of sorts, these past few weeks, as I scanned the papers and our lack of preparedness for the Commonwealth Games dominated the headlines. But a glimmer of hope came from one of those headlines when I read that Sam Pitroda had been appointed advisor of Cabinet Rank to the Prime Minister on, get this, Infrastructure, Innovation and Information! Our wired future hopefully, ain’t that far away!
Incheon Bridge
The long awaited opening of the Incheon Bridge will have tremendous impact on Songdo IBD and the region. The soft opening is this week. (Last weekend the Bridge hosted a marathon for 30,000 runners).
Choson Ilbo notes,
Incheon Bridge to Open Friday
The Incheon Bridge is to be officially opened on Friday[October 16], four years and four months after construction began.
The bridge connects the Songdo International Business District in the Incheon Free Economic Zone and Yeongjongdo, where Incheon International Airport is located.
To celebrate the opening of the bridge, Incheon city and the Chosun Ilbo co-host a walking tour on Saturday. Vehicles are allowed from Monday.
The bridge at 21.38 km is the country’s longest and the world’s seventh longest. Among cable-stayed bridges, it is the world’s fifth longest bridge.
Classroom 2.0 Virtual Q & A (ISS Director of Curriculum James Kelly)
By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor and Chief Blogger
Songdo IBD’s vision for the future includes intergrating people and technology. Recently International School Songdo educators benefitted from Cisco Webex technology. Conducted by Bridging Culture Worldwide CEO Don Southerton an interactive virtual classroom ( Classroom 2.0) workshop discussed Korean eduction and its strong ties to the workplace. Following a short lecture, Southerton and the group of veteran educators engaged in virtual Q & A.
ISS Korean Culture Training and Cisco Webex Technology Video
By Don Southerton, Songdo IBD CityTalk Editor and Chief Blogger
I was very pleased with a recent Korean language article in San Diego Korean American Community Magazine. The 2 page spread highlights Chemulpo to Songdo IBD: Korea’s International Gateway, which was released in August. The book has been very well received by the Korean community, both in Korea and abroad. A high quality complimentary web version of the pictorial history book is available online. Click Here.
(Click to view in full format)
