Sustainable development in korea, key issues and government response

Abstract

This paper examines the current status of sustainable development in Korea to identify key issues to be solved in achieving sustainable development. Since the publication of Brundtland Report in 1987 and Earth Summit in 1992, the term ‘sustainable development’ became a popular phrase as a new guideline and value to be pursued in every sector of society. In the public sector, it is emerging as an alternative development model in the 21st century and in the private sector, it is being widely adopted as a new business strategy to fulfill business social responsibility. Even with lack of clarity in its meaning, it has been generally agreed that the term ‘sustainable development’ indicates a balanced development of economic, social, and environmental sectors at the same time. Korean society also has been moving toward a sustainable development since the Earth Summit. The pace, however, has been slow and even inconsistent. This paper examines the status of sustainability in Korea from economic, social, and environmental aspect with main emphasis on the environmental area. Literature review and analysis on existing data from various sources were used for this purpose. Having examined the Korean sustainability status, key issues and shortcomings of government response to be addressed to achieve sustainable development were discussed with some policy suggestions. © 2006 International Review of Public Administration.