| 4. In which ways is the initiative creative and innovative?
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① Materialization of Online Eco-product Certification System (2005)
Before, information about eco-products was not be able to provide to the public and industries in real time thanks in large part to the eco-labelling certification system whose procedure work was done in one office, thus resulting in poor performance of the system.
In response to that, efforts were made to make the overall processes of the eco-labelling certification system available online, which is composed of an application for certification -> approval -> establishment of information about certified products (eco-products) through standardization, streamlining and computerization, helping lay a basis for an innovative production and distribution.
As a results, it has led to a much shorter time spent on the legal processes of the certification procedures from 30 days to on average 20 days from 2005 and to a dramatic increase in the number of certified products ever since. The number of certified products has gone up by 357% from 1,536 to 7,904, which is a 6,368 increase between 2005 and 2010. Compare this to figures between 1999 and 2004, which was up from 143 to 1,536, a 1,393 increase.
Meanwhile, regulations on the abusive use of the eco-label, which is intended to earn consumers’ trust, were established to prevent potential problems.
② Establishment of Korea Online GReen Product Information Network (KOGRIN) for the Enhancement of Information Utilization (2006)
With the Eco-product Certification system being stored in an intranet (private computer network) the disclosure of Eco-product information was unavailable. To address this, the KOGRIN was launched to establish a framework of data collection about certified products, information disclosure about eco-products and interconnectness between eco-products, thus achieving a flexible platform for the real time disclosure of eco-product information, effective utilization and linkage.
As of 2012, a wealth of information regarding a total of 8,000 different eco-products, purchasing records and system introduction were made public.
③ Information Sharing for the Implementation of Green Consumption Initiative (2007)
Establishing an information sharing platform for consumers through the KOGRIN requires a variety of methods. Based on procedures which include recognizing the needs of consumers, establishing an information linkage and providing customized information, eco-product information has been provided in the forms of DB to DB, API (Application Program Interface) and Excel. And in cooperation with12 organizations including Korea On-Line E-Procurement System, Korea Water Resources Corporation, local governments, national educational institutions, large retail stores and green card affiliated companies, a wealth of information about approximately 10,000 eco-products have been provided in real time.
For recent years, the standardization of the data based on the Open API (Open Application Programmer Interface) has helped consumers have easier access to the eco-product information while quality control has been also implemented to enhance the reliability of the provided information.
④ Establishment and Management of Green Consumption Performance Collection and Analysis System(2010)
The performance of green consumption has been totaled through the KOGRIN to check to see if the system works in an effective way. The Korea On-Line E-Procurement System of the Public Procurement Service collects purchasing records to provide information about purchasing performance relative to initial plans of each organization, purchasing grades (excellent, average, poor) while the analysis of those data are used as basic materials for green consumption/production policy measures such as best practices and policy improvements.
As for sales performance, the revenue from the eco products purchased by public organizations was increased from 254.9 billion won (about US$ 254.9 million) in 2004 to 1.797 billion (about US$ 1.727 billion) in 2012 while the number of certified companies was up from 37 in 1992 to 1,685 in 2012. The scale of the market for eco-friendly products also went up from 3.3 trillion (about US$ 3.3 billion) won in 2005 to 30 trillion (about US$30 billion) in 2012.
Meanwhile, in trying to further boost purchasing, both the public and private sector have continued to deliver education programs (10 regions nationwide) to raise awareness of the public on green purchase.
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| 5. Who implemented the initiative and what is the size of the population affected by this initiative?
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The ultimate beneficiaries of the KOGRIN are expected to be companies producing certified green products and the public on the grounds that the widespread of sustainable production and consumption will contribute to the creation of healthy production and consumption.
However, the primary interested parties in the public sector are technically the Public Procurement Service responsible for the provision of information regarding sales performance of eco products, product classification, total performance, and the Korea Water Resources Corporation and the Army Headquarters, whose finance systems are interconnected with those of other organizations.
As for the private sector, about 140 companies including Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motors, Sony Korea and Posco have singed a voluntary agreement to purchase eco-products while 6 subcommittees have strived to promote the implementation of substantial green purchasing. Regionally, distributors and local governments have joined forces to designate Green Purchasing Support Centers and Green Stores in each region, strengthening the protection of consumers’ right and consumption/distribution systems.
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| 6. How was the strategy implemented and what resources were mobilized?
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After the establishment of the KOGRIN in 2005, a total of 550 million won (about US$ 550,000) have been funneled into information collection, sales performance aggregation and information sharing with 80% of the money covered by profits from certification issuance and 20 % from the government assistance. It is expected that due to a potential rise in the number of companies with certified green products, profits from the certification issuance will be able to pay 100 % of the spending in 2 to 3 years. Indirectly, about 5 billion won (about US$ 5 million) have been invested in the standardization of the green product certification and certification issuance with approximately 50 % of the amount being covered by profits from certification issuance.
In managing the KOGRIN, 5 personnel of the Korea National Environmental Information Center at the KEITI (Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute) have been directly engaged in computerization of certification issuance, green product information collection and evaluation, sales revenue aggregation and its analysis, and the sharing of data regarding policy demand while about 50 persons of Green Lifestyle Department and Environmental Certification Department have indirectly been involved in drawing up and implementing policy measures for the promotion of green consumption.
The information about green product has been provided and shared with other organizations via servers and networks, designed for the provision of ICT based-information, and servers interconnected with other organizations. In particular, we have been credited for the provision of public information by the Ministry of Security and Public Administration, allowing us to receive technical assistance at no cost for Open API (Open Application Programmer Interface) development and information quality control from 2013.
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| 7. Who were the stakeholders involved in the design of the initiative and in its implementation?
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① Sharing Information about Purchase Records Made by the Public Sector (including Public Procurement Service)
Sales revenue from public organizations on the KOGRIN (www.greenproduct.go.kr) rose from 254.9 billion won (about US$ 254.9 million) in 2004 to 727 billion (about US$ 1.727 billion) in 2012. And the number of certified companies also increased to 1,685 in 2012 from 37 in 1992. All of this greatly contributed to the surge in the scale of the market for eco-friendly products, which was up from 3.3 trillion won (about US$ 3.3 billion) in 2005 to a whopping 30 trillion (about US$ 30 billion) in 2005.
Based on the purchasing records on the basis of 19 items sold to public organizations, which includes electric/electronic devices (11), construction materials (3), office furniture and other items (5), the degree of CO2 reduction was analyzed. The results of the analysis found that the amount of CO2 emissions reduced amounted to about 268 ton. This is corresponding to the amount of CO2 absorbed by around 2400 of 10-year-old pine trees, which is also equivalent to more than 40.5 billion won (about US$40.5 million) in economic benefits.
② Green Card System Management in the Private Sector
With a view to encouraging green lifestyle of the general public and substantially reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the Green Card system was designed to help promote easy and convenience lifestyle that comes with incentives. With the first Green Card issued to President Lee Myung-Bak in July 2011, the number of the green card issuance stood at a staggering 7 million as of Dec. 2013.
In addition to purchasing eco-products in daily lives as conventional credit cards, card holders receive points called Eco-money when practicing green lifestyle. For instance, those who reduce power, water and gas can accumulate from 70,000 up to 100,000 won and those who use public transportation can accumulate from 5000 won up to 10,000 on a monthly basis. Besides, purchasing affiliated green products in large retail stores and departments can also lead to points of 5 % of the products’ prices. In Feb. 2012, 539 products from 45 companies were part of the system. Other incentives include 50% discount for campsite in national parks and forest lodges, and free entry or discount for 183 public facilities in 15 institutions nationwide.
BC card member banks (IBK, NH Nonghyup, Woori Bank, Hana SK Card, Daegu Bank, Busan Bank, Kyoungnam Bank and Post Office) and KB Kookmin Card issue the green card. It holds a significant meaning in the fact that the conception and development of the green card system were attributable to the combination of the public sector’s commitment (the Ministry of Environment and Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institution) to green purchasing and green product information networks, and the consumption infrastructure in the private sector.
In addition, in an attempt to disseminate the benefits of the system to the world, in June 2012 in Brazil, the Ministry of Environment and Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute held a High Level Policy Forum on Development of Framework for Green Economy at Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development in cooperation with the UNESCAP. At the forum, the Green Purchasing System and Green Cards were introduced as best practices, attracting a positive response.
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| 8. What were the most successful outputs and why was the initiative effective?
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With the enactment and enforcement of Act on Encouragement of Purchase of Green Products in 2005, the Ministry of Environment and Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute established master plans from 2006 to 2010 and have conducted performance evaluations every year, aiding in re-establishing advanced plans through the assessment of comprehensive performances and analysis thereof after 5 years. In fact, the results of the first evaluation of the master plan of Encouragement of Purchase of Green Products Act hav1e served as a stepping stone for the second basic plan, producing tangible results such as the Green Card system, Green Purchasing Support Centers in each region and the provision of environmental friendly construction materials.
Recognizing the significance of the monitoring of purchasing performances of the public institutions leading the eco-friendly product market, we have set binding obligations on public organizations to collect the records of eco-product purchase made through the KOGRIN and make plans to implement the purchasing. Based on this, we have been reported those data from the public organization each year and used them for the government statistics. In doing so, we have also made efforts to strengthen the reliability of the data by establishing a platform for automatically sharing information about eco-product transactions made through the Public Procurement Service in which most of the transactions of public organizations take place. In addition, in an attempt to hold the public organizations accountable for the obligations to purchase eco-products, the eco-product purchasing performance was incorporated in the lists of organization management evaluations, putting limitations on the government support.
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| 9. What were the main obstacles encountered and how were they overcome?
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A report published by the Samsung Economic Research Institute (SERI) in 2011 found that while South Korea ranked 6th among 28 OECD member countries in terms of green growth in 2010, it ranked 24th in terms of green consumption. The statistics attest to the fact that without the shift in the perception of eco-friendly lifestyle, technology development and green product production are unable to meet the global challenges such as climate change and environmental threats.
Then, how are we going to enhance the awareness of the green consumption and to make the transition to the genuine green lifestyle? A national survey of green lifestyle conducted by the Presidential Committee on Green Growth in 2012 showed that 22% of those surveyed (1,000) responded that incentives are the most important to make more people engaged in green lifestyle. And Yong et al. in the UK conducted research in 2010 on consistency/inconsistency between the mindset and actual decisions to show the impact of the discrepancy on the actual decision-making about eco-products through in-depth interview. The results of the research showed that the process of purchasing green products was influenced by a number of factors including the level of the consumers’ perception about green values, previous experiences, length of time spent on decision-making, intensity of interest in environmental issues and product price. On balance, it can be concluded that green purchasing can be promoted when people become more conscious about environmental issues and legitimate incentives (or affordable prices of the products) are offered.
Keeping in mind them described above, we have tried to mirror them in the 2nd Master Plan of Encouragement of Purchase of Green Products Act between the years of 2011 and 2015, and to faithfully carry out the plan, thus allowing us to successfully solve much of the problems. What we would like to present here is inarguably the Green Card System. That is because the system has made an awful lot of contributions to an increase in purchase acceptance of green products by setting up a new frame. As a result of that, in Dec. 2013, the number of the green card holders amounted to a staggering 7 million.
In addition, designated Green Purchase Support Centers have served as a venue for education commensurate with each regional situation and information exchange, helping further encourage green consumption.
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