Questions/Answers

Seoul’s Energy Welfare Public-Private Partnership Program is a collaboration between local government and the private sector that seeks to reduce energy poverty and promote the conservation and sharing of energy. The program includes projects to retrofit homes to increase their energy efficiency, employ underprivileged jobseekers as energy consultants and welfare workers, conduct assessments of residential environments, and provide a range of direct and indirect support to reduce energy poverty. What is particularly noteworthy is the program’s focus on creating jobs for low-income families. Seoul Metropolitan Government employs underprivileged jobseekers as energy consultants and welfare workers who are responsible for conducting assessments of residential environments, energy welfare support, and home retrofits to increase energy efficiency. The city government launched the Energy Sharing Corporate Group to encourage private sector actors to participate in its energy welfare projects. And through the Seoul Energy Welfare Civic Fund which was established to provide energy welfare for low-income families, citizens are participating in raising, managing, and using funds based on donations from citizens and corporations. Through cooperation between the public and private sectors, Seoul is improving energy welfare for the underprivileged, increasing social equality, saving energy, and enhancing the sustainability of the city.

The Energy Welfare Public-Private Partnership Program aims to reduce energy poverty and promote the saving and sharing of energy through collaboration between local government and private sector actors.

This program is a prime example of cooperation between the private sector and local government to protect the underprivileged and increase social equality. It is also making a significant contribution to energy conservation and sharing by conducting assessments of the residential environment of the underprivileged, providing indirect and direct energy welfare for the underprivileged, and employing underprivileged jobseekers as energy consultants and welfare workers. Using donations from citizens and corporations, the city government established a solar energy plant as part of its plan to build a sustainable energy welfare support system.

Seoul Metropolitan Government provided mini solar panels to low-income households in run-down districts to help them reduce their energy costs and realize a sustainable and inclusive city.

Seoul is enhancing its energy welfare projects by cooperating with citizens, corporations, and civic groups to provide satisfactory energy welfare to underprivileged people and building systems that the underprivileged can actively participate in and contribute to. The projects carried out by the city government are providing energy welfare benefits directly to the underprivileged and reducing the risks faced by and enhancing social equality and security for energy-poor households particularly vulnerable to the adverse weather conditions caused by climate change.

The program helps low-income households reduce their energy costs by installing micro-photovoltaic panels and cool roofs, replacing conventional lightbulbs with LED bulbs, and retrofitting homes to increase energy efficiency. It also collaborates with businesses and civic groups to help low-income households increase their incomes and secure jobs. Seoul even employs underprivileged jobseekers as energy consultants and welfare workers, who continue to work in the industry and have founded cooperatives and non-profit organizations, going on to make contributions to energy welfare of their own. Furthermore, to increase social equality, the city government ensures that at-risk communities receive home energy efficiency upgrades and relevant job training and employment.

Seoul is the first South Korean city to register a “virtual power plant,” through which it sells the electricity saved by 17 municipal buildings and institutions (approx. five megawatts). The annual profits of the virtual power plant, around USD 178,000, are sent to the Seoul Energy Welfare Civic Fund to expand its energy welfare programs for combating energy poverty. The virtual power plant project has been extended to 16 universities to reduce their electricity consumption during peak hours and donate the profits back to the program to help support its energy welfare efforts. Using donations made by corporations in the private sector (KRW 1 billion), the city government has installed a photovoltaic power station and created a sustainably financed method for reducing energy poverty throughout the city. In 2015, Seoul launched the Energy Sharing Corporate Group, through which 43 corporations and entities are promoting energy saving and sharing culture and enhancing cooperation between the public and private sectors in an effort to create synergy in energy welfare programs. Through the group, citizens are directly involved in raising, managing, and using funds donated by corporations and entities, thus ensuring transparency (Seoul Energy Welfare Civic Fund).

The program has been carried out solely by Seoul Metropolitan Government, while its budget has been secured through donations from citizens and corporations and used to provide energy welfare for low-income households.

Subsidies from the city, environment- and welfare-related private entities, welfare institutions, citizens, corporations, schools, and churches (as it is a public-private partnership program)

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Seoul Metropolitan Government created a booklet about its five-year plan for the “One Less Nuclear Power Plant” project as a way of disseminating the plan to other local governments. It is also operating an energy welfare website to share its knowledge and experience.

Citizen participation is what makes it possible for the energy welfare program to provide the support that underprivileged citizens need. By communicating and cooperating closely with civic groups, local community centers, and social cooperatives, we have increased citizen satisfaction with the energy welfare program.

The energy welfare program has been carried out for four years. As energy-poor households still exist and continue to show strong interest and actively participate in the city’s effort to help them, there is little reason to doubt the sustainability of the program.

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Nominated for Seoul Creativity Award for the first half of 2017

Won the Seoul Creativity Award for the first half of 2017 (Mutual Developing Cooperation) (organized by the Seoul City Innovation Plan Office)

Cooperation, effectiveness, continuity, hardness, and scope of application

Throughout the program, the scope of participation has been expanding to include the members of the general public, corporations, NGOs, local districts, and schools, in addition to those participating in the “One Less Nuclear Power Plant” project and college student supporters. Also, citizens have been directly involved in making decisions on policy directions, program promotion, fundraising, and provision of volunteer activities. In the process of planning and executing the program, cooperation and communication with citizens served as crucial factors.

Citizens are directly participating in raising and operating funds, and the city government is providing indirect support for this program. This means the outcomes of the program depend heavily upon citizens’ participation and capabilities. Moreover, the program is a demonstration of the active participation of citizens and close cooperation between the public and private sectors.