The World Civic Forum 2009, jointly initiated by Kyung Hee University and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), will be held on May 5-8, 2009 at the COEX in Seoul, Korea. The World Civic Forum 2009 emerges from the leading collaboration between the UN and institutions of higher education institutions, and aims to develop into an ongoing global institution with the partnership of like-minded actors such as NGOs, international organizations, governments, private enterprise, and the media under the main theme of “Building Our Humanitarian Planet.” The World Civic Forum 2009 provides global exchange of ideas and practices to embody these shared goals of humanity in the 21st century.

Despite the material and technological development, today we are faced with global problems-in particular, national conflicts and insecurity, environmental destructions and climate change, global injustice and underdevelopment, and alienation between civilizations-due to the loss of values of humanity in the course of modern civilization. In order to build just societies, governments and civil society organizations are now exploring new mechanisms of partnership and devising new ways of running the businesses of the states.

The World Civic Forum is a joint initiative of Kyung Hee University and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) to address the key global challenges but mainly from the capacity building perspective. In 2004, Kyung Hee University proposed the WCF as a key project of the "1999 Seoul International Conference of NGOs". In the context of several international declarations and resolutions including the adoption of the Millennium Declaration, the Kyung Hee University & UNDESA is spearheading initiatives to debate and strengthen both the concept as well as practical aspects of civic engagement in socio-economic development.

MAIN THEME: BUILDING OUR HUMANITARIAN PLANET

KEY THEMES: CIVIC VALUES, CIVIC ENGAGEMENT, AND CIVIC ACTION
- Civic Values for Global Justice
- Civic Engagement in Public and Global Governance
- Civic Action for the Global Agenda Including Climate Change

We propose to build a Humanitarian Planet by promoting civic values, civic engagement, and civic action through civic partnership between universities and international organizations in conjunction with civil society organizations, governments, academic associations, the business sector, and the media. Humanitarian transformation of the earth is a realistic goal if these institutions seek trans-boundary synergies between research, education, and practice, driven by the spirit of global minds.

World Civic Youth Forum 2009, a major institutional program of the World Civic Forum 2009, is an international conference under the theme of "Global Issues of the 21st Century and the Role of College Youth". College youth gather from around the world to share and discuss the global issues of common concern such as peace, environment, development, human rights, gender, and culture, and search for the solution.
The official website of the WCYF2009 is www.wcf2009.org.

To increase participation and institutional contributions, partners are encouraged to take the lead in forming the plenary sessions. Institutional partners will include higher education institutions, international organizations, civil society organizations, governments, the business sector, and the media. The following is the list of institutional partners.

AICESIS (International Association of Economic and Social Councils and Similar Institutions)
CONGO (Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations)
EROPA (Eastern Regional Organization for Public Administration)
INMP (International Network of Museums for Peace)
Penn, LPS (College of Liberal & Professional Studies, University of Pennsylvania)
UN Global Compact/PRME (UN Global Compact, The Principles for Responsible Management Education)
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization)
UNWTO (UN World Tourism Organization)
Woodrow Wilson School (Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University)

The forum is to build better understanding and awareness of the importance of the roles and responsibilities in the promotion of global civic engagement.
•Establishment of a sustainable space and platform for cooperation among key actors and stakeholders;
•Establishment of a sustainable network of public training institutions including higher education and universities for the promotion of civic education values and leadership capital.

All events and sessions will be conducted in English (or partly Korean-English interpretation). The Opening Ceremony will offer interpretation services in Korean, Chinese, French. (tentative)

No. Unfortunately the deadline for submission was on January 31, 2009. We are no longer accepting submissions.

Full paper submission must be done online using the e-submission system. Please go to ‘Full Paper Submission’ menu and read the guidelines carefully before submitting your paper(s). The submission system involves you filling in a simple web form attaching your prepared full paper and a brief CV (Please download the CV format).

April 15 is the deadline for final submission once you have received the letter of acceptance. Before submitting full paper(s), please register in advance by March 31.

You may have problems with uploading if the full paper you are uploading is not in proper application format (MS Word or PDF) and/or the file size exceeds 5MB. Please change the file format and/or reduce the file size in order to upload.
If you continue to have problems with e-Submission, please contact the WCF 2009 Secretariat at paper@wcf2009.org.

Because we have waived the registration fee for the inaugural World Civic Forum, other funding is unavailable at this time.

Only those paper(s) presented at the World Civic Forum 2009 will be published. Please do not submit your paper if you are unable to present your paper at the WCF 2009.

Yes. Your co-author or colleague can present your material on your behalf. However, you must notify the World Civic Forum Secretariat of the substitution in advance. Failure to notify the World Civic Forum Secretariat in advance will disqualify your paper from being presented.

There may be an email delay or an error in your email address field on the form, or your organization may have blocked the message to go to your spam mail. If you have not received your confirmation email within 24 hours of submission, please contact the Secretariat at paper@wcf2009.org.

You can modify your paper(s) in the same way as you submitted the paper in the first place by going to <My Page>. Please click the Review button of the full paper submission menu and resubmit your new full paper after removing the previous submission.

There may be 3 or 4 presenters in a session. Each session will last for 90 minutes. Schedule of session programs will be finalized by the third week of March. For detailed arrangement of the panel you are part of, please contact your panel chair.

Advanced online registration is strongly recommended. The e-Registration for the World Civic Forum 2009 is open until March 31, 2009. However, you can also register in person at the start of the World Civic Forum 2009 at a nominal fee. Registration fee is waived for advanced online registration. A confirmation email will be sent immediately after registering from the World Civic Forum 2009 Secretariat once you have successfully completed the registration process.

The registration fee has been waived for those who pre-register online. After March 31, 2009, however, there will be a nominal registration fee for on-site registration. Advanced online registration is highly recommended.

All attendees registered in advance can pick-up their conference packet upon check-in at the pre-registration desk.

You can change or modify your registration at <My Page> by March 31, 2009.

Please notify your cancellation in writing and it must be received by the Secretariat (registration@wcf2009.org) by March 31, 2009.

Any foreign visitor wishing to enter the Republic of Korea should have a valid passport and a visa. It is very important that you start arranging your visa in advance. The procedure takes at least two weeks, and it can be very difficult to arrange an appointment at the embassy. So, please try to reach the embassy as soon as possible, and arrange an appointment at least a month before you visit Korea. To find out more, please visit the VISA information at here.

No. We do not provide meals during the forum.