The Munhwa Ilbo Daily Newspaper, a leading Korean media publication, has invited IIASA Interim Deputy Director General for Science, Wolfgang Lutz, to deliver a keynote address at the 6th Munhwa Future Report 2023 international event in Seoul, Korea.

The Munhwa Ilbo has hosted the Munhwa Future Report (MFR) since 2018, as a venue for conducting informal debate and seeking answers to the historic challenges the world now faces, including degradation of the environment, economic polarization, the changing international order, the crisis of democracy, and the latest scientific and technological breakthroughs. The theme of the sixth MFR meeting to be held on 29 June 2023 is Population – The key to the rise and fall of states in the 21st Century.

The participants will engage in in-depth discussions on the phenomena, nature, and solutions of the population crisis that has emerged as a key challenge for humanity; a crisis deeply aggravated by low fertility and aging populations in major countries around the world. Korea in particular is going through an unprecedented population crisis, with its total fertility rate hitting the lowest level of 0.78% last year, pushing the country to the brink of becoming a super-aged society.

Lutz has been invited to speak at session 1 of the event under the theme: The phenomena and nature of the global population crisis. He will share his insights and ideas for dealing with the population crisis based on his long and outstanding research and analysis in the field of demography.

The organizers are expecting approximately 500 government officials and private and public sectors to attend the event on-site and about 1000 invited audience members will join remotely. The event will be live-streamed on YouTube for public viewing (link to follow).

About the Munhwa Ilbo

The Munhwa Ilbo was initially part of the Hyundai Group, established in 1991. Currently, the Munhwa Ilbo has grown into the largest and only evening daily newspaper in Korea with 200,000 subscribers. The Munhwa Future Report events have attracted international audiences and dealt with themes such as Human Evolution and AI Revolution (2018), China Power and Korea (2019), Climate and Post-Coronavirus (2020), Digital Transformation and Democracy (2021). Last year, in the 5th Munhwa Future Report, the event addressed the need for and the direction of the second national leap following the inauguration of the new administration under the theme: Rebuilding Korea: Integration and Resurgence, and was opened by the South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

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