Jeju, South Korea; June 4, 2025—On the day South Korea elected its 21st president, a giant “eye” appeared outside of the International Convention Center Jeju.
To mark World Environment Day 2025, the Korean civil society coalition, Uproot Plastics staged a performance featuring a giant #WeAreWatching flag in support of a strong Global Plastics Treaty that includes plastic production cuts.
The 30-meter by 20-meter flag, created by Swiss artist Dan Acher in collaboration with Greenpeace, is made up of portraits of 6,472 citizens from around the world. The #WeAreWatching flag was previously flown above Busan in November 2024 during the fifth Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee(INC-5) for a Global Plastics Treaty, which South Korea hosted.
The performance in Jeju coincided with South Korea’s hosting of World Environment Day for the first time in 28 years. The World Environment Day events, co-hosted by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and South Korea’s Ministry of Environment, was held under the theme “Beat Plastic Pollution.”
Uproot Plastics staged this performance to deliver a message to the newly elected president and the South Korean government, the host of the event, urging them to support a strong Global Plastics Treaty including production cuts, and to remind them that people around the world are watching governments worldwide, including South Korea.
The treaty, mandated by the UN, aimed to establish a legally binding agreement to end plastic pollution through the 5 INC(Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee) meetings. However, INC-5 failed to deliver a treaty. In particular, the South Korean government did not demonstrate a responsible attitude as the host country of INC-5.
In a statement issued after the flag performance, Uproot Plastics criticized the South Korean government’s ambiguous stance at INC-5:
“Although Minister of Environment Kim Wan-seop expressed support for production cuts ahead of INC-5, the South Korean government ultimately maintained an ambiguous stance by failing to participate in any related actions. This has disappointed more than 100 member states which support a treaty with production cuts and the civil society both domestically and internationally, and global citizens who hoped for a strong Global Plastics Treaty.”
Uproot Plastics urged the new government to seize the opportunity to correct course.
“As the host of the previous INC meeting, the host of this year’s World Environment Day, and a member of the High Ambition Coalition (HAC), the Korean government has both the responsibility and the opportunity to lead. At the upcoming extended round of the fifth Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5.2), South Korea must take a strong stand for a strong treaty that will reduce plastic production”
The treaty negotiation(The second part of the fifth session, INC5.2) will continue in Geneva in August 2025. Production cuts the centerpiece of the treaty, with more than 100 countries already expressing their support. Global pressure is mounting for a strong treaty with production cuts.
Giant "eye" #WeAreWatching unveiled in Jeju as governments gear up for another round of plastics treaty negotiations
Members of the Uproot Plastics coalition include Action for a Carcinogen-free Korea, Almang Market, Break Free From Plastic (BFFP), Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), Green Environment Youth Korea (GEYK), Green Korea United (GKU), Greenpeace Korea, Korea Federation for Environmental Movements (KFEM), Korea Zerowaste Movement Network, Korean Women's Environmental Network (KWEN), National Council of the Green Consumers Network in Korea, Our Sea of East Asia Network (OSEAN), RELOOP, Seoul Korea Federation for Environmental Movements (Seoul KFEM), Wonjin Institute for Occupational and Environmental Health (WIOEH), and Zero Waste Citizen Center.
Media Contact:
Hanee Lee Greenpeace Communications Officer
010-9428-1592 / hanee.lee@greenpeace.org
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