Turning Waste into Hope: Korean Artists Reimagine Climate Action at Hong Kong Conference

Held on 12 and 13 October under the theme “Alliance for Action,” CU 2026 explored how collaboration across disciplines can turn cultural ideas into practical work.

Two young artists from the Republic of Korea brought climate-focused visual art to the Hong Kong Culture and Sustainability Conference 2026, linking environmental challenges with community participation and cultural heritage. Their projects featured in a UNESCO presentation on 13 October, under the title "From Ocean to City: How Art Reimagines Climate Action." The artists' work showed how creative practice can make sustainability concerns tangible and invite people to reflect on everyday choices.

Held on 12 and 13 October under the theme "Alliance for Action," CU 2026 explored how collaboration across disciplines can turn cultural ideas into practical work. The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and the Hong Kong Culture and Sustainability Centre co-presented and co-organised the conference, which brought together artists and cultural practitioners. UNESCO contributed to Panel 7 on visual arts, where participants discussed how museums, galleries and art fairs are responding to sustainability concerns.

The presentation was part of Je Create: Culture and Innovation for a Sustainable Future, a 2026 initiative launched by UNESCO and Jeju Self-Governing Province. Its Art for Earth: Climate Creativity Lab supports young artists across Asia and the Pacific who work at the intersection of art and climate action. Through an open call and selection process, the Artist Exchange Series offers cross-border mobility, peer learning and opportunities to connect with new cultural communities.

Art that makes waste visible

Lee Ho Gyeong's Upcycled Traces of Urban Consumption turns receipts, packaging, paper, wood and fabric into visual records of discarded materials. Her upcycling and storytelling reveal how ordinary consumption leaves a material trace across city life. The work encourages audiences to reconsider daily habits and the environmental consequences attached to them.

Kim Hamin's Tides of Hope uses marine debris gathered during beach clean-ups along the Jeju coast. The artist transforms plastic waste and driftwood into furniture, connecting environmental action with collective making and social inclusion. Some of the furniture is donated to refugee families, including school-age children, linking coastal clean-ups with community care.

The projects trace a path from urban consumption to marine pollution, showing how waste generated in daily life can reach coastlines and ecosystems. Conference attendees spoke with the artists about their materials, methods and ideas for engaging the public with sustainability. The exchanges gave cultural practitioners a chance to consider how visual art can shift perspectives on environmental issues and sustainable living.

Connecting artistic practice with local heritage

Beyond the conference, the artists visited Kat O Island, part of the UNESCO Global Geopark in Hong Kong, where they encountered local cultural and natural heritage and met Hong Kong artists. Their visit coincided with the Dajiao Festival, a traditional community event held once every ten years. The gathering offered a direct encounter with living heritage and the local practices that shape community identity.

The field visit connected the artists' contemporary work on environmental issues with local knowledge, cultural traditions and people's relationships with place. It extended peer learning beyond the conference and opened space for cross-cultural exchange around art, heritage and sustainability. The experience reflected Je Create's focus on connecting creativity with local contexts and encouraging knowledge-sharing across borders and disciplines.

UNESCO's participation raised the profile of Art for Earth and Je Create within Hong Kong's cultural and sustainability networks. The conference and island visit demonstrated how regional artist exchanges can link climate-focused projects with local cultural communities and create opportunities for future collaboration. UNESCO welcomes further engagement with artists, cultural institutions, researchers, civil society and policymakers in Hong Kong and across Asia and the Pacific, with a focus on co-creation, climate action and the Sustainable Development Goals.