Greetings, everyone, and thank you for joining us for this week’s edition of GTV. I’m Don Valiant and this is the news from Gyeonggi Province this week. IoT Helps Reduce Air Pollution (1103) Gyeonggi Province recently announced plans to expand its support for the installation of air pollution-measurement devices that use the Internet of Things, or IoT, at small businesses. The province has signed an agreement with the Metropolitan Air Quality Management Office and the Korea Environment Corporation for air quality improvement. In cooperation with these organizations, the province will strive to reduce air pollutant emissions from businesses through various endeavors including the installation of IoT-integrated devices. ◇ Gyeonggi Releases Young Mudflat Organisms at 8 Locations (1103) Last October, the Gyeonggi Maritime & Fisheries Research Institute released young short-necked clams, corb shells and lugworms, which had been bred using methods developed by the institute, at 8 coastal mudflat areas. Breeding technology development and the release of young organisms by the institute is expected to help increase fishing household income while restoring mudflat ecology. ◇ Gyeonggi Recruits Participants for 2021 Upcycle Maker-thon (1104) Gyeonggi Province is currently recruiting participants for the 2021 Gyeonggi Upcycle Maker-thon in order to identify feasible upcycling concepts for the province. This event, which is being held for the first time this year, will showcase creative upcycling products that can be used to address waste recycling issues. Applications for teams of 2 to 4 members over 17 years of age can be made via the Upcycle Plaza website along with the submission of necessary documents via e-mail by November 17. ◇   Gyeonggi Launches Online Traditional Market Shopping Service (1102) With contactless shopping becoming more popular, Gyeonggi Province has launched an online traditional market shopping service known as ‘Shopping Delivery Express.’ This service is provided through Gyeonggi’s public delivery service app, Delivery Express. The Shopping Delivery Express service is expected to help improve the sustainability of traditional market merchants through increased sales. ◇ Gwangneung Forest Maintains UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Designation (1102) Gwangneung (광릉) Forest of Gyeonggi Province has kept its Biosphere Reserve designation after passing a regular evaluation by UNESCO’s International Co-ordinating Council of the MAB Program. Biosphere Reserves are ecologically valuable areas around the world designated by UNECSO. Gwangneung (광릉) Forest first received this designation in 2010. Last year, Gyeonggi Province undertook the operation of the forest management center and has since been working on plans to ensure the sustainable development of the area. ◇ 1st Gyeonggi Science & Technology Awards Presented to 6 Winners (1102) On October 29, Gyeonggi Province presented the first Gyeonggi Science and Technology Awards to six winners including Bang Jin-ho (방진호), a professor at Hanyang University, and Yun Eun-yeong (윤은영), a research director at the Advanced Institute of Convergence Technology who won in the women’s category. Introduced this year, the presentation of these awards, which also saw the presentation of Gyeonggi Province Governor’s Awards, took place at the 2021 Gyeonggi-do Science and Technology Integration Festival that was held at the Gyeonggi Center for Creative Economy & Innovation. ◇   Gyeonggi Pursues Toll-free System for Ilsan Bridge (1104) Following the November 3 court-ordered suspension of Gyeonggi Province’s public disposition for the cancellation of Ilsan (일산) Bridge operator designation, the Gyeonggi Provincial Government announced that it will continue to pursue a permanent toll-free system for the bridge by instead making a partial advance payment for minimum revenue guarantee for the transfer of operations. This means the province will temporarily allow the bridge management company to maintain its status while continuing current toll-free operations. The province also expects that the total payment amount needed for operation transfer will not be affected by the partial advance payment. ◇ Thank you for joining us for this week’s edition of GTV. We look forward to seeing you again next week.