Hundreds of environmentalists from the Asia-Pacific region will gather in Incheon this week for a four-day meeting to discuss and prepare a roadmap for a larger gathering to be held in Korea next year, organizers said Sunday.

Members of the International Union of Conservation of Nature will hold a Regional Conservation Forum at Songdo Convention Center in the western port city from Sept. 27-30, the Korean organizing committee said.

The four-day event is a preparatory meeting of representatives from 19 IUCN member countries in Asia and the Pacific region, ahead of the World Conservation Congress.

Among the participants in this week’s forum are IUCN President Ashok Khosla and Secretary General Julia Marton-Lefevre.

The WCC, held every four years, is often likened to an Olympiad for environmentalists.

It is the biggest worldwide event on environment, bringing together thousands of people representing governments, United Nations agencies, business, industry and civil society groups.

Next year’s congress will take place on the southern island of Jeju from Sept. 6-15, where nearly 10,000 participants will explore and debate solutions to the world’s most pressing environment and development challenges.

The previous congress drew more than 6,400 participants from 180 countries to Barcelona, Spain, in 2008.

By Lee Sun-young (milaya@heraldcorp.com)