TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The final edition of the Taipei-Shanghai City Forum during the tenure of Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) will only last half a day, reports said Friday (July 15).

For the third year running, the annual event will take place in virtual format only, while it has also been shortened to take place during the morning of Tuesday (July 19), CNA reported. Ko’s second and final term as mayor of Taiwan’s capital comes to an end Dec. 25.

This year’s forum will include speeches from each side about sustainable environmental protection. It will also include the signing of three memorandums of understanding (MOUs), making it the shortest edition so far.

The MOUs relate to the circular economy, smart transportation, and sports development, according to city officials. For the Taipei side, Deputy Mayor Pong Cheng-sheng (彭振聲) will expound on the city’s zero carbon policies.

The first forum took place in 2010, with Taipei and Shanghai alternating as host, though the COVID-19 pandemic forced organizers to abandon the in-person format in 2020.

The NT$1.4 million (US$46,700) budget was frozen by Taipei City Council in protest against China continuing to send warplanes into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ). After the main organizer of the event, Deputy Mayor Tsai Ping-kun (蔡炳坤), had a stroke July 11, the city decided to shorten the forum and to schedule it for July 19 instead of August.