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Multiple Cultural Exchanges

I joined the team organized to host World Expo in Shanghai in 2000. Since then I have visited Expo 2000 Hannover， Expo 2005 Aichi and 2008 Expo Zaragoza. The cultural heritages showcased at the expos are my deepest impression. The world expos emphasize dialogues for further development toward a future of human progress.

Since 1851， 124 world affairs have been held in nearly 30 countries. The galas have sparked inspirations for further development of science， technology， culture， art， architecture and life， touching off new rounds of knowledge， competition and progress. For example， the first expo in London in 1851 created the Crystal Palace and displayed telegraph and steam engine to the world; at the 1873 Expo Vienna people enjoyed the Blue Danube composed and conducted by Strauss himself; the 1876 Expo Philadelphia exhibited telephone; the 1988 Expo Melbourne showcased phonograph; the 1889 Expo Paris introduced the Eiffel Tower and four-wheeled automobile; the 1904 Expo St. Louis brought airplane; the 1915 San Francisco screened the first modern movie; and the 1958 Expo Brussels created an architectural wonder called the Atomium.More and more countries， the developed ones in particular， have been using the event as a platform to exhibit their culture and overall strength and the leading part they are playing in the world.

Better City， Better Life

The 2010 Expo Shanghai is the first ever fair that focuses on city with “Better City， Better Life” as its theme. The theme is not confined to the fast development that Shanghai has been experiencing. It endeavors to answer three general questions: what kind of city makes life better and more harmonious， what kind of lifestyle makes city more beautiful and harmonious and what kind of urban development mode enables Earth to become more beautiful and harmonious.

The Expo Shanghai will draw on the successes of the past expos and pool the wisdom and strength of the country and the rest of the world to feature and interpret the theme in the form of hardware and software and activities such as exhibitions and forums.

The expo emblem depicts the image of three people holding hands together， symbolizing the big family of mankind. This emblem is created on the basis of the Chinese character “世”， meaning “world”， a component of the title of the expo. The expo mascot is Haibao， which means the treasure of the sea in Chinese. It was selected out of 26，655 entries from the 4-month worldwide public solicitation for the mascot ideas.

Zhejiang

The expo provides a space of 600 m2 each for provinces， municipalities and autonomous regions across the country to display their unique lifestyles. Zhejiang leads the country in setting up the country’s first expo committee composed of 30 relevant government agencies. A week-long publicity event has been held in Zhejiang to promote the expo and more than 40，000 people attended. A panel of experts is now working to prepare for the Zhejiang Pavilion. The expo organizers and the Zhejiang cultural authorities have talked about staging local operas at the expo.

Global Architectures

The world expos have always been a celebration of global architecture. The Crystal Palace at the first fair was a tour de force of architecture. Shanghai will be no exception. Of about 200 countries and organizations that are going to participate in the expo， more than 40 countries have decided to build individual pavilions. As more and more countries sign contracts with the organizers， more plans of pavilions will be revealed. As I work with the organizing team， it is a great pleasure to be among the first to see thetitillating ideas.

The 184-day Shanghai Expo will start on May 1st， 2010 and end in October. Each of the 184 days will see more than 100 cultural events at the site and the total number of activities and events will surpass 20，000. Each of the provinces， municipalities and autonomous regions in China will have a chance to stage a 5-day show. There will be three types of forums to be held at the Shanghai Expo: summit forums， theme forums and special forums. □