What is better city, better life?
By admin on 2014-12-26

World Expo 2010 Shanghai China, a grand-scale global  event, has adopted the significant theme "Better City, Better Life," which  embodies the spirit of humanistic progress by embracing the concepts of "people  first" and "scientific development."

This global showcase of the economy,  science, technology and culture that surround us ranks alongside the Olympic  Games and the World Cup in importance and profile.

Photo taken on  Jan. 26, 2010 shows the full view of a nearly-built water entrance of the  Shanhai World EXPO Park at the riverside of the Huangpujiang River in Shanghai,  China.

Though it may lack the element  of sports competition, World Expo is unparalleled in its own way as a window to  the cultural diversity and the best innovative thinking in the world. It will  foster a trans-global conversation on how we can improve the urban areas that  stand at the forefront of human development and will play a key role in how we  shape the material and spiritual progress of mankind. World expos have  historically tracked the progress of civilization by showcasing what we have  achieved and what we hope to achieve.

More than half of the world's  population now lives in cities. China is rapidly approaching that proportion.  Urban development is no longer limited to the traditional functions of defense  and trade. Instead, cities have become the dreams of people seeking a  comfortable and spiritually rewarding existence.

While presenting us with great  convenience and enjoyment, cities have also created headaches. It is our  challenge to address the question: How can we improve urban life? The whole  world is hoping that the coming World Expo will help us answer that question to  the lasting benefit of the entire human race.

A city is not the sum total of  reinforced bars and concrete. Rather, it is an organic life form that keeps  growing and changing. Its soul is the culture. China has promoted its urban  development with its own characteristics.

One distinguishing feature,  for example, is an emphasis on the farmers whose fields stretch beyond the  skyscrapers and provide cities sustenance. Our urban development has attracted  world attention with its people-oriented policies and its ideal of building a  harmonious society.

The world is facing  accelerating urbanization and modernization. It is imperative we manage those  processes creatively. We must clearly define the world we want in the future and  not lose sight of the values we deem important in the process of change.  Providing a clearer understanding of these issues and proposing innovative ways  of achieving our goals will be legacy that lives beyond World Expo  itself.

World Expo 2010 Shanghai China has a  formidable challenge ahead of it but can rise to meet it. The event will allow  us to deepen our understanding, to strengthen our communication with other parts  of the world and to express China's desire for international cooperation to the  benefit of all nations.

New  epoch of progress

Any nation that has made great  strides and wants to keep progressing must maintain its enthusiasm for learning  and the free exchange of ideas. Otherwise, it becomes too inward-looking, to its  own detriment. There is a famous motto in the history of world expos:  "Everything Starts with the World Expo."

In 1851, the first World Expo in  London exhibited steam engines and the telegraph for the first time, ushering in  a new epoch of progress. Since then, World Expos have been held more than 130  times in nearly 30 countries. Each exposition has proved a pioneer of its age in  fields such as technology, culture, art and architecture. Each has been a  driving force behind the exchange of ideas, an igniting fuse of wisdom and the  start of a new round of learning, competition and progress.

As a top-level exhibition of  global science, technology and culture, what wonders will World Expo 2010  Shanghai China bring us? Thanks to the rapid development of the media and the  Internet, in particular, scientific and technological achievements now capture  public attention even before their practical application. That may diminish  somewhat the headline effect of scientific and technological innovations on  display at World Expo, but it won't damp the awe of such a large body of  knowledge and culture converging at one venue.

This World Expo is a golden  opportunity for us to exhibit and promote ourselves. But we should not forget  what brought us to this point. One of the fundamental reasons Deng Xiaoping  chose to advocate economic reform and the opening-up of China to the world was  the fact that decade-long social turmoil had bogged China down and isolated the  nation from advances in the rest of world. Assessing the situation, he urged us  to open our eyes and look outward so that we could see and face up to the gap  that confronted us, so that we could develop an enthusiasm and determination to  catch up with developed nations, so that we could waste no time in assimilating  new knowledge for our own self-improvement.

By presenting us the world in  miniature, the coming World Expo will broaden our vision, sharpen our minds and  rekindle our enthusiasm. This is a great chance we cannot afford to miss. It is  my hope that an increasing number of foreigners will come to realize that China,  soon to become the world's second-largest economy after only 30 years of  development, has remained cool-headed, open-minded, and ready to understand the  world and learn from other countries. No one can easily dismiss such a  nation.

For us Chinese, to see the  World Expo is to see the world, while for many foreigners, to see World Expo is  to see China. The demonstration of our spirit and character will not be limited  to pavilions and exhibits. Instead, our essence of our nation will shine forth  from our people.

Each of us, especially those who  come to tour the Expo Park, becomes a calling card of China and an ambassador of  the Chinese culture. "When you admire a landscape on a bridge, you are also part  of the landscape for people on the tower," wrote Chinese poet Bian  Zhilin.

Every Chinese visitor to the World  Expo must think: "The world is looking at me while I am looking at it." We will  greet our visitors with hospitality, friendliness, sincerity and  open-mindedness. From every Chinese they meet, foreign visitors will experience  the charms of the Chinese culture as a  whole.