Students give money to Expo workers

A group of Zhejiang Province college students donate the money they made in an unusual university program to Expo 2010 construction workers.

A group of Zhejiang Province college students yesterday donated the money they made in an unusual university program to construction workers on the Shanghai 2010 World Expo site.

Six boys and 15 girls from Zhejiang Normal University were given only 50 yuan (US$7.35) each to survive 15 days in Shanghai as part of the university's "Testing Viability" program.

It started the program 10 years ago to send young students into the world to find out just how hard life can be. Each participant received 50 yuan to cover 15 days in the city, involving meals, transport and accommodation.

They survived the experience by taking on a variety of work, from family tutor and secretary to restaurant waiter or waitress and supermarket worker. Yesterday, they donated the leftover money - 6,835.7 yuan - to Expo construction workers.

Tan Yuliang, leader of the team, said students were touched by the enthusiasm of Shanghai residents in serving the 2010 World Expo.

"The Expo is a national event so we hope to contribute to it," Tan said, adding that the donation was a unanimous decision.

Students also staged performances at the Expo site yesterday.

Earlier tests have sent students to live Xiamen in Fujian Province, Shenzhen in Guangdong Province, Beijing and Tianjin.

Romania takes a slice out of the big apple for 2010 event

The old proverb "an apple a day keeps the doctor away" is the philosophy behind the Romania Pavilion for the World Expo 2010 Shanghai - a big green apple and a slice of apple lying on the ground.

The 2,000-square-meter "apple pavilion" made of glass might be the largest of its kind that Expo visitors have ever seen, reminding them of Newton's discovery of gravity.

However, the Romanian Expo team have attached other meanings to the design.

The apple represents a healthy lifestyle as well as knowledge, freshness, temptation and eternity. It reminds people to take care of the city they are living in, says Ferdinand Nagy, commissioner of the World Exhibition of Romania.

Lights will illuminate the apple from inside.

It will be green under sunshine, and turn to red, yellow and blue at night.

Nagy says Romania is trying to highlight a city's historical and cultural heritage in order to understand, develop and translate this wisdom into a better quality of life for contemporary urban Romanian citizens.

The exhibition will be themed on "Greenopolis."

"Greenopolis is a term with universal meaning, represented by the apple, which means health, knowledge and freshness," he says.

Visitors will first enter the complete apple via an access that is like a small bite.

The pavilion will showcase the cultures of the country, while the slice will house the main exhibition area.

The apple will have five levels inside. Three stories will be open to visitors. The first and highest levels are for technical use.

Visitors will be welcomed by Romanian folk dances on a stage when entering the pavilion.

Dancers will dress in traditional costumes of the country - a shirt or chemise for both men and women, which is made from hemp, linen or wool.

After viewing the dances, visitors will be invited to a restaurant to taste a typical Romanian meal which will include soups made with meat, vegetables, tripe or fish, all of which are flavored with lemon juice, sauerkraut juice or vinegar. Romanian wine will also be served.

Romanian food is not yet popular in China, but Chinese food is a favorite with Romanians. Nagy says he wants to promote the country's food in China via the 2010 event.

On the next floor, some Romanian films, both old and new, will be shown. Romanian films were popular in China in the 1970s and visitors will have the chance to see "Mihai Viteazul" (1970) and "Stefan cel Mare" (1974), classic Romanian movies that moved many Chinese people when they were first released.

Business talks and seminars dedicated to the development of economic, scientific and tour exchanges with other nations will be held on the fourth floor.

In the pavilion's slice of apple, the country will showcase the history and sceneries of its cities, especially the capital, Bucharest.

Romania will try to highlight a city's historical and cultural heritage in order to understand, develop and translate this wisdom into a better quality of life for contemporary urban Romanian citizens, the commissioner says.

He says visitors will be able to gain access to the top of the building where a "secret and very special activity" will be held.

Australia Pavilion leads the pace

The construction of the Australia Pavilion continues its dizzying pace, reaching another significant milestone with the completion of the structure's roof.

The construction of the Australia Pavilion for the Shanghai 2010 World Expo continues its dizzying pace, reaching another significant milestone with the completion of the structure's roof.

Peter Tesch, the commissioner-general for the Australia Pavilion, said he was "very pleased" to see the pavilion's current progress with less than a year to go until the Expo opens on May 1 next year.

"The pavilion's exterior is clad with weathering steel, and will react to the Shanghai climate," Tesch revealed.

Over the course of the Expo, the steel will self-seal with oxidation in response to the moisture in the air, developing a deep ochre color, reflecting Australia's desert, or "red centre," according to Tesch.

The installation of the weathering steel facade will commence this month.

In May, the Australia pavilion was the first international Expo participant to celebrate its "topping out," the completion of the highest point in the structure, and it was also the first to complete its foundations, in February this year.

Tesch encouraged Chinese residents to visit their bilingual Website, www.australianpavilion.com, to keep up with the pavilion's progress.

The pavilion will take visitors on a journey through the natural beauty and rich culture of one of the most livable countries in the world.

Editor: Echo Hu

Changning beefs up cooperation with Expo organizer

scene of the meeting

Zhong Yanqun, fulltime deputy director of the World Expo 2010 Shanghai Executive Committee

Li Yaoxin, deputy Party secretary and governor of Changning District

Officials learn about the master plan of the Expo.

Shanghai's downtown Changning district is gearing up for the 2010 World Expo by participating in home-stay accommodation and sprucing up its environment.

A delegation headed by Li Yaoxin, deputy Party secretary and governor of Changning District, yesterday visited the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.

Li said the district has increased its urban management capability and improved its environment in the run-up to the Expo.

Xia Yongtai, deputy Party secretary of the district, said Changning hoped to strengthen cooperation with the organizer in cultural exchange programs and the home-stay accommodation scheme.

Under the home-stay accommodation plan, local homes will provide temporary lodging for guests during the Expo to relieve possible accommodation pressures.

Zhong Yanqun, fulltime deputy director of the World Expo 2010 Shanghai Executive Committee, praised Changning's involvement in the Expo.

Expo accessible for the disabled

All Expo venues, including 51 Chinese pavilions, will have access for the disabled, officials said at a city's meeting on the construction of disabled access facilities on Monday.

Construction on disable access facilities at the Expo site has started, said Zhu Wei, deputy director of Site Planning Department of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.

Expo 2010 should be more accessible than previous ones.

The Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination has been compiling routes guides for disabled visitors and setting service standards.

Volunteers to assist disabled visitors will be called for from September.

Source: Shanghai Daily

Expo mascots join hands

Organizers of two upcoming consecutive world expositions unveil the statues of Shanghai 2010 World Expo mascot Haibao and the Yeosu 2012 World Expo mascot Yeosurang and Badarang.

Hong Hao, director of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, delivers a speech.

Organizers of two upcoming consecutive world expositions yesterday unveiled the statues of Shanghai 2010 World Expo mascot Haibao and the Yeosu 2012 World Expo mascot Yeosurang and Badarang at a major railway station in Seoul, capital of the Republic of Korea.

Hong Hao, director of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, Yeosu Mayor Oh Hyun-sup and Kang Dong-Suk, the new Chairman of the Organizing Committee for Expo 2012 Yeosu unveiled the cute blue figure of Haibao as well as Yeosurang and Badarang at the Seoul Station.

Yeosurang means "With Yeosu," reflecting people's love for Yeosu, while Badarang meaning "With Sea" representing the nature of the city and its pure sea. Blue, white and red are the three major colors used for the mascot, symbolizing sea, clean environment and creatures respectively.

Meanwhile, huge countdown clocks at the station have started ticking off the seconds, hours and days to the two Expos.

A promotional video about the 2010 Expo is being broadcast on Seoul's Subway Line 5, which is an important east-west link connecting Gimpo Airport, the Yeouido business area, downtown Seoul, and the Gangdong residential districts.

The Yeosu Expo, which will have the theme "The Living Ocean and Coast - Diversity of Resources and Sustainable Activities," aims to bring countries and regions together to improve the understanding of the value of the ocean and the coast and to propose desirable ways of using the ocean for the present and future prosperity for all.

It will be held between May 12 and August 12, 2012.

Expo podcaster group taps China Pavilion

Ni Yang, deputy chief designer of China Pavilion, elaborates on the design of the 20,000-square-meter China Pavilion to podcasters.

Podcasters pose with China Pavilion.

An Expo podcaster group yesterday visited the under-construction China Pavilion to learn about its design concept.

The podcaster group includes podcast users from websites such as qq.com, sina.com, China.com, PPStream, tudou.com and youku.com with authorization from the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.

Ni Yang, deputy chief designer of the pavilion, elaborated on the design of the 20,000-square-meter red structure, "The Crown of the East," which is an inverted pyramid.

The podcasters said it was a rare opportunity to have a look at the pavilion. The first organized activity of the Expo podcaster group was held at Capital Museum, where the World Expo 2010 Exhibition was held.

Officials with the bureau said that netizens were becoming more important in communication and information and they organized the podcaster group to record and promote the Expo.

Huangpu cracks down on Haibao counterfeits

Urban management staff in Shanghai's Huangpu District confiscates counterfeit versions of the 2010 World Expo mascot Haibao.

Urban management staff in Shanghai's Huangpu District have confiscated about 200 counterfeit versions of the 2010 World Expo mascot Haibao following a recent raid on downtown Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street.

It was the first time that local authorities have teamed up with the Expo organizer to confiscate bogus Expo 2010 products that infringe the event's intellectual property rights.

The raid came after reports published in local newspapers saying that street vendors were selling counterfeit Haibao toys.

Spotlight falls on urban harmony extravaganza

scene of the signing ceremony

Wang Zhongwei, head of the Publicity Department of CPC Shanghai

Zhong Yanqun, fulltime deputy director of the World Expo 2010 Shanghai Executive Committee

A Taiwan arts company, along with Shanghai Media Group, will provide a spectacular stage show based on the "Better City, Better Life" theme of the 2010 World Expo.

The Taipei Arts International Association yesterday signed a deal with the Expo organizer. The stage show, "Light of Cities," will use music and dance to tell an urban story of love and harmony.

It would show the development of Chinese cities from ancient to modern times as well as urban lives in different countries, said Serrina Chen, director of the association and a producer of the show.

The show would involve Chinese opera, Western drama, acrobatics and multimedia, she said.

Dialogue will be sparse in the show to help visitors from around the world.

The show will last for 30 to 40 minutes and feature four afternoon and night sessions. A total of 650 shows will be performed during the Expo.

The organizer will build an indoor stage especially for the centerpiece show in the Expo Park at the very west of the Expo site. It will be about 8,000 square meters in area and 20 meters high and capable of holding 2,000 spectators.

It will also be able to be dismantled and moved to other venues at the site.

Shanghai and Yeosu Expo organizers meet

Hong Hao, director of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination presents Expo 2010 tickets to Yeosu Mayor Oh Hyun-sup.

Organizers of the Shanghai 2010 World Expo and the Yeosu 2012 met yesterday to discuss cooperation about preparation and share ideas. Hong Hao, director of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination yesterday headed a delegation to Yeosu in the Republic of Korea and met Yeosu Mayor Oh Hyun-sup.

Hong briefed Oh on the progress of Expo 2010.

He said he hoped the two organizers would encourage more Chinese and ROK people to visit each other's Expos to enhance understanding and exchange.

Oh expressed his hope that the Expos would further strengthen the exchange and cooperation between the two countries.

He said he looked forward to visiting the Shanghai Expo in October. The Yeosu Expo, which will have the theme "The Living Ocean and Coast — Diversity of Resources and Sustainable Activities," aims to bring countries and regions together to share technology in preserving the ocean and coastal areas and exploring marine resources.

Shanghai and Yeosu signed a four-year agreement to cooperate and share Expo information in Seoul in August last year.

Yeosu will exchange ideas with Shanghai on marketing, volunteer recruitment, tourism product development, participation, promotion and operation of the event, according to the memorandum.

The two cities will assist each other in Expo-related promotional activities and dispatch groups of experts to exchange views on preparatory work.