There are only about 900 days to go before the World 2010 Expo opens in Shanghai on May 1st of 2010, which will run through to October 31st in the year.
World Expo implies an exposition of people worldwide and its success hinges chiefly on the participation of general public and, if the general public wants to partake in it validly and efficaciously, it is imperative from them to get to know its genuine connotations.
To date, 156 years have elapsed since the First World Expo debuted in London in 1851 as the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations. It has by no means been accidental for such a gigantic international event to endure and remain in great demand for the past one and a half centuries. The fundamental reason, however, lies in its civic virtues.
The character of civic virtues represents the most rudimentary hallmark of the World Expo, which contain three layers of distinct, vivid implications.
The first layer of implications is to put on display the outcome of the progress for human civilization. In retrospect of the preceding consecutive World Expos, people can distinctly recall new feats or achievements of human civilizations in various historical periods, such as steam engine, steamship, crane, steelmaking technology, seabed cable, gramophone, film projector, electric light, elevator, television set, tap recorder and aerospace craft, which were all first exhibited at a string of world expos.
The primary function of the Word Expo is designed, however, to present the outcome of the progress of human civilization. In a continuous process of the development and progress of human civilization, to represent the latest achievements in this regard to the general public is, beyond any doubt, a progress to prompt and push forward the progress of human civilization.
The second-layer implication is to bring forth issues confronting human civilization. Take "Expo 2005 Aichi, Japan", which was held in Nagoya, Japan from March to September of 2005. Its theme was "Nature's Wisdom". This is an excellent theme indeed, as the theme indicated that the humanity has to bear and subject itself to punishment from the nature for lots of stupidities it has done in violation of its law ever since the first Industrial Revolution in Britain.
"Expo 2005 Aichi, Japan" was, nevertheless, designed to guide people worldwide in an endeavor to know still better and respect the law of the nature in the new 21st century and admonish them not to consider themselves wise if they act otherwise, as the law of the great nature also give expression to wits and sagacity.
In view of "World Expo 2010 Shanghai, which is set to be held the east China metroplis from May 1 to October 31 that year, it is to theme on the city, titled "City: Making Life More Beautiful", affiliated with a sub-theme: "Blending of diverse culture in the city." This has been the first time ever to take cities as its theme in the entire history of World Expo. At present, it is the right opportune time to propose such a theme nevertheless, as the speed of global urbanization has greatly accelerated since the start of the 20th century, and the current global urban population makes up almost half the total global population.
The question of urbanization is particularly pressing and protruding in China today. Its urban population has shot up to 43 percent of the national total from merely 17 percent some three decades, to be specific, in 1978 and, furthermore, the ensuing two to three decades is likely to be an era with a high growth rate for urbanization.
As an epitome of human civilization and progress, urbanization has incurred a host of problems for the humanity. And how to make the life of people beautiful and cozy, the crux of matter is to cope with such issues brought about by urbanization, as those relating to (urban) traffic congestion, air and environment pollution and an acute shortage of water resources. The life cannot be made more more beautiful (or comfortable) without the settlement of these knotty problems.
The third-layer implication is to spur the humanity to a search for the solution of an ocean of problems facing the humanity. It will take some seven years' time from acquiring the right for sponsorship of such a large-scale, comprehensive World Expo to its opening. Meanwhile, it will call for an additional six-month period for numerous participants to offer bright, workable ideas focused on the theme along with a few "amazing notions from tour de force."
Inspection tours of visitors from far and wide around the globe to varied grand exhibition halls precisely represents a process of great exchanges, which result in great wisdom; and this wisdom is precisely imperative for the humanity to tackle its tough, headache issues.
By Wu Jianmin, president of the China Foreign Affairs University in Beijing and concurrently chairman of the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE), and translated by People's Daily Online
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