Scene of the press conference with the jury members of the Official Participants Awards ("Pavilion Prizes")

(from second from left: Joan Busquets, Vicente Gonzalez Loscertales, Wu Jianmin, Jean-Pierre Lafon, Hong Bin Kang, and Qingyun Ma)

09/07/10 - The first session of the jury meeting for the Official Participants Awards, or the "Pavilion Prizes," at EXPO 2010 was completed today, after 83 pavilions were visited over the course of 5 days this week between July 5th and 9th by a jury that included world-renowned architects, urbanist, BIE officials, and other international personalities.

A long-standing tradition at Expos that was interrupted for a time and reintroduced at EXPO 2005 in Aichi, Japan, the Pavilion Prizes are given to official participants at the Expo to honor their contributions to the development of each Expo theme and to the education of the public on the messages of the Expo. 

During the press conference held at the Media Center of the Expo, Ambassador Wu Jianmin, former and honorary President of the BIE who acted as spokesperson on behalf of the rest of the jury, explained that the  Pavilion Prizes consist of 33 awards (statues) given to official participants at the Expo who excel in any of the following three criteria: external design (innovation and appeal of design and of exhibit displays), internal exhibition arrangement (visitor experience and comfort), and theme development (interpretation and expression of the Expo theme as displayed in the pavilions).

Furthermore, the evaluation divides pavilions into four categories: type A (self-built pavilions with surface area equal to or greater than 4000 m2 - 19 pavilions in this category), type B (self-built pavilions with surface area between 2000 m2 amd 3999 m2 - 22 pavilions in this category), type C (self-built and rented pavilions with surface area of 1999 m2 or less - 42 pavilions in this category), and type D (joint pavilions - 114 pavilions in this category).

A gold, silver, and bronze statues are awarded for each criteria in each type.

This time, types A, B, and C pavilions were covered, while the second session of the jury (October 11th to 15th) will cover the remaining type D pavilions.  The results will be announced after the second jury session, and the award ceremony will take place on the BIE Day (October 30th), the day before the closing of the Expo.

The press conference was attended by 6 of the 9 jury members: BIE President Jean-Pierre Lafon, BIE Secretary-General Vicente Gonzalez Loscertales, BIE former and honorary President Wu Jianmin, leading international architects Joan Busquets and Qingyun Ma, and prominent urbanist Hong Bin Kang.

BIE Secretary-General Loscertales said that the excellent quality of the pavilions at the Expo, which in general have been able to withstand the challenges and pressures imposed by the unprecedencted scale of the operation, has contributed to the success of the Expo.

UNCTAD Secretary-General, Supachai Panitchpakdi delivers a keynote speech

The forum opened with a high-tech presentation skillfully combining two of the underlying messages of the forum: science & technology as drivers of development, and then, that Wuxi is a prime example of a city leveraging them for a sustainable urban development (the last phrase of the presentation reading, "Wuxi, at the forefront of a new era").

How to use scientific and technological innovation in order to enhance a city's competitiveness, ensure urban security, and improve quality of life – these are the key issues around which the two-day forum is organized.

As Supachai Panitchpakdi, Secretary-General of UNCTAD, said in his keynote speech today, whether we can "capture and harness" scientific innovation will determine our ability to face the major urban challenges of our time, such as climate change, water shortages, or the need for cleaner and renewable energy sources.  As such, scientific innovation is the "key to the survival and prosperity of cities."  The choice of Wuxi to host this forum, he added, was "eminently appropriate," with Wuxi being home to one of the world's largest solar energy companies, Suntech.

Meanwhile, Wan Gang, Vice Chairman of the National Committee, CPPCC, and Chinese Minister of Science and Technology, further emphasized that science and technology are leading drivers of socio-economic growth in cities, and that cities, in turn, represent the progress of human civilization. But city development is in a period of transformation, he said, and Expo Shanghai will play an important role in pointing to future urban trends.

Wan Gang, Vice Chairman of the National Committee, CPPCC, and Chinese Minister of Science and Technology

The forum also enjoyed endorsements by two Nobel Laureates—Lee Tsung-Dao (1957 Nobel Laureate in Physics and currently Professor at Columbia University) and Barry Marshall (2005 Nobel Laureate in Physiology/Medicine and currently Clinical Professor at the University of Western Australia).

 Lee Tsung-Dao, 1957 Nobel Laureate in Physics and Professor at Columbia University

Lee said that World Expos today reflect the progress of mankind in better understanding nature's challenges and that they showcase man's success in advancing science to create modern, technologically adapted cities. Marshall, for his part, discussed the power of knowledge –specifically scientific knowledge in this case—in protecting ourselves from things such as infectious diseases and therefore contributing to a better life.

Barry Marshall, 2005 Nobel Laureate in Physiology/Medicine

A range of other speakers offered their insights on how science and technology innovation promote sustainable urban development. Among them was Yuan Longping, Director of the National Hybrid Rice Engineering Technology Research Center in China and Academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, who took the case of the better-yielding hybrid rice – a work of scientific and technological innovation par excellence and of which he has been credited as pioneering – as playing a key role in ensuring global food security in the new century.

Yuan Longping, Director of the National Hybrid Rice Engineering Technology Research Center in China and Academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering

Another speaker, Gordon Mackerron, Director of the Science and Technology Policy Research at the University of Sussex, UK, discussed the role of governance issues in achieving urban sustainable development, offering a perspective that complemented some of the other presentations that largely focused on the importance of technology for development. Building on the notion that technological innovation is critical for urban sustainable development, he called for policies that are complementary and well-articulated so as to support the proper implementation of these technologies.

Scene of the Wuxi Expo Theme Forum

Held a week after the Suzhou Theme Forum, the Wuxi Theme Forum is welcoming approximately 500 participants and will continue through tomorrow.

(Photos courtesy of Expo Shanghai 2010 official website – www.expo2010.cn)