Portugal was present at the very first Expo, the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London, and has continued to participate regularly ever since, winning a gold award for the design of its pavilion at World Expo 2010 Shanghai. As an original signatory to the 1928 Paris Convention, it is one of the founding members of the BIE. In addition to its participation, the country organised Specialised Expo 1998 in Lisbon around the theme of “The Oceans – a Heritage for the Future”.