The Global Observance of World Habitat Day this year will be held at the Shanghai World Expo 2010. Hosted by China’s Ministry of Housing and Urban Rural Development and the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Urban and Rural Construction and Transport, the celebration of World Habitat Day will be a major concluding highlight of the Expo at which the United Nations has its own pavilion. The Global Celebration of World Habitat Day will be closely linked to a special meeting on the Livable City in a Harmonious Society hosted by the city of Hangzhou and co-sponsored by the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of China and UN-HABITAT. It is one of six major such discussions on key urban topics including sustainability, urban development, the environment, economy, cultural heritage, science and innovation. The Shanghai World Expo presents an excellent venue for the global observance because its theme, Better City, Better Life makes it the first global exposition dedicated to the potential and the problems of urban living in the 21st century. The Expo, 1 May to 31 October 2010, is expected to attract over 70 million visitors to an array of cultural programmes and events organized by exhibitors from around 200 countries and 50 international organizations. It will show exciting new ideas to make our cities much better places at a time it is projected that in the next generation, 70 percent of humanity will be living in towns and cities. An Urban Best Practices Area will show leading case studies from cities around the world.
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