The Beijing International Horticultural Exhibition opened on April 29 in Beijing’s Yanqing county, showcasing the diverse gardening cultures from China and around the world. With the theme of “Live Green, Live Better”, the Expo organizers and architects expressed their beliefs in a green lifestyle through the design of gardens and pavilions. Covering 503 hectares, 41 outdoor exhibition parks have been built by more than 80 countries and international organizations. There are 34 independent exhibition parks and seven jointly built ones. The China Pavilion, which covers 15,000 square meters, is a landmark at the Expo. With its design inspired by a traditional jade ornament, the pavilion incorporates age-old Chinese culture. Opening the Expo, Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed the hope that the green development concept embodied by the Expo park would spread to “every corner of the world.”

86 countries and regions, as well as 24 international organizations are participating. The 162-day Expo is expected to receive 16 million visitors and offer 2,500 activities including academic conferences, horticulture competitions and flower parades, Gao Yan, Chairwoman of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and an organizer of the Expo, said. The horticultural show, which organizers call “the Expo at the foot of the Great Wall”, is the largest international event China has held since the 2008 Olympics.

Leading-edge technologies employed at the Expo include 5G technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE), a type of high-strength industrial plastic that can be used for construction. ETFE gives buildings a translucent coat and is also extremely flexible. 5G mobile connections will be available throughout all exhibition halls and some areas nearby. In the 5G exhibition hall, visitors will be able to watch 8,000-pixel high-definition videos and learn about progress in self-driving vehicle technology, telemedicine, drone logistics and transportation, and other 5G network applications. Visitors will also be able to download entire films in less than a second. Robots will serve at major pavilions, offering visitors information about the event, make coffee and do the cleaning.

Visitors can learn about “the harmony between human and nature” and the ecosystem comprising water, forests, fields, lakes and grass via digital images. Visitors can also admire miniature Chinese landscapes in the form of exquisite flower-embossing and flower-arranging. Besides the China Pavilion, 31 provinces, as well as Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, will showcase their horticulture in individual outdoor parks. The Beijing exhibition park will highlight courtyard culture to illustrate traditional Beijing family homes. The Yunnan Garden, for example, will replicate the rivers and mountains in the province to showcase the ethnic diversity, biodiversity and achievements in preserving the local ecosystem. Guangdong province will make an effort to present the essence of a Lingnan water town, including the traditional corridors, bridges and foyers.

The Plant Pavilion, one of the major stands at the expo, houses more than 20,0000 plants of 1,000 plant species. It will include more than 100 rare species and showcase beautiful plants from across the globe. In the German park, a wall of moss acts as a natural air purifier and will show a practical demonstration of an indoor garden. The event has an unprecedented scale with more than 110 countries and international organizations attending, the China Daily reports.