Delegates from UBPA cities sign their names on the proposal raised by Hangzhou on Friday, July 9, 2010. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com/ Xu Leiying]

by Xu Leiying

The participating cities of the Urban Best Practices Areas (UBPA) at the 2010 Shanghai Expo plan to establish a City Alliance, in order to promote communication and cooperation among these cities and introduce their experiences to other cities throughout the world.

As one of the participating cities of UBPA, Hangzhou, the capital of east China's Zhejiang Province proposed the plan on Friday when over 40 delegates from 26 UBPA cases gathered in the city to attend the West Lake Salon. The West Lake is a famous sightseeing locale in China.

Hangzhou proposed to hold a series of activities after the West Lake Salon, which should become the first stand of the City Alliance, aimed at deepening the theme of "Better City, Better Life". The proposal has won support from both those participating cities as well as the organizers of the Shanghai Expo.

The move will extend the communication and cooperation among those cities beyond the boundary of the Expo Park and the duration of the international gala, says Huang Jianzhi, Deputy Director General of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.

For the first time, the World Expo established the Urban Best Practices Area, showcasing worldwide cities how to address urbanization and how to promote sustainable development of cities.

About 70 cities from different countries, including China, Turkey, Japan, Germany, France, etc. display their urban issue solutions at the Expo's Puxi section.