The pride of the Taipei Case Pavilion in the Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA) at the Expo 2010 Shanghai is not a huge high-resolution LED screen or the 3D movie by internationally acclaimed director Hou Hsiao-Hsien. It's the city's garbage recycling system.
"We are especially proud of our recycling system, because it took lots of effort not only by administrators but also our Taipei citizens," said Chung-Hwa Tuo, commissioner of the Department of Information and Tourism of Taipei municipality. "Many other cities have tried to use similar practices but no one succeeded," said Tou.
When visitors step into the Taipei Case Pavilion, they are greeted by smiling faces of Taiwan people presented on a large LED screen, which is more than 5-meters wide and almost 3-meters high. It's the latest creation of Foxconn, the sole sponsor of the Taipei Case Pavilion.
"It (the screen) has the highest resolution in the world and this is the only one in the world," said a pavilion staff member.
The screen cost $3.7 million, about a quarter the total cost of the pavilion.
"Hau Lung-bin (the mayor of Taipei) was determined to participate in the Expo in Shanghai, but the municipality didn't have the budget for it, so he decided to use his campaign funding. I was so moved by his determination that I decided to do all I could do to help," said Terry Gou, president of Foxconn, an electronic parts producer.
On the ground floor exhibition area, visitors can touch interactive screens, see Tamsui River (which flows through Taipei) water turning clear and watch as fish gather and move under your fingers. "This shows that with our hard work, we can change the environment for the better," said a staff member.
Taipei started its garbage recycling system in 1995, when nearly 3,000 tons of garbage was buried daily. To reduce this amount, Taipei officials sold special garbage bags to citizens, asked them to bring the garbage to different collection points and then collected sorted garbage during certain hours every day.
"It was inconvenient for the citizens, but the municipality convinced them that it is worth taking the trouble," said Tuo.
He said that when director Hou Hsiao-Hsien was asked to make a movie for the pavilion, his first response was "No, you've made my life so inconvenient".
"It was only after shooting the movie that he realized the benefit that recycling has brought to people in Taipei," Tou said.
While Taipei' garbage collecting system is the highlight of the pavilion, other exhibits attract visitors. Hou's 3D movie presenting scenes of Taipei is shown in the upstairs theater. Surrounded by the 360-degree screen, audience feel as if they are taking a ride in an elevator inside Taipei 101, the world's second-tallest building.
"We gave a lot of consideration to the design of everything, for example, the 3D glasses," Tou said.
"We thought about making the frame with cardboard, but those are thrown away after being used only once. Finally we made them from plastic so they can be re-used many times."
Not only has Taipei come to the Expo to share its innovations, but also to learn about hosting expositions. In November, the city will host an international floral exposition.
"We hope to learn from the experience of the Expo in Shanghai and also to introduce visitors about Taipei and the floral expo," Tou said.
"People will find Taipei a happy city and our people are very friendly. That's what we want to show visitors to the Expo - the power of a smile."
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