Chinese minority women from the country’s southern provinces sewed clothing, turning the conference room into a miniature craft show; organizational leaders acted out scenarios showing the difficulties facing people with disabilities to a room of more than 100 Chinese students; “smart” trashcans were put on display to demonstrate effective means of waste management.

The interactive exhibits and presentations were part of the European Development Cooperation with China Project Fair, a three-day conference inside the European Union/Belgium joint pavilion at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo from July 26 – 28.

In addition to presentations, experts and professionals discussed issues of sustainable construction and greener materials, including buildings inside the Expo that best demonstrate these themes, and how the European Union and China are working toward creating habitable environments for the world’s citizens.

“Creating more livable cities ensures sustainability and greater, healthier lives for citizens. The EU and China face similar challenges and we are working toward common energy efficiency,” said Johan Cauwenbergh, minister counselor for the European Union Delegation to China and Mongolia, during the opening remarks of the sustainable and energy efficient construction practices discussions.

At the workshop showing how Chinese ethnic minorities are using traditional cultural and artistic practices to create more job opportunities in rural areas, participants were shown a myriad of fabric and clothing products produced from funding by the INDIGO project at the EU.

“With communities being very poor and communication difficult, the economic development experienced by China has largely passed over these areas,” said Chen Wen of INDIGO in Guizhou. “What we’ve tried

to do is provide support for these women to continue producing and making traditional cultural items. Protecting our cultural customs and traditions is just as important as economic development.”

During the discussion on understanding challenges facing people with disabilities, leaders demonstrated physical barriers and society attitudes about disabled individuals, showing, for example, how classrooms can be better arranged for students in wheelchairs.

“About six percent of Chinese have disabilities, with many living in rural communities,” said Helen Gao, China communications officer for Handicap International. “Much of what we are discussing is how to provide services and support for China’s disabled.”

In addition to showcasing technological advances in waste management to improve quality of life in cities, panelists from GreenWaste and Tongji University demonstrated the use of one of their new receptacles, which features an electronic device that can read the level of waste, the types of objects being deposited inside, and the ability to communicate with relevant departments to facilitate more efficient trash pickup.

“From anywhere in the world, one can track all cans via GPS, including the trashcans we are installing for the 2015 Milan Expo in Italy,” said Alberto Rovetta, project leader of GreenWaste. “The strategy is to map of which containers are full at any point in the day, and one can plan the collection process, saving 20 percent of money, resources and time if compared with current random collection processes.”

Additional speakers included Luo Yu, first secretary for the Department of International Trade and Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Commerce in China, Giuseppe Rao of the Embassy of Italy, Wen Xia, partner at GreenWaste, Andy Koh, manager at Singapore Waste Collection, Massimo Roscigno, consul general of Italy in Shanghai, Amy Gough, disability advisor at Handicap International, Maria Omodeo, INDIGO project manager at Cooperation for the Development of Emerging Countries, Ioana Kraft, general manager for the European Union Chamber of Commerce China in Shanghai, Yang Zhenghong, dean of the Tongji University School of Material Science and Engineering, Silvia Sartori, SWITCH-Asia project leader at the European Union Chamber of Commerce China, Zhang Yongming, SWITCH-Asia project coordinator at Tongji University, Yan Bilan, member of the China Construction Materials Research Institute, Peng Mengyue, member of the Division of International Cooperation and Project Development in China, Han Jihong, general vice director at Green Buildings R&D Center in China, Zhao Jianxiu, scholar at Wuhan University School of Science and Technology, Markus Diem, chief designer at MUDI, Zhang Yue, president, Broad Air Condition, and Huang Jinming, founder of EnVision.

By Zachary Franklin/China-Files