“Expo Shanghai 2010” took place in Shanghai, China, from May 1 to October 31, 2010. Organized by the Government of the People’s Republic of China, it was a registered Expo (International Registered Exhibition) under the International Exhibitions Bureau (Bureau International des Expositions, BIE), held under the theme “Better City, Better Life.” Its site covered 523 hectares, the largest in Expo history, and it recorded about 73 million visits, which the BIE describes as the highest attendance of any Expo.

China won the right to host on December 3, 2002, at the 132nd General Assembly of the BIE, held at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. After four rounds of voting, Shanghai defeated Yeosu, Republic of Korea, by 54 votes to 34; a Russian candidacy was also in the race. The Associated Press reported Shanghai mayor Chen Liangyu’s reaction: “It’s an unforgettable day for China, Shanghai and developing countries.” The BIE General Assembly registered the Expo on December 1, 2005.

The theme addressed the future of cities at a moment when urban growth was transforming China, and Shanghai itself counted an urban population of about 23 million. Participants were asked to present ideas for sustainable urban life, and the organizers applied those ideas to the Expo itself with rainwater collection, solar panels, electric buses and carts, and energy-saving air conditioning across a site planned as low-carbon.

Participation reached 246 countries and international organizations, the highest number in Expo history, among them about 190 countries. Seventy-nine countries built their own pavilions, while others customized space within regional clusters. The China Pavilion, known as the “Oriental Crown,” was designed by He Jingtang and rises 69 meters. Denmark brought the Little Mermaid statue from Copenhagen, and its pavilion drew about 5.6 million visitors in six months. Israel displayed two pages of Albert Einstein’s original manuscript on the General Theory of Relativity, France presented 20 synchronized Nao robots, and Spain’s pavilion featured Miguelín, a 6.5-meter animated baby.

The site spread across both banks of the Huangpu River, on land once occupied by shipyards and factories. Existing industrial buildings were reused: the Nanshi Power Plant became a theme pavilion, and part of a former steel mill became a sculpture garden. Visitors moved between the two banks by shuttle bus, boat and metro. China spent 28.6 billion yuan (about $4.3 billion) on the Expo itself, according to the Associated Press, and many billions more on subways, airports and other public works; some residents were moved out of older housing to clear the Expo zone.

A major innovation was the Urban Best Practices Area, where cities from around the world presented 80 working solutions to urban problems. The BIE regards Expo 2000 Hannover’s Global House as its precursor, and a best practices area has featured at later Expos. The mascot, Haibao (“Treasure of the Sea”), was created by Wu Yong Jian, with a shape inspired by the Chinese character for “person.”

Attendance surpassed the roughly 64 million visits of Expo 1970 Osaka. The busiest day, October 16, 2010, brought 1.03 million visitors, and many people waited hours in the summer heat to enter the most popular pavilions. At the closing, Premier Wen Jiabao called the Expo a “splendid event,” and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, “The Shanghai Expo will close soon but it will not be forgotten.”

The Expo’s intellectual legacy is unusually durable. On October 31, 2010, participants issued the Shanghai Declaration, which set out a road map for sustainable urban development and proposed a World Cities Day. The United Nations General Assembly adopted the day, and it has been celebrated every October 31 since 2014, with Shanghai hosting the first edition. The United Nations, China’s Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the Shanghai Municipal Government and the BIE also compiled the “Shanghai Manual,” a practical guide to sustainable urban development, with a second edition in 2016.

The Expo also reshaped Shanghai. The city gained a new runway and terminal at Hongqiao Airport, a high-speed rail link to Hangzhou, what was then the world’s longest metro system and a redeveloped Bund promenade. On the former site, the China Pavilion reopened as the China Art Museum, the power plant became the Power Station of Art, the Expo Cultural Centre became the Mercedes-Benz Arena, and the Expo Museum opened in May 2017. With record attendance, record participation and a lasting agenda for cities, Expo 2010 Shanghai set a scale that remains a reference point in Expo history.