The Swiss cities of Zurich, Basel and Geneva have shown visitors of the World Expo Shanghai 2010 different aspects of sustainable water management.

Presenting their understanding of the common theme "Better Water – Best Urban Life", the three cities showcase the positive impact of clean and beautiful water on urban life quality.

Each city displays best practices in the pavilion, focusing on particular core themes.

Zurich mayor Corine Mauch travelled to Shanghai with her Geneva and Basel counterparts and said the experience of Switzerland showed how important clean and safe drinking water was for cities.

Switzerland’s open and inter-active pavilion in China covers 4,000 square metres, with as a chosen theme rural-urban interaction.

The building is an open hybrid structure showing both technology and nature. The project leaders say that it features both the town and the country, keeping them both in balance.

Inside the exhibition visitors meet 12 Swiss men and women who stand in front of a huge IMAX-projection with a Swiss mountainscape and tell the audience about life in Switzerland.

Fifty telescopes give a three-dimensional view of specific Swiss projects in the fields of air and water quality, sustainable building and mobility. At the end a chair lift takes visitors to the roof of the pavilion which is brimming with greenery and symbolises the interaction between town and country.

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