Chen Yiqin/Shanghai Daily news

The hunt is on for a logo and slogan that best sums up the experiences of volunteers at Shanghai's World Expo in 2010.

And organizers will start to collect ideas from the public from December 5, International Volunteer Day.

The search will last for about five months until April 30 next year, said Xu Weiguo, a senior official with the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, during a seminar discussing the slogan and logo over the weekend.

The final result will be published next October when organizers start recruiting local volunteers, said Xu.

Overseas volunteers will be recruited from December 2008, said Xu. Because of language difficulties, foreigners living in Shanghai could be more favored by the organizers.

Demand for volunteers, especially those who can speak foreign languages other than English and Japanese, will soar during the six-month Expo in 2010, said Xu.

"But it is not possible to ask local colleges to train more students just for the Expo, because the city might not need that many talents afterward. So we plan to recruit volunteers nationwide rather than just in Shanghai to fulfill the demand," Xu said.

At least 20,000 volunteers will fill 38 job descriptions, ranging from interpreters and media assistants, to traffic guides and cleaners.

"The slogan should be simple, expressive and represent the image of China," said famous writer Zhao Lihong.