(Mr. Loscertales talked with Shanghai citizens online about World Expo 2010 in September 2006. Photo provided by Eastday)

Though his visits to Shanghai were frequent, he was always busy with meetings and did not have much time to meet with citizens. But he is very excited about his nickname given by Shanghai people. “When I was in the street during the expo time, I saw so many people recognizing me, and calling me Laoluo. Many people approached me to take photos and to speak with me, and I know how proud they were of the Expo and how happy they were of the transformation of the city.”

As a devoted supporter of Shanghai, Mr. Loscertales facilitated Shanghai’s contact with the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs and contributed to the issuance of the Shanghai Declaration of the World Expo 2010, thus making Shanghai a pioneer and advocator in solving urbanization issues. Later, he helped with the launch of the Shanghai Manual – A Guide for Sustainable Urban Development in the 21st Century. In the manual, the BIE contributed many cases and suggestions for the development of large-scale events and cities, leaving an invaluable legacy from the World Expo Shanghai.

After the Expo 2010, he advocated Shanghai’s idea of building a World Expo Museum and authorized it to be BIE’s only official museum and documentation center. He also offered advice on the management of the museum and the collection of exhibits, recommended board members and design companies, and promoted the museum to BIE member states.

(An exhibition hall of the World Expo Museum. Photo provided by World Expo Museum)

In 2012, Mr. Loscertales was honored as a Shanghai Honorary Citizen. But he said with modesty: “You never deserve the honor. The honor is always a gift.... For me, I feel that Shanghai is part of my life. I have organized 15 expos, but no one [city] like Shanghai is in my heart and in my body.” Speaking of his connection with Shanghai, he has an unfinished goal: to learn to speak Shanghainese.

Transformation of China Pavilions

Mr. Loscertales’s ties with World Expos started with the World Expo 1992 Seville. Since then, he has noted the transformation of China Pavilions at World Expos. The exhibitions, presentations and structures of the pavilions represented the image of China in different periods of time.

(China Pavilion at World Expo 1992 Seville. Source: XinhuaNet)

“I think the pavilions of China reflect the modernization of China. If you go back to 1992 and you saw the pavilion, it was a traditional-style pavilion, very much the traditional architecture and design: the red, the lamps,... very much like the traditional image we have of China.” However, since 2005 (World Expo Aichi), he notes that the design of the China Pavilion became more refined, as the exhibition industry in China developed. And all the themes of the Expos have been very well developed. “What you see is the progress of China in every part: the progress in design, in theme development, in innovative machinery and projection elements. Everything in the pavilions reflects the increasing technological improvement of China and also the social transformations of the country.”

(China Pavilion at World Expo 2008 Zaragoza. Source: Chinanews)

(A multimedia cinema in the World Expo 2010 Shanghai China Pavilion was under construction on April 3, 2010. Source: Xinhuanet)