BEIJING TO HOST APEC IN 2014 In 2014, 21 APEC members will meet in the capital of China—-Beijing to discuss the hot issues related to the economic growth of the Asia-Pacific region. APEC economies account for nearly 40% of the world’s population and contribute approximately 44% of the trade amounts to the world. APEC is playing a more and more important role not only in the Asia-Pacific area, but also in the world stage. Its establishment purpose is to promote free trade and economic cooperation within the Asia-Pacific rim. Every year, the APEC leaders will be gathered in the meeting location. According to the APEC rules, the meeting place is rotated annually among members. So far, many cities including Bogor, Vancouver, Manila, Bangkok, Busan, Sydney, Lima and Singapore have hosted APEC. APEC4 Beijing will be the meeting organizer of APEC 2014, which is the second time for China in history to host APEC. The last APEC hosting experience happened in 2001, when Shanghai became the first city of China to organize APEC meetings. The specific venue of APEC in 2014 will be Beijing Huairou International Conference Center. It is located in the scenic Yanqihu area, around 50 kilos away from the downtown of Beijing. Yanqihu is an attractive touring spot. 90% of the park is covered with the lush vegetation. On the north, the magnificent Great Wall is visible. On the south, the endless North China Plain is within sight. In 2000, Yanqihu was rated by the Chinese Tourism Bureau as the AAAA attraction. Troubled by the air pollution, the city center of Beijing is eager to get rid of the dusty climate. Looking back on the past cases, most countries choose their picturesque sites as the meeting points. In APEC 2013, Indonesia arranged the meeting in Bali, which was a famous travelling attraction. The unique geographical conditions of Yanqihu save it from the annoying sandstorms of Beijing. Surrounded by high mountains, the average temperature of Yanqihu is about 11.7 degrees Celsius. The annual rainfall within the Yanqihu park is around 666.4 mm. The air quality can reach the first class. Inside the Yanqihu park, there are many recreational activities and sports equipment. Visitors can try the exciting parasailing, rock climbing, water skiing, water scooter and archery. The water screen movie show is also in the amusement list of the park. Regarding the preparation of the APEC Beijing 2014, the Beijing government is busy with the hardware and software construction including the official website and APEC emblem. The latest information from Mr. Zhao Huimin—director of Foreign Affairs Office of Beijing Municipality shows that the emblem of APEC Beijing 2014 has been completed. APEC Summit According to Mr. Zhao Huimin, the emblem of APEC Beijing 2014 was made up of 21 colored lines, which meant the 21 members of APEC. The emblem looked like a globe as a whole, which represented the earth. Looking carefully into the emblem, you could find the image of the Temple of Heaven (or Tiantan), which was a religious complex in the Ming and Qing dynasties of China. The former emperors used to conduct ceremonies of prayer for good harvest in the Temple of Heaven. Now it is a must-visit place in Beijing and becomes the symbol of China. The emblem of APEC Beijing 2014 expresses the meaning of diversity, beauty, openness and integration. Also the emblem symbolizes the good wishes of economic cooperation and mutual development among the 21 economies of APEC. On the central island of Yanqilu, a new boutique hotel is under construction. The design of the hotel looks like a vertical egg from afar. Another building on the island for the APEC Beijing 2014 is the 12 VIP villas. So far, the main framework of 12 VIP villas has already been completed. Seen from the top, the International Conference Center is in the star shape. Right now, the workers are doing the inner decorations. Latest reports from the field staffs show that the International Conference Center consists of three stories. One story is the underground floor. Between the first story and the second story, there exists a mezzanine, which will function as the office. APEC Summit The granite flooring of the first story has been fully finished. The lighting work is almost close to the end. Each door is decorated with a copper bar in 7.6cm wide. The glasses applied for the International Conference Center of APEC Beijing 2014 are bullet-proof. Each of the 12 VIP villas is around 5000-8000 square meters in size. Dining hall, meeting room, presidential rooms, VIP rooms and suites rooms are above the ground. Under the ground, the auxiliary facilities such as recreational area, gym, indoor swimming pool and kitchen are positioned. The inner decorations of the VIP villa are very complicated. About 40 workers are responsible for the maintenance and services of one VIP villa. The helipad construction on the island of Yanqihu is still under the planning, which aims to connect the air channel between Yanqihu and the outside world. Some reports even say that Yanqihu is expanding its road by building a new highway bridge for the APEC Beijing 2014. All these hardware and software constructions of Yanqihu are based on the principles of low carbon, eco-friendliness and environmental protection. The utilization rate of clean energy, wastewater treatment rate and garbage harmless treatment rate can reach 100%. Regarding the site selection of Yanqihu as the venue of APEC Beijing 2014, Mr. Zhao Huimin further explained that most of the APEC leaders might have visited Beijing before, but few of them were familiar with the suburbs of Beijing. APEC offered a golden opportunity for Beijing to show all the leaders the beautiful scenery of its suburbs. By taking the advantage of APEC Beijing 2014, the Chinese government has launched an ambitious project of curbing the air pollution and aiming to reduce 25% particle pollution by 2017. The public of Beijing shows their supports to the coming APEC summits, which are to be held in the autumn of 2014. A better Asia-Pacific and a more harmonious world are the unanimous wish of all Chinese people.
Posted on: Thu, 16 Oct 2014 16:19:19 +0000
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