Shanghai will officially launch Our Water, an international platform to promote urban cultural exchanges and cooperation, on Sept. 21, with a special ceremony and forum beside the city’s Suzhou Creek.

The five-year initiative will use water as a universal medium to foster in-depth dialogues between Shanghai and other international metropolises, with Paris serving as its partner city in the first year.

Starting this month until April, the banks of Shanghai’s Suzhou Creek — a waterway running through the heart of the city — and the Seine in Paris will host a range of themed activities including concerts, documentary screenings, art exhibitions, and more. To kick off the program of events, guests from China and overseas will gather at the former site of the Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce on Sept. 21 to celebrate the launch and to discuss opportunities in waterfront development.

China and France recently signed a joint statement clarifying the resumption of cultural exchanges between the two countries. Next year also marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the People’s Republic of China and France, the Year of Sino-French Cultural Tourism, and the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

What to expect:

Exhibition: “Renewal: A Fresh Start for Suzhou Creek”
When: Sept. 21
Location: Former site of the Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce, No. 470 North Suzhou Road

The exhibition features around 70 images that present the changes that have occurred on both sides of the Suzhou Creek in the past 100 years. The contents of this exhibition will be available online simultaneously via the IP Shanghai app.

Event: Our Water: Flowing from Shanghai — Intercultural Dialogues Among World Cities
When: Sept. 21 14：00 – 17：00
Location: Former site of the Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce, No. 470 North Suzhou Road

The event includes two parts: the launch ceremony and the Shanghai Forum. The keynote speakers for the launch ceremony are Li Xiaojiang, former dean of the China Academy of Urban Planning and Design, and Eric Daniel-Lacombe, architect and professor at École nationale supérieure d’architecture de Paris-La Villette. Attendees to the forum include Yuan Xiaoyi, dean of the Si-Mian Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities, East China Normal University; Xu Zhiyuan, writer and founder of One Way Street Library; Mao Jian, writer and professor at East China Normal University; and Myriam Kryger, former cultural attache at the French Consulate General in Shanghai.

Event: Our Water · Waterfront Concert
When: Sept. 22 19:30 – 21:00
Location: Former site of the Shanghai General Chamber of Commerce, No. 470 North Suzhou Road

The concert will feature an ensemble comprising Chinese and French musicians.

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(Header image: Rowing teams race along the Suzhou Creek during the 2023 Head of Shanghai River Regatta in Shanghai, Sept. 17, 2023. VCG)