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Ladies and gentlemen

I am delighted to be back in Shanghai for the World Expo. I have just arrived from visits to Tianjin, Qingdao and Jinan.

The pace and scale of change in China's cities is truly extraordinary and I can think of no more appropriate time and place in which to address the subject of sustainable cities.

Just as the 1988 Expo transformed the Southbank district in Brisbane, so too has Shanghai's urban landscape been transformed by this event.

Expo is a terrific example of the potential to deliver a sustainable urban environment with a creative balance of aesthetics and functional innovation.

I have just enjoyed a quick tour of the Pavilion and it certainly lives up to my expectations as a showcase for Brand Australia.

It reflects the creativity, innovation, and quality in all that we do – with sustainable design as an important element in that equation.

This is my 7th visit to China in the term of the Rudd Government. And as has been the case during each previous visit, green building and sustainable development have been recurring themes throughout this visit.

This is hardly surprising in view of the challenges and opportunities associated with China's need to meet the infrastructure, urban services and logistics services demands of an estimated 300 million Chinese making the transition to urban centres over the next 15–20 years.

This is development on a massive scale. Meeting this challenge demands a critical combination of urban design and green building.

Australian companies are eager to partner with China to meet these challenges, and our green building and urban design sector is very well placed to play its part.

In recent days I have met with mayors and governors in Tianjin, Qingdao, Jinan and Shandong Province. In every discussion, I have been reminded that leaders at all levels are under great pressure to meet tough environment and emission reduction targets.

Quite apart from uniform national targets, these leaders are in high growth centres for which even tougher targets have been set.

I am struck by the fact that whatever the perceptions emerging from Copenhagen, China is clearly determined to reduce emissions. The senior leadership has made it clear that jobs are on the line.

That's why my frequent visits to China have pursued active engagement at all levels — national, provincial and municipal.

I have led urban design and green building missions to Kunming, Wuhan and Shanghai. Our second track commercial strategy has a dual regional and sectoral focus which has delivered frameworks for cooperation in the cities of Kunming, Wuhan and Changsha, and the provinces of Hubei and Anhui.

On this most recent visit, I have promoted Australia's green building capacity in the Higher Economic Cooperation Dialogue with Chairman Zhang Ping of the National Development and Reform Commission.

And just yesterday, the Governor of Shandong Province agreed to pursue another framework agreement which will again include a focus on green building and urban design.

This network of framework agreements is important because it reflects active engagement at the political and officials level. They lay the foundation on which partnerships can be built at the commercial level.

The Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) video featured some outstanding examples of award winning Australian architecture and design.

These examples speak to Australia's strengths in many areas of design and construction: advanced and innovative integrated building design, project management and green building.

Let me close by acknowledging some of the more significant examples of Brand Australia in the sustainable building space.

Australian companies with a well-established presence in China include design and engineering consultancies such as GHD, Woods Bagot, Hassell, PTW and Worley Parsons.

Some of the more notable achievements include:

• PTW's award winning design of the WaterCube for the Beijing Olympics
• Hassell's design of the stunning Alibaba HQ Building in Hangzhou. (I understand that Professor Ken Maher has just given you a presentation of the project)
• And of course, just yesterday I was in Qingdao to see the Olympic Sailing Facility designed by Cox Architects and Planners

Ladies and gentlemen, Australian companies rank among global leaders in the design and planning of sustainable cities.

I am sure that the partnerships between Australian and Chinese companies will continue to deliver world best practice outcomes for China's urban environment.

Thank you.

ENDS