Sweden's Commissioner General for Shanghai Expo Annika Rembe is speaking at the 7th 2010 Shanghai World Expo China Forum in Beijing today, where the theme of the discussion is "Harmonious Community: Urban-Rural Integration".

Annika is talking about how Sweden has navigated the transformation from a primarily rural society to an urban one, and how rural and urban areas integrate today in modern Sweden. In her speech she mentions several examples of this urban-rural integration, and also that links to further information are available on this website:-) So here are those links:

SymbioCity: Sustainability by Sweden: A website that promotes holistic and sustainable urban development, finding potential synergies in urban functions and unlocking their efficiency and profitability. (English)

Hammarby Sjöstad, Stockholm: Hammarby Sjöstad is an exciting new district in Stockholm where the City has imposed tough environmental requirements on buildings, technical installations and the traffic environment, from day one. (English)

Vätra Hamnen, Malmö: In this former shipyard area, students, business people and residents now go about their lives and work. (English)

Älvstranden, Göteborg: This area's website is alas only available in Swedish, but Business Region Göreborg has a good article explaining the kind of innovations in passive housing this new urban area has. (English)