City wins Habitat Scroll of Honor Award 2007

Nanning, capital of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in South China, has been granted the Habitat Scroll of Honor Award 2007. It is one of the only two city winners worldwide this year.

Nanning: On the wings of a song

"Sing my folk songs; while I sing, my buddies follow; folk songs sound like a river running in spring"

Frontier pearl shines in Southwest Guangxi

A string of influential events - winning the UN Habitat Scroll of Honor 2007 and hosting the China-ASEAN Expo, the China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit and the Nanning International Folk Songs Arts Festival - have made Nanning, capital of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the cynosure of the world's eyes.

Life

Colors of his soul

Qiao Wanying often disappears into the countryside for days, or even weeks. Wild flowers may capture his attention or lush forests may lure him into their shadows and light. After enjoying intimate moments with Mother Nature, he drives home in his pick-up truck, which is full of new creations and works of wonder. With a stocky and strong build, the 47-year-old from a small village of North China's Shanxi Province smiles heartily, exposing his flawed teeth.

Special Supplement: Leisure city promotes quality life

With an overture and the sound of gongs, the opening ceremony of the Ninth China Hangzhou West Lake Expo - "paradise on earth" - began on the evening of October 27. Will this year's grand banquet bring new experiences to audiences? All of Hangzhou is waiting for the answer to that question.

Life

Gorilla warfare

HAIKOU: Mankind's closest living relatives - the world's apes, monkeys, lemurs and other primates - are under unprecedented threat from the destruction of tropical forests, illegal wildlife trade and commercial bushmeat hunting, with 29 percent of all species in danger of extinction, according to a new report by the Primate Specialist Group of IUCN's Species Survival Commission (SSC) and the International Primatological Society (IPS), in collaboration with Conservation International (CI).

Species under threat

The world's 25 most endangered primates, and the countries where they are found, are:

Life

In a spin with the whiz kid

One afternoon in 1999 at the Ravinia Festival, the summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Christoph Eschenbach, who was then the festival's artistic director, was scheduled to rehearse with a singer. Before that, the renowned German pianist and conductor received a message that a Chinese boy wanted to play for him. Always interested in helping young musicians, Eschenbach said, "Ok, he can play for 20 minutes."

Special Supplement: Fair to offer fresh opportunities

A new year - and new opportunities abound. To be held from January 7 to 10, 2008 at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center, the Hong Kong Toys & Games Fair 2008 is the place to be for anyone in this industry, to start the year full of promise and inspiration for a fruitful 12 months.