It was in November 2008 when Mr. Jose Villarreal saw the Expo site for the first time; the return in July 2009 brought with him a long list of exciting news: he was appointed by the Obama Administration as the U.S. Commissioner General to Expo 2010 and represented the United States in signing the Expo 2010 Participation Contract with the Organizer of Expo 2010, and the construction of US Pavilion has fully started . . .

Original American Cultural Scenes

On July 10 at the signing ceremony, Jose Villarreal and all attendees witnessed the grand occasion of “signing the decisive contract”.

Jose Villarreal is an attorney in San Antonio, Texas, with a distinguished background in law, business and the non-government sectors. He currently serves as a senior advisor to the law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, and serves on a number of private and non-profit corporate boards. He said, “It was with great excitement that I accepted this position. When my friend, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, asked me to take on the leadership role, I was so honored that I would have this opportunity to represent my country and the people of the United States.”

As U.S. Commissioner General to the Expo, Jose Villarreal will make good use of his rich background and high prestige to head the participation of United States in Expo 2010. He is also the supervisor of US Pavilion. At ceremony, he said that the United States is pleased to confirm the participation in Expo 2010 and this has taken the pavilion construction to a higher level. Personally, he showed his determination to display the best of America by dint of US Pavilion, and to make both Chinese and American people feel proud.

After the signature, he said with a smile, “We believe the 70 million visitors to Expo 2010 will enjoy the original American cultural scenes and experience the fantastic urban life staged by US Pavilion.” His confidence was based on the smooth progress of the pavilion preparation work. “In the meantime, this will be a perfect opportunity for countries around the world including the United States, to share ideas about culture and technology, to advance the multi-dimensional fusion, and to promote common prosperity for all mankind,” said Jose Villarreal.

“I’m getting ready to start…”

Jose Villarreal mentioned his hometown at San Antonio had hosted the Hemisfair 1968 and own a monument called “Tower of the Americas”. This tower “reminds us all the time of this great event”, so said Jose Villarreal.

On July 17, the Zone C of Pudong Expo site was surrounded by a busy but pleasant atmosphere. Jose Villarreal turned up at the groundbreaking ceremony of US Pavilion. Gary Locke, U.S. Secretary of Commerce and Ma Xiuhong, Vice Minister of Ministry of Commerce of China, were also present. The start of US Pavilion’s construction was no wonder a solid promotion for US Participation in Expo 2010.

At the groundbreaking ceremony, Jose Villarreal read a letter of congratulations from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In the letter, she said, “The United States is proud to participate in Expo 2010; President Obama and I am committed to doing everything we can to support your work.” She also mentioned the Mascot of Expo 2010, Haibao, is sitting in her office and “is looking forward to reports on your progress, as are the rest of us back in Washington.” After reading the inspiring letter, Jose Villarreal rolled up his sleeves and said humorously, “I’m rolling up my sleeves and getting ready to start working!”

Attendees’ attention was then directed to the open space reserved for US Pavilion, which covers an area of 6,000 square meters, and involved a total investment of about 61 million dollars. Taking “Celebration 2030” as its theme, the pavilion will showcase the cultural traditions and the ethos of America, promote the US-China cooperation in such areas as clean energy and renewable energy, and highlight the development of American enterprises in many Chinese cities.

“Visitors will be accompanied on the tour of the exhibition hall by a Chinese-American lad and will experience the American urban life in 2030. The pavilion will present a dynamic and emotional story that conveys four core concepts: sustainability, teamwork, health and the spirit of striving for success”. Jose Villarreal told that a construction schedule for US Pavilion had been elaborated to ensure the punctuality and economization of construction work, and US Pavilion would celebrate Expo 2010 with people all around world.