Tengtou at the Expo

The Tengtou Pavilion has attracted more than 350,000 visitors since it opened on May 1. The two-story pavilion explores the lifestyle of Tengtou residents, as well as the policies guiding the village's development. The pavilion looks like an ancient structure, with traditional Jiangnan architectural elements displayed on the doors, windows, walls and roof.

The pavilion explores the village's modern, environmentally sound agricultural technologies with a series of demonstrations and interactive programs. The pavilion's eco-house showcases wind and solar power facilities, a rooftop garden, water and waste treatment systems and other environmentally friendly technologies being employed in Tengtou.

Tengtou's success can serve as a prototype for other villages, said Xu Meng, director of the Fenghua Information Office.

The main goal of Tengtou's development is to create an environment that benefits everyone who lives in the village, said Xu.

Tengtou also sets a great example for those rural areas that are conflicted between developing economically and preserving the environment. Twenty years ago, the villagers of Tengtou made a written commitment to the principle of environmental friendliness. In Tengtou, all projects must get approval from an expert environmental committee before being launched. The committee has turned down many proposals for the sake of environmental protection.

The fifth of this series on China's urbanization process, "Farmers taste city living", will be online Monday.