News

Green theme park sprouts near Bird's Nest

By Qin Zhongwei (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-06-22 09:13

Models wearing clothes made of recyclable materials at a press briefing for the theme park. WANG JING / CHINA DAILY

Featuring the world's largest Transformers-style creation of abandoned vehicles and recycled clothing, furniture and waste paper, a "green" theme park will sprout next month in Beijing.

Located northeast of the Bird's Nest - the National Stadium - the environment-themed park will cover 20,000 sq m and feature five indoor halls. Visitors will not only see large exhibits constructed of waste and recycled materials, but also experience sustainable lifetyles through games and various do-it-yourself activities.

Admission will cost 80 yuan or 60 yuan for visitors aged 65 years and older and children shorter than 140 cm.

Green Dream Park aims to become a new hangout for families and young people where they can explore how to make their lives greener in an interesting way, organizers said.

Terms such as "low carbon emissions", "Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability" will morph from loose concepts to applicability in daily lives, according to the host of event.

"When we talk about climate change or environmental protection, they used to be very heavy topics. But we want to approach it through some interesting and fun ways, while stressing our responsibility at the same time," Tina Zheng, general manager of the project, told METRO.

For example, park visitors can recline on a folding sofa that accommodates about 10 people.

It's made entirely of recycled paper and takes up little space when it is folded, said Zheng, who also organized the Chocolate Wonderland last winter in the same venue.

The chocolate-themed event attracted more than 300,000 visitors, but Zheng expects the Green Dream Park, open July 16 to Oct 10, will draw a bigger crowd.

More large events are slated for the Olympic Green. A dinosaur theme park will open July 1 near the Bird's Nest.

According to Ma Yinghui, vice-director of the Chaoyang Tourism Bureau, the municipal government is planning to ramp up events, such as exhibitions, concerts, theme parks and other outdoor festivities, around the Olympic Park.

"As the 2008 Beijing Olympics is gradually becoming a memory, it is the best way to make better use of the Olympic legacies," he said.