Our Water Season 2 kicks off in London with a dynamic six-day program, featuring exhibitions, forums, and cross-cultural events.
Our Water: Season 2 launched in London on the International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations with a six-day, six-event program that features exhibitions, forums, and cross-cultural events under the theme Flowing from Shanghai – Intercultural Dialogues Among World Cities. This season connects Shanghai and London through their shared heritage as iconic waterfront cities, shaped and defined by their landmark rivers, the Huangpu, the Suzhou Creek, and the Thames.
A Dynamic Six-day Program
Following the success of its inaugural Shanghai–Paris season, Our Water Season 2 kicks off in London with a dynamic six-day program. Events include the Launch Ceremony and London Forum, an exhibition on the history and renewal of the Huangpu River, the COINect special exhibition on Sino-British numismatic culture, the Codes of Tides multimedia show, a Chinese culinary night titled A Bite of Shanghai, and the Cambridge Waterside Saloon under the Jing’an Moments initiative.
Held at One Whitehall Place along the Thames, the Launch Ceremony and London Forum welcomed esteemed guests including Wang Qi, Minister at the Chinese Embassy in the UK; ; Chen Yiqun, Director of the Information Office of Shanghai Municipality; Howard Dawber, Deputy Mayor of London and Chairman of London & Partners; Councillor Nick Small of Liverpool; Chen Yiqun, Director of the Information Office of the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government; Liu Ke, Representative of Shanghai United Media Group and President of Xinmin Evening News; Wang Yumei, Director of the Shanghai Local Chronicles Office; Marcus Richards, Partner in EY Parthenon’s Corporate Finance; as well as keynote speakers Prof. Lou Yongqi, Vice President of the China Industrial Design Association and President of Shanghai University of Engineering Science; Prof. Christoph Lindner, President and Vice-Chancellor of the Royal College of Art; and Dr. Julia King, Director of Social Place; and more than 140 participants from both countries attended.
Opening speeches were given by Wang Qi, the Minister at the Chinese Embassy in the UK; Chen Yiqun, Director of the; Chen Yiqun, Director of the Information Office of Shanghai Municipality; Liu Yonggang, President and Editor-in-Chief of The Paper; Yongjian Zhao, Vice-Director of the Shanghai Office for Advancing International Financial Centre Development.
The event is guided by Information Office of Shanghai Municipality, hosted by Shanghai United Media Group (SUMG) and Shanghai International Culture Association (SICA), and organised by The Paper and Suhewan Group.
Focus on sustainability, finance and innovation
Through forward-looking roundtable discussions and keynote speeches on zero-carbon waterfronts, financial collaboration, and sustainability, the event set the stage for deeper dialogue between the two global hubs. Coinciding with London Tech Week 2025, the forum also spotlighted creativity and technology, with both UNESCO Creative Cities exchanging best practices in sustainable urban innovation.
Deputy Mayor of London Howard Dawber, Councillor Nick Small of Liverpool City Council, and Mr. Yang Yi, Deputy District Mayor of Shanghai Jing’an jointly released the World-Class Waterfront Development Initiative, reinforcing joint ambitions for global waterfront excellence.
The Initiative aims at fostering resilient, inclusive, and innovation-driven waterfronts aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Moreover, Gong Mingguang, the Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai, David Oswell, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Goldsmiths, University of London, signed a long-term cooperation agreement, to collaborate in areas such as Sino-British exhibition projects, artist residency programmes, and academic exchange. The sides are hosting a new exhibition – “Codes of Tides,” running from June 9 to 13, in London’s Troy House Art Foundation.
During the Launch Ceremony, Howard Dawber reflected on the deep historical and contemporary ties between London and Shanghai. Highlighting the symbolic role of rivers in global trade and cultural exchange, he emphasized that cities like London and Shanghai have “a lot more in common than we have of difference,” and that real excitement lies in learning from each other’s strengths. Dawber praised Our Water as “a fantastic example” of how openness, collaboration, and cultural dialogue can foster meaningful international engagement.
The Launch Ceremony continued with keynote speeches on zero-carbon waterfronts, sustainability, and design-led innovation. While Lou Yongqi reflected on Suzhou Creek’s transformation into a human-centred public space, Christoph Lindner shared RCA research on water as a catalyst for low-energy, community-based design. Julia King, drawing from her work in India and the UK, called for decentralised, nature-based infrastructure as a more socially embedded alternative to large-scale systems.
Roundtable Sessions
Following the keynotes, the first roundtable session, titled “Global Paradigms of Waterfront Economies and Financial Engines,” brought together leading voices in finance and policy. Panellists included Chen Wu, renowned business writer; Sallianne Taylor, EMEA Head of Government Relations of Bloomberg; David Butcher, Head of Fintech & Cyber at London & Partners; Ge Li, General Manager at SPD Bank London Branch; and Marcus Richards, Partner in EY Parthenon’s Corporate Finance. The discussion explored Sino-British financial collaboration, with a focus on cross-border investment, green bond innovation, and fintech integration. Panellists highlighted Shanghai’s expanding financial openness and London’s role as a global finance hub, emphasizing the potential for joint models that support sustainable urban transformation.
Roundtable Session I.
The second roundtable, “Reimagining Waterfront Narratives: Where Creativity Meets Technology,” focused on low-carbon opportunities for creative industries and cross-border innovation. Speakers included Yi Han, CEO of Shanghai Suhewan (Group) Co., Ltd.; Julia Solodova, Project Manager at GBD Innovation Club; John Thackara, Senior Fellow at Royal College of Art and Visiting Professor at Tongji University; Paul Kallee-Grover, Strategic Advisor at Liverpool BID Company; Frank Xu, Chairman of Horizons; and Teemu Suviala, Global Chief Creative Officer at Landor (WPP). Drawing on case studies such as Shanghai’s Suhewan waterfront district, the discussion examined how sustainability, green branding, and design-led innovation can shape inclusive and future-facing waterfronts. Speakers highlighted the role of creative industries in building community resilience and emphasised the importance of international collaboration in driving meaningful urban transformation.
Roundtable Session II.
The London Forum marked just the London series of Our Water Season 2. Building on the momentum of these dialogues, the next phase will take place in Shanghai in November 2025, where local events will continue to explore sustainable waterfront transformation through cultural exchange, financial innovation, and urban cooperation. As the rivers of Shanghai and London flow forward, so too does the commitment to fostering inclusive, creative, and future-facing partnerships between global cities.
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