On October 25, 2018, the 13th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands declared that Changshu was put on the list of the first “International Wetland Cities” in the world, in recognition of its success in the protection of wetland ecology. The award is arguably the most influential on a global scale—supreme and unchallenged. It was against this backdrop that the project of Changshu Shanghu International Health Demonstration Zone was commenced.

Covering an area of about 40 million square meters, Changshu Shanghu, a national wetland park, is slap bang in the middle of the city, including 800-hectare ecological lake, four parks and ten places of interest. In compliance with the strategy for Healthy China 2030, the characteristic “Modern Healthy Lifestyle and Five Healthy Systems” will improve the quality of China’s health industry development and consequently Shanghu will hold much appeal for people all over the world and set a pattern for others to follow for sustainable development—hence a world-class livable zone. Meanwhile, Shanghu is ideally placed in the center the Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration and only one hour’s drive from Shanghai. Hopefully, it will be on a par with world-famous health destinations, such as the French town of Evian and Japanese town of Karuizawa, thus catching worldwide attention and attracting tourists in their multitudes.