Wisteria drapes Changning’s top cycling greenway

April brings the most beautiful season to the Changning Outer Ring Ecological Greenway, where wisteria is in full bloom. Hanging clusters of pale purple flowers fall like misty waterfalls, draping the urban green corridor in a gentle, romantic purple dream.

This ever-changing, flower-filled greenway has just been selected as one of the 100 best cycling routes on China’s Cycling Map.

Entering from Guangshun Road N., visitors will find the wisteria is vibrant and enchanting, each cluster resembling strings of delicate wind chimes. Passing cyclists instinctively slow down to take in the view.

Stretching 6.25 kilometers, the greenway is lined with more than 20 varieties of flowering trees and shrubs. Along the route, the scenery unfolds in layers, constantly shifting. Riverside scenes and wetlands are tucked quietly among the trees, offering serene and peaceful views.

Whenever cyclists feel tired, they can stop anywhere. Sitting by the river, watching the gentle current, the blossoms weighing down the branches, and the clouds drifting across the sky, one can quietly feel the spring breeze on their face.

This, perhaps, is the most beautiful picture of spring.

East Hongqiao Center’s new model blends business, green living, and community

East Hongqiao Center has reopened with a fresh new look, featuring upgraded outdoor spaces, a jointly built “Sky Habitat” garden, and special pop-up events. 

The project continues to explore a new “small yet refined, small yet quality” model that integrates commerce and office space.

After meticulous renovation, the center’s outdoor areas now offer enhanced functionality and atmosphere. Stylish yet comfortable seating areas are thoughtfully arranged, creating cozy corners for rest and neighborly social interaction. 

Bright yellow sun umbrellas, lounge chairs, and benches add a splash of lively color. Distinctive flower beds are scattered throughout, while vibrant greenery brings natural vitality to the square. A giant sun-shaped inflatable art piece stands tall, radiating energy and warmth.

The entire East Hongqiao Center was designed and built in accordance with China’s “Three-Star Green Building” standards and PM2.5 certification. Some of its office buildings have also received international LEED Gold certification.

In March, Chengjiaqiao Subdistrict partnered with East Hongqiao Center to unveil the “Cloud Habitat” garden, covering about 400 square meters. The garden creates a three-dimensional natural landscape extending from the ground up into the urban sky, harmoniously blending ecological protection with business development and promoting the integration of commercial operations with green sustainability.

East Hongqiao Center is the first commercial-office mixed-use project in the Changning section of the Hongqiao International Central Business District. With a total floor area of about 170,000 square meters, it includes approximately 30,000 square meters of premium retail space and four high-quality office towers totaling around 70,000 square meters. The center benefits from excellent “mega-transportation” connectivity, including air, rail, metro, bus, and elevated road networks.

Tsinghua Aerospace Forum boosts Changning’s low altitude economy

The Tsinghua University 2026 Aerospace Industry Forum was recently held at the Xijiao State Guest Hotel in Shanghai. Focusing on low altitude economy and commercial spaceflight, the forum built a high level dialogue platform integrating government, industry, academia, research, and capital, injecting strong momentum into Changning’s efforts to become a low altitude economy headquarters cluster and cultivate new productive forces.

With low altitude economy and commercial spaceflight now elevated to national emerging pillar industries, the aerospace sector has become a core arena for new quality productive forces. The forum brought together academicians, centrally owned enterprise leaders, industry pioneers, and financial investors, leveraging Tsinghua University’s top tier aerospace research capabilities and its business school’s cutting edge industrial insights.

In a keynote speech, Wu Guanghui, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and chief designer of the C919 large passenger aircraft, delivered an in depth analysis of industry trends, covering the development of large aircraft, opportunities and challenges in the low altitude economy, breakthroughs in core aerospace technologies, governance of the Yangtze River Delta low altitude ecosystem, and synergy between high altitude and low altitude industries.

Two panel discussions focused on cross boundary integration of core technological innovations, and the closed loop commercial development of aerospace alongside financial capital empowerment. Leading companies such as iSpace, LandSpace, EHang, and Autoflight shared insights on cutting edge technological paths and pathways to commercialization, presenting a full chain logic of technological iteration, ecosystem building, and capital empowerment in the aerospace industry.

Changning District, home to a national level airport economic demonstration zone and a concentration of aviation headquarters, airspace management authorities, and airworthiness certification bodies, possesses a solid foundation and abundant scenario resources for the low altitude economy. It stands as a premier low altitude economy headquarters hub in the Yangtze River Delta.

Shanghai AI Going Global Summit highlights new growth paths for cross border business

The 2026 Shanghai AI Going Global New Growth Summit was held in Changning District on April 23, as part of efforts to build the Hongqiao headquarters cluster for enterprises going global. Participants explored new ways to empower cross border business with AI technology.

The summit offered in depth insights into the latest 2026 trends and AI driven opportunities on Alibaba.com, helping companies position themselves early to seize market advantages. It also analyzed global economic trends and new opportunities for China’s foreign trade, providing strategic decision making references for navigating the complex international environment. Additionally, the summit demonstrated how intelligent tools and professional services can redefine the paradigm of foreign trade growth in the AI era.

An interactive zone was set up outside the main venue, where companies received one on one guidance on using “ACCIO WORK,” Alibaba.com’s first enterprise level AI agent platform launched overseas. The platform is a dedicated cross border business workspace for small and medium sized enterprises.

Described as a “super assistant” for foreign trade, ACCIO WORK integrates core functions such as market insights, smart product listing, advertising diagnostics, shop diagnostics, and customer engagement. It is said that the platform will eventually connect with all e commerce channels, allowing merchants to customize their own AI agents based on their business workflows, thus achieving fully AI driven operations across the entire chain.

The summit sent a clear message: AI technology is shifting from “high threshold” to “accessible for all.” One participant remarked: “We used to think AI was a future concept, but today we see it is already an immediate necessity. Whoever embraces AI first will gain the first mover advantage on the global stage.”

As the only central urban district within the Hongqiao International Open Hub, Changning is committed to building a benchmark headquarters zone and establishing a “15 minute going global service circle.” The district is creating a matrix combining government services and market oriented professional services to support enterprises in their overseas expansion.

Changning Flower Show blooms with AI mascots

The Changning sub venue of the month-long 2026 Shanghai International Flower Show kicked off in Zhongshan Park on April 24. The event deeply integrates culture, commerce, tourism, sports, and greening, connecting five major commercial districts and offering a diverse range of markets.

Centered around Zhongshan Park, the Changning sub venue joins hands with five commercial circles — the Wutong Happiness Circle, Zhongshan Park Circle, Tianshan Hongqiao Circle, Xijiao Forest Life Circle, and Linkong Livat Circle — blending park flowers, neighborhood greenery, and commercial vitality into a citywide flower viewing landscape of “city in garden, flowers in city.”

The Changning Flower Map was launched at the opening ceremony. Over the next month, nearly 300 special events will take place across the district, including themed exhibitions, interactive experiences, and leisure markets.

The most anticipated highlight is the Changning sub venue’s IP mascots — “Wuwu” and “Tongtong.” Inspired by plane trees, these two AI powered plush dolls are not only adorably cute but also capable of voice conversations, memory learning, and emotional development. They are urban companions that can accompany, interact with, and grow a personality. Through various interactive activities, residents have the chance to take Wuwu and Tongtong home.

During the flower show, Zhongshan Park will also host immersive experiences such as a nature life market, a food market, and the Cloud Nine “Urban Wilderness” market. On May 20, a group wedding ceremony will be held in Zhongshan Park. Meanwhile, a “Blooming All the Way” themed double decker bus is now in service, offering free rides between the park and major commercial districts.