BLIA South Island were Invited to Attend the Open Christchurch Press Conference

The Open Christchurch event, organised by the Te Pūtahi Centre for Architecture and City Making, a New Zealand green public welfare group will hold an excellent architectural tour on 6th and 7th May 2023. The press conference was held on 25th March at Te Aratai High School to promote the event with nearly 70 attendees, including the Deputy Mayor of Christchurch, Pauline Cotter, Christchurch Hornby Ward Councillor Mark Peters, Te Aratai High School Principal Richard Edmundson and representatives from selected buildings and societies. The Fo Guang Shan Christchurch, which was selected to participate, was represented by five members, including Kok Wei Low and Cao Qian, committees of the Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA) South Island NZ.

Deputy Mayor Pauline Cotter presided over the ceremony and shared that the Open Christchurch event is an exciting activity that opens up many historic buildings in Christchurch for visitors to explore and discover the city's valuable history and achievements. It even reveals more surprises. The BLIA representatives introduced the FGS Christchurch to the attendees at the press conference and promoted the Multicultural Festival of Buddha's Birthday, which will be held on 15th April. Deputy Mayor Cotter said she had visited the FGS Christchurch and very supportive of the Buddha's Birthday event. Ward Councillor Mark Peters, and many of the attendees shared that they had visited the temple, the delicious vegetarian food and the beautiful atmosphere are unforgettable.

The FGS Christchurch has been selected as an excellent building for the Open Christchurch event for three consecutive years, attracting 1,000 visitors each time. The selection was based on the structure, design, and materials of the building which all conform to the concept of green energy conservation and environmental protection.

There are 52 buildings and four trail parks with distinctive features have been selected as excellent buildings for the Open Christchurch event this year. In addition to the FGS Christchurch, there are also Gothic buildings in the centre of Christchurch, the University of Canterbury, the 100-year-old campus of the New Zealand aristocratic private school Christ's College, and the iconic building of Christ Church Cathedral, which was closed to the public after the earthquake in 2011 and has now been opened for the first time. The Open Christchurch event is highly anticipated every year, giving people the opportunity to peek into many buildings that are not usually open to the public, focusing the attention of the people of New Zealand on Christchurch, not only revitalizing the city but also promoting the reconstruction and development potential of the earthquake-stricken urban areas.