Xujing Town in Qingpu District has launched a program to promote its history and culture and explore the roots of ancient towns.

As a highlight of Xujing's "root exploration class" this year, the program will invite experts from various circles of life to share their stories and bond with the town, and promote the culture and history of the town via combined approaches.

It will comprise a series of lectures, performances, and a video release.

Located in the Shanghai Hongqiao International Central Business District, Xujing Town is home to a number of mature international communities and schools.

More than 20,000 expats now make Xujing home, and it also houses the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), the venue of the China International Import Expo (CIIE).

The first episode of the program was held on Wednesday at a community theater, featuring the 100-year-plus evolution of Xujing from a flourishing commercial town to a core part of the Hongqiao International Open Hub and a digital innovation industry forerunner in the Yangtze River Delta region.

The culture of ancient Panlong Town is being promoted as well.

With a history dating back more than 1,000 years to the Sui Dynasty (AD 581-618), Panlong Town is one of 32 historical protected zones in Shanghai.

Panlong Tiandi, a renewal and upgrade of the ancient Panlong Town, has emerged as a popular destination among locals and tourists since its opening in April. It reimagines the ancient Jiangnan watertown as a modern urban retreat.

The program also involves hidden stories of tiny items of great significance, and the stories of sets of stamps that reflect the development of Xujing were shared during the event.

A series of videos on tourist attractions of Panlong were released and will be screened during such occasions, authorities said.

Xujing plans to host a slew of lectures, performances, and activities as part of the program through the end of this year.