So let me begin, though, by seeing -- and then what I'll do is I'll call on a boy and then a girl and then -- so we'll go back and forth, so that you know it's fair.  All right?  So I'll start with this young lady right in the front.  Why don't we wait for this microphone so everyone can hear you.  And what's your name?

Q    My name is (inaudible) and I am a student from Fudan University.  Shanghai and Chicago have been sister cities since 1985, and these two cities have conduct a wide range of economic, political, and cultural exchanges.  So what measures will you take to deepen this close relationship between cities of the United States and China?  And Shanghai will hold the World Exposition next year.  Will you bring your family to visit the Expo?  Thank you.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, thank you very much for the question.  I was just having lunch before I came here with the Mayor of Shanghai, and he told me that he has had an excellent relationship with the city of Chicago -- my home town -- that he's visited there twice.  And I think it's wonderful to have these exchanges between cities.

One of the things that I discussed with the Mayor is how both cities can learn from each other on strategies around clean energy, because one of the issues that ties China and America together is how, with an expanding population and a concern for climate change, that we're able to reduce our carbon footprint.  And obviously in the United States and many developed countries, per capita, per individual, they are already using much more energy than each individual here in China.  But as China grows and expands, it's going to be using more energy as well.  So both countries have a great interest in finding new strategies.

We talked about mass transit and the excellent rail lines that are being developed in Shanghai.  I think we can learn in Chicago and the United States some of the fine work that's being done on high-speed rail.

In the United States, I think we are learning how to develop buildings that use much less energy, that are much more energy-efficient.  And I know that with Shanghai, as I traveled and I saw all the cranes and all the new buildings that are going up, it's very important for us to start incorporating these new technologies so that each building is energy-efficient when it comes to lighting, when it comes to heating.  And so it's a terrific opportunity I think for us to learn from each other.

I know this is going to be a major focus of the Shanghai  World Expo, is the issue of clean energy, as I learned from the Mayor.  And so I would love to attend.  I'm not sure yet what my schedule is going to be, but I'm very pleased that we're going to have an excellent U.S. pavilion at the Expo, and I understand that we expect as many as 70 million visitors here.  So it's going to be very crowded and it's going to be very exciting.

Chicago has had two world expos in its history, and both of those expos ended up being tremendous boosts for the city.  So I'm sure the same thing will happen here in Shanghai.

Thank you.  (Applause.)

Why don't we get one of the questions from the Internet?  And introduce yourself, in case --

Q    First shall I say it in Chinese, and then the English, okay?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Yes.

Q    I want to pose a question from the Internet.  I want to thank you, Mr. President, for visiting China in your first year in office, and exchange views with us in China.  I want to know what are you bringing to China, your visit to China this time, and what will you bring back to the United States?  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  The main purpose of my trip is to deepen my understanding of China and its vision for the future.  I have had several meetings now with President Hu.  We participated together in the G20 that was dealing with the economic financial crisis.  We have had consultations about a wide range of issues. But I think it's very important for the United States to continually deepen its understanding of China, just as it's important for China to continually deepen its understanding of the United States.

In terms of what I'd like to get out of this meeting, or this visit, in addition to having the wonderful opportunity to see the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, and to meet with all of you -- these are all highlights -- but in addition to that, the discussions that I intend to have with President Hu speak to the point that Ambassador Huntsman made earlier, which is there are very few global challenges that can be solved unless the United States and China agree.

So let me give you a specific example, and that is the issue we were just discussing of climate change.  The United States and China are the world's two largest emitters of greenhouse gases, of carbon that is causing the planet to warm.  Now, the United States, as a highly developed country, as I said before, per capita, consumes much more energy and emits much more greenhouse gases for each individual than does China.  On the other hand, China is growing at a much faster pace and it has a much larger population.  So unless both of our countries are willing to take critical steps in dealing with this issue, we will not be able to resolve it.

There's going to be a Copenhagen conference in December in which world leaders are trying to find a recipe so that we can all make commitments that are differentiated so each country would not have the same obligations -- obviously China, which has much more poverty, should not have to do exactly the same thing as the United States -- but all of us should have these certain obligations in terms of what our plan will be to reduce these greenhouse gases.

So that's an example of what I hope to get out of this meeting -- a meeting of the minds between myself and President Hu about how together the United States and China can show leadership.  Because I will tell you, other countries around the world will be waiting for us.  They will watch to see what we do. And if they say, ah, you know, the United States and China, they're not serious about this, then they won't be serious either.  That is the burden of leadership that both of our countries now carry.  And my hope is, is that the more discussion and dialogue that we have, the more we are able to show this leadership to the world on these many critical issues.  Okay?  (Applause.)

All right, it's a -- I think it must be a boy's turn now.  Right?  So I'll call on this young man right here.

Q    (As translated.)  Mr. President, good afternoon.  I'm from Tongji University.  I want to cite a saying from Confucius: "It is always good to have a friend coming from afar."  In Confucius books, there is a great saying which says that harmony is good, but also we uphold differences.  China advocates a harmonious world.  We know that the United States develops a culture that features diversity.  I want to know, what will your government do to build a diversified world with different cultures?  What would you do to respect the different cultures and histories of other countries?  And what kinds of cooperation we can conduct in the future?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  This is an excellent point.  The United States, one of our strengths is that we are a very diverse culture.  We have people coming from all around the world.  And so there's no one definition of what an American looks like.  In my own family, I have a father who was from Kenya; I have a mother who was from Kansas, in the Midwest of the United States; my sister is half-Indonesian; she's married to a Chinese person from Canada.  So when you see family gatherings in the Obama household, it looks like the United Nations.  (Laughter.)

And that is a great strength of the United States, because it means that we learn from different cultures and different foods and different ideas, and that has made us a much more dynamic society.

Now, what is also true is that each country in this interconnected world has its own culture and its own history and its own traditions.  And I think it's very important for the United States not to assume that what is good for us is automatically good for somebody else.  And we have to have some modesty about our attitudes towards other countries.

I have to say, though, as I said in my opening remarks, that we do believe that there are certain fundamental principles that are common to all people, regardless of culture.  So, for example, in the United Nations we are very active in trying to make sure that children all around the world are treated with certain basic rights -- that if children are being exploited, if there's forced labor for children, that despite the fact that that may have taken place in the past in many different countries, including the United States, that all countries of the world now should have developed to the point where we are treating children better than we did in the past.  That's a universal value.

I believe, for example, the same thing holds true when it comes to the treatment of women.  I had a very interesting discussion with the Mayor of Shanghai during lunch right before I came, and he informed me that in many professions now here in China, there are actually more women enrolled in college than there are men, and that they are doing very well.  I think that is an excellent indicator of progress, because it turns out that if you look at development around the world, one of the best indicators of whether or not a country does well is how well it educates its girls and how it treats its women.  And countries that are tapping into the talents and the energy of women and giving them educations typically do better economically than countries that don't.

So, now, obviously difficult cultures may have different attitudes about the relationship between men and women, but I think it is the view of the United States that it is important for us to affirm the rights of women all around the world.  And if we see certain societies in which women are oppressed, or they are not getting opportunities, or there is violence towards women, we will speak out.

Now, there may be some people who disagree with us, and we can have a dialogue about that.  But we think it's important, nevertheless, to be true to our ideals and our values.  And we -- and when we do so, though, we will always do so with the humility and understanding that we are not perfect and that we still have much progress to make.  If you talk to women in America, they will tell you that there are still men who have a lot of old-fashioned ideas about the role of women in society.  And so we don't claim that we have solved all these problems, but we do think that it's important for us to speak out on behalf of these universal ideals and these universal values.

Okay?  All right.  We're going to take a question from the Internet.

Q    Hello, Mr. President.  It's a great honor to be here and meet you in person.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you.

Q    I will be reading a question selected on the Internet to you, and this question is from somebody from Taiwan.  In his question, he said:  I come from Taiwan.  Now I am doing business on the mainland.  And due to improved cross-straits relations in recent years, my business in China is doing quite well.  So when I heard the news that some people in America would like to propose -- continue selling arms and weapons to Taiwan, I begin to get pretty worried.  I worry that this may make our cross-straits relations suffer.  So I would like to know if, Mr. President, are you supportive of improved cross-straits relations?  And although this question is from a businessman, actually, it's a question of keen concern to all of us young Chinese students, so we'd really like to know your position on this question.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you.  Well, I have been clear in the past that my administration fully supports a one-China policy, as reflected in the three joint communiqués that date back several decades, in terms of our relations with Taiwan as well as our relations with the People's Republic of China.  We don't want to change that policy and that approach.

I am very pleased with the reduction of tensions and the improvement in cross-straits relations, and it is my deep desire and hope that we will continue to see great improvement between Taiwan and the rest of -- and the People's Republic in resolving many of these issues.

One of the things that I think that the United States, in terms of its foreign policy and its policy with respect to China, is always seeking is ways that through dialogue and negotiations, problems can be solved.  We always think that's the better course.  And I think that economic ties and commercial ties that are taking place in this region are helping to lower a lot of the tensions that date back before you were born or even before I was born.

Now, there are some people who still look towards the past when it comes to these issues, as opposed to looking towards the future.  I prefer to look towards the future.  And as I said, I think the commercial ties that are taking place -- there's something about when people think that they can do business and make money that makes them think very clearly and not worry as much about ideology.  And I think that that's starting to happen in this region, and we are very supportive of that process.  Okay?

Let's see, it's a girl's turn now, right?  Yes, right there. Yes.  Hold on, let's get -- whoops, I'm sorry, they took the mic back here.  I'll call on you next.

Go ahead, and then I'll go up here later.  Go ahead.

Q    Thank you.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I'll call on you later.  But I'll on her first and then I'll call on you afterwards.

Go ahead.