148-Year First: China Wins Hosting Rights

August 29 is National Surveying and Mapping Law Publicity Day in China. Looking back to this May, the news that Qingdao won the bid to host the 2030 Congress of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG) is undoubtedly one of the most remarkable achievements on China's surveying and mapping calendar this year.

At 9:20 a.m. on May 29, 2026, at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in South Africa, the president of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG) stepped up to the podium. The room fell silent. Days and nights of anxiety, countless emails, and sleepless hours were compressed into those few seconds of waiting. The president glanced at the result, paused, and then announced:

"QingDao, China."

The hall erupted.

With 78 votes against 28—a 73.6% approval rate—Qingdao defeated Seville, Spain, to secure the hosting rights for the FIG Congress 2030. It was the first time in the Federation's history, since its founding in Paris in 1878, that the congress would be held in China.

Zhang Zhihua, President of the Qingdao Geotechnical Investigation and Surveying Research Institute, sat in the front row, took off his glasses, and wiped his eyes. "We did it!" His voice trembled. "From Qingdao's participation in the first International Latitude Observation in 1926 to winning the FIG bid today—it's been exactly one hundred years."

At that moment, tears welled up in his eyes.

Few people know just how difficult it was to win this bid.

FIG is the most authoritative international organisation in the global surveying, mapping and geospatial sector, covering more than 120 countries and regions and representing over 230,000 surveying professionals worldwide. It is not only a platform for technical exchange but also holds significant influence over international surveying standards and rule-making. Its quadrennial congress is known as the "Olympics" of the surveying industry—and for 148 years, that Olympics had never set foot in Chinaor in Asia.

The opponent was Seville, Spain—a long-established city with deep roots in the European surveying community.

Qingdao's bidding team officially began its work in the second half of 2025. "Just three of us handled the texts, proposals and submissions," said Zhang Zhihua. "But the entire institute worked as one—everyone behind the scenes was fully engaged."

They wrote materials, revised presentations, handled administrative procedures, edited videos, and coordinated internationally—each person juggling multiple roles around the clock. Promotional videos were fine-tuned frame by frame, slide decks polished repeatedly, speeches proofread in both Chinese and English, brochures consolidated and optimised, and exhibition boards meticulously laid out. The difficulty of the bidding process was far greater than outsiders could imagine.

FIG operates under a set of rules and cultural logic built over 148 years—and the hardest part was not just the language barrier, but understanding the culture. "You have to understand their way of thinking and their working habits," Zhang said. Every outgoing email was carefully worded; replies could take "more than a week, ten days, even a month." The team sent out batches of materials weekly and produced a city video every month.

"We often felt overwhelmed," Zhang admitted candidly. "Time and again, we thought we had hit a dead end."

"Looking back, every step of the preparation was a battle," Zhang recalled. Everyone's hearts were in their mouths, but each carried the same belief: to win honour for the country and leave no regrets.

Once in Cape Town, the real test began.

The opponent had advantages in networks and connections; Qingdao could rely only on its thoroughly polished hard power and meticulously executed on-site presentations. "For eight days and nights, the team never rested," Zhang said.

On May 24, the bid presentation took place—a strict 10minute limit, with no overtime allowed. Drawing on months of preparation, Qingdao went headtohead with Seville. That evening, with support from the Chinese ConsulateGeneral in Cape Town, a "China · Qingdao Night" promotional event was held, attracting more than 70 attendees including the FIG president and experts from various countries. Featuring cultural creative products and city promotional videos, it became a pivotal moment in the campaign.

Booth No. 71 was opened, staffed in shifts, and over a thousand bilingual information kits were distributed to delegates. On May 26, the official public presentation window opened, with Qingdao and Seville taking turns on stage—the only concentrated opportunity to showcase their bids.

Local Chinese and enthusiastic supporters lent a hand. Professor Shi Wenzhong from Hong Kong Polytechnic University flew to South Africa at his own expense. Despite suffering from gastrointestinal discomfort due to the unfamiliar environment, he still helped the team refine their English presentations and engaged individual international scholars one by one. "Without the help of these experts, we could not have done it alone," Zhang said.

The long wait culminated on May 29 at the FIG General Assembly, when the online voting results were announced: Qingdao had won the right to host the FIG Congress 2030. For the first time in 148 years, the industry's premier global gathering would be held in China—in Qingdao—marking a historic breakthrough for China's surveying sector.

Zhang Zhihua stood up excitedly, shook hands and embraced his team, and walked together to the centre of the stage. "As men, we had to keep some composure," he recalled, "but I did have to wipe my eyes for quite a while."

Behind that restrained composure lay more than forty years of a surveyor's dedication, a century of a city's longing, and a nation's long journey from follower to centre stage.

"Believe in the power of belief." The real battle is not about soaring ahead in favourable times, but about never giving up in desperate moments. When everything is ready, the rarest quality is not capability, but the steadfast faith that holds until the very last second.

On May 29, 2026, China won.

All of this was made possible by a remarkable era—we are grateful for this great time.

2030, see you in Qingdao.