Editor's note: Ben Yalow is a member of the Mark Protection Committee (MPC) of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS) and co-chairman of the 2023 Chengdu World Science Fiction Convention (WorldCon). The article reflects the author's views and not necessarily those of CGTN.

This is my 53rd WorldCon. Every one of them is different, of course. But, in many ways, this is a more different WorldCon experience than I've had in the past.

An obvious reason is that this is the first WorldCon in China. I've been to WorldCons that were the first in a country – the Dutch WorldCon in 1990 and the Helsinki one in 2017. But those were more similar to other WorldCons I'd been to, because their fandoms had grown up immersed in the Western fannish culture that I was familiar with, so much of their WorldCons were influenced by having been part of that environment. They were each different, of course, and wonderfully expanding the experience of the WorldCon, and that's what bringing the WorldCon to a new place can do.

But the Chinese fannish culture didn't spend decades in constant, extensive contact with the culture I grew up in, so the chance for discovering new ways and new people was greater here than it had been for other new-country WorldCons, which meant, that as co-chair, I had more to learn than I had experienced with in the past. And, of course, Chinese fandom had much to learn about the general WorldCon culture, which meant that by each absorbing the traditions of the other, we, as a committee, mostly from Chengdu, but with people from around the world assisting in running the convention, could produce a new Chengdu WorldCon that would shine with the strengths of both cultures. And I believe we've done so.

Because, despite our different backgrounds, we all share a common love – SF fandom. While there might be differences in what particular part we might value, both as individuals and as a group, our common field binds us together into the family which is SF fandom, with all its commonality and all of its diversity.

It's been a wonderful WorldCon so far (I'm writing this in the middle of the convention, but I expect the rest to be as marvelous as the beginning was). We've had speakers from more different backgrounds than any WorldCon in the past, which has only brought out all of the different ways we express our joy in the field. And, with the support technology we've had at the events, the language barriers, while still there, have let Chinese speakers and English speakers share their thoughts about SF, in ways that have not occurred at prior WorldCons.

And we have a Hugo Award ballot which shows that SF transcends language, with substantial works in multiple categories having first appeared both in Chinese and English, reflecting the styles of SF that have been developing through the different cultures. But fandom has encompassed all of those, and the finalist list is more diverse in outlook than ever before.

I also can't neglect mentioning the beauty and impressiveness of the SF Museum that is serving as our primary venue for the convention. A year ago, this was nothing but a concept – and now it rises above the lake in all of its stunning architecture, a tribute to its designers and builders. It has been serving as a unique site for a convention, and I look forward to coming back in the future to see how it will work as a museum for the field. Looking at some of the historical exhibits we have at this WorldCon, I expect it to be a major reflection of the history of SF, both inside and outside China.

And, besides history, we have significant exhibits put together by fan groups from around the world, reflecting their groups interest in SF, and other exhibits by major commercial companies showing the increasing role SF is playing in the commercial sector. The kinds of fan tables and commercial exhibits differ, of course – but they both reflect what SF means here in China, and around the world.

In short, this has been a marvelous combination of the past WorldCon culture and the past Chinese SF culture, yielding a WorldCon that shows the best of everything. And I anticipate that, as the WorldCon continues to move around the world, it returns to China (quite possibly Chengdu, based on how strong SF is in this city) in the decades to come. And, on a personal note, I look forward to coming back for it.