Yeosu , South Korea ( CNN ) -- An unassuming town on the southern tip of South Korea is an unlikely place for one of the world 's most advanced buildings . Until August 12 the city of Yeosu is hosting Expo 2012 and among the new buildings containing educational displays on ocean conservation is the Korea pavilion . It stands out as one of the most technologically advanced , if aesthetically underwhelming , of them all . Korean architecture firm Samoo Architects & Engineers designed it to resemble the Korean 'Taegeuk ' -- the yin and yang symbol of balance -- but inside the structure that concept of harmony is taken even further . At a cost of around $ 19.5 million it combines the latest in hydrogen fuel cell technology , photovoltaic solar panels and geo-thermal energy to provide power , cooling and heating , making it carbon negative -- taking out more CO2 from the atmosphere than it produces . Korean firm Hyundai provided the fuel cells that are key to the company 's development of next generation hydrogen-fuelled cars , while architects from Samoo say that other engineering elements , like the seawater thermal pipes , are there to demonstrate their potential future use . While Expos have long been associated with experimental and iconic architecture -- the World 's Fair of 1889 gave Paris the Eiffel Tower -- not much of it has stood the test of time . The Korea pavilion however will be one of the few structures that remains on the site once the Expo has ended . Another is the Theme Pavilion that tests architectural and engineering limits in a different way from its national namesake , by being as low-tech as possible . The Austrian architects were not even sure that the structure could even be built . `` The biomimetic principles ( of the building ) had not been built before on that scale , '' said Kristina Schinegger of Soma Architects . One vast side of the building is covered with reinforced fiberglass `` gills '' that can be opened and closed to either provide shade or ventilation . `` Really it 's based on material performance ; it 's not a mechanism moving but the material itself , transforming , '' said Schinegger . `` It 's an idea deduced from plants , how you can configure the geometry and how you can use certain characteristics ( of the building ) so you use less energy . '' German renewable energy engineers Transsolar installed the solar panels on the roof and have designed a seawater heat exchange system that will provide additional cooling and lead to 80 % of the building 's energy originating from renewable sources . As well as the importance of eco-friendly elements , Schinegger says that the spirit of adventure and experimentalism , in keeping with the history of Expos , was a key part of the design process . `` The architectural scene ( at Expos ) at least is something where you can really see things that are being tried out . The task is not to make an envelope for a function but to do something that is an experience in itself , '' she says . `` On the one hand the architect has to do less , but on the other side much more . It has to be extraordinary , which is why architects love Expos . ''
Expo 2012 in South Korea is site of cutting - edge experimental buildings . Korea pavilion is hi - tech and carbon - negative . Japan pavilion based on principles of biomimicry with ventilation ' . ' Architects of theme pavilion were not sure it could be built .