Leaders of the Group of 20 (G20)nations will meet in Pittsburgh on Thursday and Friday to discuss measures to tackle the ongoing economic crisis.

Pittsburgh, the second largest city in Pennsylvania, has a total area of about 144 square kilometers and a population of 310,000.

Known as the "Steel City," Pittsburgh was famous for its steel industry for much of the 20th century. But a crippling recession in the US steel industry in the 1980s cost Pittsburgh 250,000 steel-related job cuts and left the city with no choice but to reinvent itself.

Pittsburgh shifted its economic focus from steel to education, health care, financial services, higher education and advanced technology such as robotics. It is now seen as a transformed legend that went from being America's Steel Capital to the Green City.

Pittsburgh ranks among the most livable and cleanest cities in the United States. It also is known as the "City of Bridges" because of the 446 bridges that span its rivers.

The characteristic shape of the city's downtown is a triangular tract carved by the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers, where the Ohio River forms. The city, one of the country's largest freshwater ports, is an important transportation junction for railroads and airports.

During the economic meltdown last year, Pittsburgh's economy did better than those of many other US cities because of its broader economic bases. The city's unemployment rate is 2 percentage points lower than the national average and its housing market remains stable.

High livability, quality education, convenient transportation and a stable job market built the city's new status as a corporate headquarters' home. More than 300 companies, including eight listed on the Fortune 500, are headquartered here.

(Xinhua News Agency September 25, 2009)