Dubai 2020
Expo 2020
Shaun Vorster, VP Business Integration & Activation
of the World Congress, speaks to EW about
next year’s big event - Expo 2020 Dubai
ow are plans going in
preparation for Expo
2020 Dubai?
With less than two years
to go, preparations are well underway
and great progress is being made
ahead of the first World Expo to be
held in the Middle East, Africa and
South Asia (MEASA) region.
A total of 190 countries have
confirmed participation, and we have
announced partnerships with some of
the world’s biggest brands, including
PepsiCo, Mastercard, Nissan and
Emirates Airline.
Construction of buildings across
our three Thematic Districts is largely
complete, and we are beginning
fit-out works.
The completion of Al Wasl Plaza, a
130m wide, 67.5m tall domed space,
will be an important milestone in
the development of the site, later this
year. It is an iconic design element
at the heart of the Expo 2020 site,
and will attract millions of visitors
between 20 October, 2020 and 10
April, 2021.
Innovative architecture is only
part of what Expo 2020 has to offer.
Development of immersive and
entertaining content is underway and
will offer a memorable experience
suited to every taste and audience.
How have you managed to stay
true to the bid pitch promises and
themes for Expo 2020?
Our theme, ‘Connecting Minds,
Creating the Future’, is integral to
the identity of Expo 2020. The huge
number of confirmed participants
means that we have followed through
on our aim to host one of the most
w w w.exhibitionworld.co.uk
international World Expos to date,
and provide a global platform for
knowledge sharing, cultural exchange
and learning. There is immense pride
in the UAE being selected to host Expo
2020.
We have managed to embed our
key bid promises through our sub-
themes of Sustainability, Opportunity
and Mobility. These have been fully
integrated into the planning stages,
architectural elements, and the
content and programming activities
of each pavilion. For example,
the Opportunity Pavilion is being
constructed from natural and organic
materials such as timber, rope and
stone, and we are on track to divert
at least 85% of all Expo construction
waste material away from landfill.
Our Sustainability Pavilion
explores the potential for buildings
to be self-sustaining in water
and energy, by using innovative
combinations of technologies to
harvest solar power, and water from
the air. It will also be a key part of
Above:
Dubai Exhibition
Centre will be part
of District 2020 - a
thriving city of the
future
Expo 2020’s legacy, as a Children and
Science Centre.
In addition, we are working closely
with global partners such as Siemens
to provide a wide range of innovative
solutions, technologies and products
to help plan, build and operate
the world’s largest installation of
smart building and energy-efficient
technology across 137 structures.
Expo Live, Expo 2020’s innovation
and partnership programme, is
another platform designed to support
creative solutions to challenges that
affect people’s lives. It aims to help
promote sustainable practices by
enabling problem-solvers to promote
innovation and build partnerships
across the world.
What can you say about the scale of
Expo 2020 and the number of likely
exhibitors and participants?
It is huge: more than 200 participants
including nations, multilateral
organisations, businesses and
educational institutions will take
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