Previously scheduled to start in October 2020, the Expo 2020 Dubai will now be held between 1 October 2021 and 31 March 2022. After being postponed of an entire year, the starting date of Expo 2020 is slowly approaching. Five months to go! Expo 2020 Dubai will focus on the theme “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future.” It will be a celebration of human achievement and brilliance and an inspiration for the future generation to spark innovation. Besides showcasing the cutting-edge and futuristic vision of Dubai, the Expo will also enhance the UAE’s international reputation in terms of innovation, businesses, and tourism. In this article we want to give you an overview of these major event, highlighting some key facts that you probably didn’t know about.
1. Terra, Alif and Mission Possible: Do you know what they are?
Besides a main theme, Expo 2020 Dubai has three sub-themes: Sustainability, Mobility, and Opportunity. Each theme has a dedicated district and a dedicated pavilion.
Terra is the sustainability pavilion within the Sustainability District. The district encapsulated the most advanced technologies related to sustainability, as well as avant-garde ideas of different countries to champion sustainability.
Alif is the mobility pavilion within the Mobility District. There, visitors will experience how mobility is necessary to connect and drive forward our future world, where information, ideas and goods will be exchanged faster than ever.
Mission Possible is the Opportunity Pavilion situated within the Opportunity District. There, visitors will have the chance to meet internationally-renowned people who are building our future thanks to their brilliant ideas.
2. How many visitors are expected?
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the travel restrictions, and the fear of gatherings, organizers still expect around 25 million visitors over the course of the six-month event. According to Expo’s organizers, if these numbers are really reached, Dubai will probably host the largest event ever held in the Arab world.
3. The first and the largest
Expo 2020 is probably Dubai’s most ambitious project. Indeed, it is the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia (MEASA) region, as well as the first Expo to be hosted by an Arab nation. Moreover, Expo 2020 Dubai will be the third largest event after the Olympics and the soccer World Cup.
4. It covers a huge area
The Expo 2020 Dubai site is 4.4 square kilometers in size, which equates more than 600 soccer fields. Additionally, it includes dedicated highway exits, public transport lines, and an exhibition center capable of hosting more than 20,000 people.
5. It includes the largest 360-degree projection surface in the world
The core of the Expo is Al Wasl Plaza, an open space right at the center of the Expo with a diameter of 150 meters. The structure combines eye-catching design, cutting-edge technology, and an immersive projection experience which is the largest 360-degree projection surface in the world. Recently, the structure has received the CEEQUAL certification, an international sustainability award for civil engineering, infrastructure, landscaping, and public projects. The award was received thanks to the very small amount of steel needed to create the dome, which allowed to save more than 41,000 kilograms of embodied carbon.
6. It coincides with the UAE’s 50th anniversary
In 2021, the UAE will celebrate the 50th anniversary since the unification of the seven Emirates under one flag, and the Expo 2020 coincides with this important milestone! UAE National Day is on December 2, but the UAE Golden Jubilee Committee will govern a 12-month program of initiatives and activities that will run until March 31, 2022.
7. The logo was inspired by a ring
The inspiration for the Expo 2020 Dubai logo comes from an object dating back to the Iron Age. It is a 4000-year-old gold ring, discovered back in 2002 in an ancient archaeological site named Saruq Al Hadid in Al Marmoom.
8. There will be hundreds of country’s pavilions
The Expo will host more than 190 countries and, for the first time in World Expo history, every participating country will have its own pavilion. Thanks to that, visitors will be able to enjoy a plethora of cultural experiences and explore the unique features of hundreds of different countries.
