192 countries. Six months. One year to go. Expo 2020 Dubai is our neighbour’s most-anticipated project yet. Last Sunday (October 20) marked exactly one year until Expo 2020 launches, and we’re already getting excited about it. It’s the world’s first-ever Expo to take place in the Middle East and the city is gearing up for what’s set to be an absolutely massive event, which is all about ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’.
In honour of the occasion, a huge concert took place in Burj Park this week, with best-selling US artist Mariah Carey and Emirati singing star and Expo 2020 ambassador Hussain Al Jassmi taking to the stage.
Tickets to the 1 Year to Go concert sold out pretty rapidly but those who didn’t manage to get their hands on one made their way to a special Burj Khalifa light show counting down to when the clock hit 2020 (8.20pm). This is the precise time the next World Expo is set to launch on 20 October 2020, as the UAE welcomes millions of visitors for what will be a spectacular event.
Those of us in the capital gathered to check out a broadcast of the Dubai concerts plus food, music, graphic art and much more at Louvre Abu Dhabi, while similar events were held at Al Majaz Waterfront in Sharjah, Ajman Museum, Umm Al Quwain Corniche, Al Qawasim Corniche in Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah Fort.
Sharjah-born Al Jassmi aims to show off the UAE’s culture and creativity in the lead up to Expo.
“This is a golden opportunity to showcase the potential and talents of the people in this region,” he says.
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“I can’t wait until Expo 2020 Dubai welcomes people and cultures from every corner of the planet to the UAE for a once-in-a-lifetime celebration that also aims to make our world a better place.
“This is a unique opportunity for everyone in the UAE to highlight the nation’s spirit of warmth, optimism and tolerance on the global stage that Expo 2020 provides.”
Expo 2020 will run for six months from October 20 to April 10, with pavilions open and entertainment scheduled between 10am and 1am on weekdays, and 10am to 2am on weekends. Tickets will be on sale in April, starting from Dhs120.
Billed as “The World’s Greatest Show”, it’s all happening in the Dubai South district, near Al Maktoum International Airport.
There will be a lot of dedicated transport heading to the 4.38 sq km site, and a metro station is being built that can handle 44,000 passengers per hour.
With an influx of international visitors expected, Dubai International Airport is also working to upgrade its runways, while new hotels are springing up near the Expo 2020 site.
Since Expo 2020 was revealed in November 2013, it’s had a huge impact on Dubai – and that’s only going to grow as we get closer to the event.
Officials say that it’s going to create a staggering 111,000 new jobs and the property market will rocket. That’s not to mention the huge urban District 2020 that will have a long-lasting legacy for centuries after the event is over.
Even the city’s infrastructure is taking part, with Jebel Ali Lehbab Road renamed as Expo Road in honour of the event.
From the 25 million visitors that are anticipated 70 percent are expected to travel from outside the UAE, which will be the largest proportion of international visitors in the 168-year history of World Expos.
But although Expo 2020 will welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors per day on average, its smart site will use artificial intelligence, cutting-edge crowd-flow management systems, smart ticketing and more to ensure everything runs seamlessly.
What is EXPO 2020?
An expo is a world fair, bringing together hundreds of countries from across the globe and giving them the chance to share ideas and innovations with the rest of the world. The first was held in The Crystal Palace in London’s Hyde Park in 1851, and since then, many of history’s most famous inventions have been exhibited, including the telephone in 1876, the ice cream cone in 1904 and even a humanoid robot in Nagoya in 2005. When Dubai won the right to host Expo 2020, fireworks were set off from the Burj Khalifa and the Burj Al Arab and a national holiday was declared for all educational institutions across the country.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, promised the city would “astonish the world” come 2020.
The Expo 2020 site will feature pavilions dedicated to 192 countries from around the world, with 75 entertainment events hosted every single day. There will be live performances from world-famous stars and comedy greats, cultural experiences from poetry slams to fashion shows and talks with the world’s top academics. There will be mindfulness sessions, extreme sports and everything in between. And there will be innovation – whether it’s make-your-own robot workshops or exhibitions of the latest 3D printing technology. It’s even possible to go under the sea or walk through a simulated Arabian wadi.
Every day a different country will be featured in a cultural showcase that includes parades and other festivities. And the fun doesn’t stop at sunset, because there will be fireworks displays and entertainment every night. Basically, it’ll be massive.
Who’s joining in?
Among those who have confirmed they’ll be involved are 192 different nations, as well as several major businesses and educational institutions. Major attendees include the UK, which plans to showcase British “innovation, creativity and leadership” at its enormous pavilion that is shaped like a shell and features a poem on its stunning 20-metre high façade. The US is expected to spend $60 million (around Dhs220 million) on its space, which will display modern graphics and feature a hyperloop ride. Meanwhile “Robo-Beethoven” is coming to town, too. Hear the legendary composer’s works in a brand-new light – including electronic, acoustic and rock – as they’re brought to life by performing robots in the Germany Pavilion. Moving over to the GCC, Saudi Arabia has revealed a site the size of two football pitches. And, of course, right at the heart of Expo 2020 will be the UAE pavilion – with its spectacular design inspired by a falcon in flight. It will have exhibition areas, an auditorium, restaurants and VIP lounges. The structure’s ‘wings’ move up and down to harvest clean energy, too.
Thematic districts and Pavilions
“Expo 2020’s sub-themes of Opportunity, Mobility and Sustainability will inspire visitors to make a conscious effort to think and live differently, and give them renewed optimism that, through collaboration, it is possible to make a lasting change to the world,” says the Expo team. Pavilions are also dedicated to all three, with different countries located in each.
The Opportunity Pavilion is based on a series of gameplay moments that will challenge the visitor’s thinking on issues related to basic needs of water, food, and energy. The structure is made from organic materials, including timber, 2,500 tonnes of stone and 111km of woven rope.
Countries in this district include China, which will have one of the largest exhibitor centres at Expo 2020 at 4,636 sq m. It aims to symbolise hope and a bright future and will have dazzling light shows and more. Saudi Arabia will be one of its neighbours.
In the Swiss Pavilion you can ‘hike’, with a theatre emerging through a sea of fog representing the Alps, while there’s a rooftop café for some superb views.
The UK Pavilion is also here, inspired by a project by the late Stephen Hawking, where he pondered how humanity could express itself to extraterrestrials.
The Mobility Pavilion focuses on how people, goods, idea and data all move. You’ll start out at the world’s largest elevating platform and travel into the future (not literally).
In this District will be the USA, which will look at personal rocket ships, robot surgeons and even have a pavilion that looks like it is moving. South Korea will showcase a spiral-shaped structure, showing how mobility is set to change our lives, all set to K-Pop music, while Oman pays tribute to frankincense and how it has benefitted the country. The UAE also lives in this District, but more about that later.
The Sustainability Pavilion will allow you to explore rainforests, oceans and more, while understanding the huge threats to the planet. There will be shops, dining spots and live performances to help people want to save the planet. Nations in the Sustainability District include Canada, which has a theme of ‘The Future Of Mind’. It will have a vast wooden structure, plus there will also be a 360-degree immersive theatre. Other countries in the district include Azerbajian, which will have a nature-inspired pavilion starring an air cushion roof to cool high temperatures, solar power, natural ventilation and rainwater harvesting technology, as well as 1,300 sq m of gardens and walkways.
Brazil will recreate the Amazon basin, with a water feature that you can walk through, while the Czech Republic will use solar power and showcase traditional cuisine.
And sustainability is a key theme throughout. The world’s largest vertical farm, which is located next door to the Expo site in Dubai South, will be providing fresh produce to various Emirates-operated outlets at the event.
Partnering with Emirates Flight Catering, the 130,000 sq ft vertical farm will provide greens for 50 million meals over the course of the event. The farm is currently under construction, and it’s expected to make 2,700 kilos of herbicide- and pesticide-free greens.
It also uses 99 percent less water than outdoor farms. Along with the farm, the airline’s flight catering will launch multiple food and beverage spots.
There will also be fine-dining venues with frequently changing menus and a monthly star chef, along with Grains and Greens, an eatery serving up gourmet sandwiches, bowl creations, and sharing platters. Plus there’ll be La Patisserie, offering desserts and coffee, and Deli2Go for on-the-move grub.
“With 50 million meals expected to be served during Expo 2020, both quality and sustainability are crucial to our aim of creating an exceptional – and delicious – World Expo, while also contributing to a more sustainable future for us all,” says senior vice president of programming at Expo 2020 Dubai, the aptly named Gillian Hamburger.
Saeed Mohammed Ahmad, chief executive officer of Emirates Flight Catering, adds: “Our ‘farm to fork’ concept not only secures our own supply chain of locally-sourced, fresh vegetables, but it significantly reduces our environmental footprint as well.”
There will also be a colony of bees setting up home at Expo, and from October 2020 visitors will have the chance to taste some of the honey produced by the hive. How’s that for some sweet sustainability?
Meanwhile, also at the Sustainability Pavilion you’ll meet Gnasher, a giant, sharp-toothed machine of endless consumption. The insatiable Gnasher ingests endless amounts of natural resources to churn out single-use products – highlighting the madness of our disposable consumer culture.
Be a part of it all
Want to have your once-in-a-lifetime experience as part of the World’s Greatest Show? The Expo 2020 Volunteers programme features a diverse mix of UAE nationals and expats, with 30,000 volunteers to be the “face” of the global celebration. You can sign up for more than 45 roles, from event managing to guest welcoming.
Rokeya Salim is Bangladeshi, but she was born and raised in the UAE. She wants to volunteer because of what her children, and the next generation can learn from Expo.
She tells Time Out Abu Dhabi: “It will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I like being a volunteer. I’m looking forward to learning new skills, meeting new people and being part of something big. It’s like an A to Z, everyone from young people to adults can be involved.”
Volunteers will be an essential part of Expo, giving up more than 16 million hours of their time to take part. To be eligible you must be over 18 as of October 20, 2020, and hold a valid Emirates ID and be able to volunteer for more than ten shifts within a two-month period from October 2020 to April 10 2021. Once you get through the first stage of the process there will be interviews and four days of training.
And don’t worry about your threads not being cool enough, volunteers will be dressed by Emirati designer Latifa Al Gurg, founder of fashion label Twisted Roots, after she won a competition to design Expo’s workforce uniforms. Visit expo2020dubai.com to find out how to get involved.
Keeping connected
Say goodbye to buffering, as you step into a 5G-enabled smart site. The state-of-the-art technology is around 20 times faster than the current 4G, so you won’t miss a thing when documenting your visit to Expo.
The Expo site is promised to be one of the “fastest, smartest and best connected places in the world” as Expo is teaming up with Etisalat to deliver on-site wi-fi to up to 300,000 people a day. “Communications that took six weeks in 1851, when the first Expo took place, now take six microseconds,” says Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and director general of Expo Dubai 2020.
“Ours is a hyper-connected age, and Etisalat plays a critical role in linking people and their technology so that they can connect and share, innovate and create. With its international reach, and expertise, Etisalat is well placed to support us in making Expo 2020 Dubai one of the best-connected places on Earth.”
The legacy
Expo 2020 isn’t all about the present – it’s about what comes next, too, and promises to create a “meaningful legacy” for our youth.
Aside from the super transport links Expo 2020 has a subtheme of sustainability, and 80 percent of Expo-built buildings will form a part of “District 2020”, which is billed as a “world-class mixed use development designed to promote an innovation-driven business ecosystem and balanced lifestyle”.
The aim of this is to leave a “meaningful and lasting legacy” by becoming a hub for innovation and new business. In District 2020 there will be houses, offices, restaurants, shops and cafés, and buildings will use reduced power and water consumption.
There will also be a focus on education – with a children and science centre. Plus the district will be home to 45,000 sq m of green spaces and parks as well as bike paths, jogging tracks and more to promote a healthy lifestyle for everyone living there. By October 2021 the handover will be underway.
11 amazing things to do at Expo
1 Discover what’s happening in the world’s newest country
Say hello to South Sudan, recently founded in 2011, and set to participate in its first-ever World Expo right here in the UAE. Its striking all-white pavilion will represent a clean blank canvas of fresh possibilities and showcase how this young nation plans to progress to a brighter tomorrow.
2 Experience indoor rainfall
Witness indoor rainfall in the Netherlands Pavilion thanks to technology SunGlacier, which produces water from air via solar power to irrigate crops. Likewise, the Solar Air Water Earth Resources (S.A.W.E.R.) system in the Czech Republic Pavilion produces up to 500 litres of drinking and irrigation water from the air using nothing but sunlight, even in the harshest desert environments.
3 Find out about future luxury cars
Petrolheads are in for a treat thanks to another World Expo debutant. The German state of Baden-Württemberg, home to several world-famous luxury car brands, will have its own pavilion at Expo, where it will investigate the secrets of future manufacturing.
4 Figure out what blockchain actually is…
So you keep hearing about blockchain and you know it’s a hugely important breakthrough in our ever more tech-reliant world. But, if you’re anything like us, you have no idea what it actually is. If you’d like to find out, head to the BlockExpo and World Blockchain Summit 2020, taking place at the brand-new 45,000sq m Dubai Exhibition Centre on the doorstep of Expo from November 2 to 6, 2020.
5 Gawp at Expo’s own architecture
You’ll have the chance to marvel at creative and cutting-edge architecture. The sights will include a number of structures designed by ‘starchitects’ – the superstars of the architecture world – as well as from emerging architectural talent. From Al Wasl Plaza, where more than 250 laser projectors will create life-like visuals on the walls of its massive dome, to the Republic of Korea Pavilion, whose design will constantly change through the clever use of rotating cubes. Plus there’s the Austria Pavilion, comprising 47 cones made from the world’s oldest building material (a 9,000-year-old soil), the falcon-shaped UAE Pavilion, the lantern-shaped China Pavilion – we could go on…
6 Ride the world’s largest lift
Explore how city life as we know it is being transformed by technologies such as big data, robotics, machine learning and autonomous transport at the Mobility Pavilion – where you can also take a journey aboard the world’s largest elevator (or lift, if you’re not American).
7 Meet the cross-country e-bike
Discover the future of personal mobility at the Ukraine Pavilion, which will showcase an electric bicycle – or e-bike – that can travel 380km on a single charge. That’s enough to cover the distance from Dubai to Fujairah three times over…
8 Watch the UAE’s first opera, performed in two languages
Witness the UAE’s first opera, as Expo launches Al Wasl in October 2020. Performed in both Arabic and English, the production will feature more than 100 artists and musicians and will explore the nation’s Bedouin roots and the UAE’s status as a modern multicultural hub.
9 Get a close-up look at what’s happening in the oceans
Walk in the tracks of mega elephants as you discover the story of Arabia, uncover the amazing network of roots and fungi that allow forest trees to communicate and meet a giant, angry fish whose body is being clogged by discarded plastic. All these and plenty more inventive and emotive experiences await at Terra – the Sustainability Pavilion.
10 Take a trip to the French Riviera
Take in the glitz and glamour of the second smallest country in the world in the polygon-shaped Monaco Pavilion. Spread across multiple levels, much like the mazy streets of principality, the experience includes the ‘Kaleidoscope’ exhibition area where you can discover all about the nation’s art, culture, innovation, history and gastronomy.
11 Travel on a ropeless lift
Known as Multi, the world’s first ropeless lift for skyscrapers will be revealed at Expo 2020, being selected as one of the Expo’s lighthouse projects. Multi will have the ability to move passengers horizontally and vertically, along with being able to move on inclines. Instead of one cabin per shaft, it offers multiple cabins operating in a loop, and that means less time waiting around for another lift to use. The system also uses 70 percent less power than conventional lift systems, and moves at speeds of 8kph-9kph. That’s pretty swift for a lift.
Innovations launched at World Expos
The facsimile
(London, 1851)
The telephone
(Philadelphia, 1876)
The Ferris wheel
(Chicago, 1893)
The X-Ray machine
(Buffalo, 1901)
The ice cream cone
(St Louis, 1904)
Commercial broadcast television
(New York, 1939)
IMAX
(Osaka, 1970)
Touchscreens
(Knoxville, 1982)
The humanoid robot
(Nagoya, 2005)
Expo in numbers
173
Get ready for a whopping 173 days of Expo
20
The key number of the event – it kicks off on October 20, 2020
30,000
It’s all about you – there will be 30,000 volunteers helping out at Expo
25m
A whopping 25 million visitors are expected, with 70 percent coming from outside the UAE
200
Grab a bite to eat from more than 200 food outlets, including from yet-to-be-revealed celebrity chefs
60
Daily events will wow crowds including world-famous musical acts, comedy greats, digital theatre productions, poetry slams, fashion shows, traditional dance and plenty more
4 things for the kids
Catch daily entertainment
There will be more than 60 family-friendly shows daily, including pop-ups, one-off events, parades, surprises and guest appearances – an ever-changing events calendar that promises to dazzle kids and adults alike during the 173 days of Expo.
Experience exercise gaming
For decades, exasperated parents across the globe have implored their children to stop lazing on the sofa playing video games and go burn off some energy. Expo 2020 will showcase the flourishing world of ‘exercise gaming’, which combines the two activities in inventive ways to create the fitness crazes of the future.
Go on a school trip
There will be four tailor-made visits for schools to Expo 2020. The great value educational journeys – titled ‘The Universe in Motion’, ‘The World of Opportunities’, ‘The Sustainable Planet’ and ‘The Legacy of the UAE’ – are designed to inspire young visitors to help make the planet a better place.
Ride a huge slide
Take a trip to the three-storey Luxembourg Pavilion, where visitors of all ages can enjoy a unique view of Expo as they whizz down a transparent slide on the building’s exterior. Okay, maybe this one isn’t just for the kids…
The UAE Pavilion
Designed in the shape of a falcon in flight, the UAE Pavilion will be a major attraction at Expo 2020 Dubai, and aims to introduce the world to the nation’s rich culture and bright future. Designed by Santiago Calatrava, the pavilion will tell the history of the nation as a connected global hub, and the vision of its leaders to create a peaceful and progressive society with ambitious plans for the future.
The Pavilion will be four storeys tall and measure a total 15,000 sq m.
