Participation theme

Russia has been a consistent exhibitor at world’s fairs since 1851. It was at the Expo where the world became widely acquainted with authentic Russian science and culture. At Expo 2020 in Dubai, Russia is presented as a global intellectual and creative center, with the agenda’s focus shifted from technologies to humans and their intelligence. The latter is the prerequisite for technologies to exist. And creativity, offbeat thinking, ingenuity and unpredictability are integral features of Russian people.

The location for the world fair was determined by voting at the General Assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions on November 27, 2013 in Paris. Initially, the event was to be held from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021 in the city of Dubai. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was rescheduled, with its new dates being from October 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022. The hosts opted to leave the title Expo 2020 unchanged. This is the first time a world expo was postponed rather than cancelled.

Although Specialised Expo emerged soon after the Industrial Revolution, later the focus was shifted towards specific achievements aimed at solving global issues. Expo 2020 is held in Dubai under the motto ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’. This is the first World Expo to be held in the MENA & SA region (Middle East, North Africa and South Asia) and the largest event in the history of world exhibitions in terms of the number of participating nations.

The layout of Expo 2020 is close to a radial-circular pattern, except that the radii are curved into three petals, embodying three basic principles: Opportunity, Mobility and Sustainability. All petal-shaped zones converge towards to the Al Wasl Dome, the world’s only 360-degree immersive panoramic projection surface. Reminding us of the ancient name of Dubai, the dome is intended to highlight the theme: ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’.

This is the first time the main focus is on the business agenda. The Expo 2020’s ‘Programme for People and the Planet’ includes 10 subject-oriented weeks in the context of 5 strategic focuses, each of which explores cultural, social, environmental and economic aspects of the global present-day challenges. With a week dedicated to them, the Expo in Dubai will give a new impetus to the vigorous efforts made to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals.