A panel discussion that will address the power of working with communities and how their engagement leads the way for driving living improvements and growth in rural areas. This session will centre around access to renewable energy.

Expo Live Impact Series

Earth and Mars and Bubbles - Al Forsan Park

Earth, Mars and Bubbles

A panel discussion that will address the power of working with communities.


Khaleej Times

Dubai: ‘Expo Live’ benefits 5.8 million people worldwide

The National

Expo 2020 Dubai to fund small start-ups with big impact

Inside Expo_New

Inside Expo: The Future of Wellness

The Good Place - Audio Guide

The Good Place by Expo Live Pavilion

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Experience a structure inspired by the spirit of the UAE's founding fathers.

The Good Place 5

Meet ordinary people doing extraordinary things and join a global community of changemakers.

Expo Live Pavilion 04

The Good Place Image Gallery

In February 1968, this nation's founding fathers met under a desert tent and shared an idea that would turn into something truly great: the United Arab Emirates. Animated by this spirit of collaboration, The Good Place by Expo Live is an exhibition space dedicated to showcasing human potential and those who work to advance it – through the Expo Live innovation and partnership programme and beyond.

With a design inspired by the tent where the UAE was conceived, the pavilion showcases social innovations conceived to improve our lives. Come and meet ordinary people doing extraordinary things – and be inspired to join our global community.


The Good Place Logo(1)

Designed by renowned Emirati architect Ahmad Abdulrahman Bukhash, The Good Place’s structure expands the Bedouin tent shape into an elegant white canopy, folded with seven origami-like angles on each side to join at a tall peak. The tent seems to float over a clean, glass box. 

The Good Place by Expo Live

Bedouin tent 

An elevated

By Expo Live

The Good Place

Access to safe and affordable living conditions is a fundamental right. More than 70 per cent of the world’s population is forecasted to live in cities by 2050 and over one billion are already living in informal communities. As the demand for both cities and communities escalate, Expo will bring together experts, citizens, and governments to re-think the way in which habitats are designed and managed. From innovative transport, sustainable housing and green public spaces to renewable energy and circular economies, living spaces of the future will be imagined as resilient, sustainable and inclusive.  

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 How do we live and grow in harmony with our planet?

Learnings and insights from the World Majlis conversations on Urban and Rural Development

Insight Report from Urban and Rural Development Week

Learnings and insights from the World Majlis conversations on Urban and Rural Development


Insight Report from Urban & Rural Development Week

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Creating a blueprint for future smart cities

Siemens Website

Siemens is a global technology powerhouse that unites the digital and 
physical worlds to benefit society through its focus on smart infrastructure, digital industries, and intelligent mobility solutions. As Expo 2020 Dubai’s Premier Partner for Infrastructure Digitalisation, Siemens is reshaping the future of urban living by creating a blueprint for the smart cities of the future. By integrating its technology, the company is helping to create history’s most digitalised, sustainable and secure Expo. Siemens is also an anchor tenant at District 2020, the future city that will live on as a legacy of Expo 2020 Dubai.

Creating a blueprint for smarter cities

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Siemens 

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UN Habitat

AKDN Logo

Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN)

Urban & Rural Development Week

Omar Ghanem

Ami Valdemoro

Helene Papper 

Expo Live Impact Series: Innovating with communities (lights on)

Expo Live's Impact Series highlights the impact of social and environmental innovations. Taking place at The Good Place by Expo Live Pavilion, Expo Live Global Innovators join change-makers around the world to discuss their visions towards collective action and meaningful change.

Description

Join a dialogue about social innovations and their impact showcasing Expo Live Global Innovators.

There is great power in the connection made over a shared idea. 
Conversations can mend bridges between warring factions or build 
empathy between different cultures. They can spark a great idea and build the coalition for change to make it happen. This idea is at the core of Expo 2020 and the World Majlis – connecting minds and creating the future. How can the power of conversation be better harnessed to build new collaborations for a better future? How do you set up the conditions for constructive, open dialogue? And do our digital tools offer new ways to have these conversations? This special World Majlis brings together diverse thought leaders and visionaries to open the Golden Jubilee month by turning the conversation back on itself.

A Better Future is Built Together 

Al Wasl dome

A special World Majlis session bringing together thought leaders and visionaries to reflect on the power conversations to build bridges across cultures, geographies and ideologies.

Session programme - Power of Conversations

Architecture II: Al Wasl Plaza

EXHIBITOR Magazine's World Expo Awards

EXHIBITOR Magazine Announces World Expo Award Winners

Al Wasl Plaza

Al Wasl 

Al Wasl Plaza Images

Expo 2020 Dubai, the first Expo in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region in the 170 years of World Expo history, opened with a celebration of global togetherness and optimism. Spectacular storytelling, performances, fireworks, and immersive projections on the dome of Al Wasl, the heart of Expo 2020, all told a story of collaboration and hope for the future, echoing Expo 2020 Dubai's theme of "Connecting Minds, Creating the Future". Global artists joining in the celebration included Andrea Bocelli, Ellie Goulding, Lang Lang and Mohammed Abdu.

Description 

The first World Expo in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region, Expo 2020 opened with a celebration of global connection and hope for the future.

Expo 2020 Dubai Opening Ceremony

Long ago, travellers referred to Dubai as Al Wasl, or “the connection” – a name that reflects the area’s heritage as a meeting point. This spirit of coming together takes shape in Al Wasl Plaza, Expo 2020’s spectacular centrepiece and gathering ground for celebration and wonder. 

Situated at the meeting point of Expo’s three thematic districts, Al Wasl Plaza's dome is tall enough to fit the Leaning Tower of Pisa beneath it. By night, she transforms into a 360-degree projection screen, blanketed by more than 250 state-of-the-art projectors. Al Wasl Plaza is a hub for visitors and the vibrant heart of our Expo.

Daily performances, national day ceremonies and more

Immersive 360-degree domed projection screen

Lush garden spaces for relaxation and connection

Al Wasl features

Al Wasl Logo-01

Al Wasl Plaza 360

Al Wasl Plaza is 130 metres in diameter and more than 67 metres tall. Delicate-looking despite its titanic scale, her pattern is inspired by our Expo's logo, which is fully visible at the oculus.

and magical

Extraordinary

The life force of the Expo 2020 site, Al Wasl Plaza proudly carries the old name of Dubai.

The beating heart of Expo 2020

A series of immersive 360° videos of Al Wasl's projection shows that put you centre stage for each stunning performance. 

Al Wasl Plaza 360° Immersive Experiences

The Beating Heart of Expo 2020

Cheri-Leigh Erasmus speaks during the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl Stage m9272

Dr Jay Wang speaks during the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl stage m9286

Gordon Gill speaks during the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl stage m9288

Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation, Director General, Expo 2020 Dubai speaks during the World Majlis m9283

His Excellency Dr Abdulla Al Karam during the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl Stage m9262

Jorge Perez Jaramillo speaks during the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl Stage m9287

Participants of the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl Stage m9278

Sameer Hashmi speaks during the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl stage m9290

Sarah Lynn Rees speaks during the World Majlis, The Power of Conversations at Al Wasl stage m9289

Image Gallery

World Majlis | The Power of Conversations

Expo 2020 coincides with the United Arab Emirates' biggest national celebration yet – the UAE's UAE 50th National Day. To commemorate this historic event, Expo 2020 Dubai will celebrate the UAE’s extraordinary journey over the last 50 years, while also looking towards the next 50. It will share with every visitor the joy and pride that Emiratis have for their nation and their ambitious and inclusive vision for a global future.

Golden Jubilee

Celebrate the UAE’s extraordinary journey over the last 50 years as well as the next 50.

UAE Golden Jubilee

Explore a series of exciting conversations inspired by the theme of Expo 2020 Dubai. The World Majlis is a vibrant forum where diverse points of views are shared on important topics of our time. Each conversation brings together globally recognised thought-leaders who are invited for their exceptional contributions to the theme and their unique perspective on the topic. In each Majlis, students and members of the public are also welcome to contribute and engage.

World Majlis

Conversations on complex issues that bring together thought leaders, visionaries and changemakers.

An interactive workshop bringing together storytellers from all fields and industries to build strategies for navigating challenges to putting Dignified Storytelling principles into practice in order to facilitate real-world adoption of Dignified Storytelling practices.

Dignified Storytelling in Action

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An interactive workshop bringing together storytellers from all fields and industries putting Dignified Storytelling principles into practice.

Putting Dignified Storytelling into Action: Challenges, Community, and Solutions

World Expos have always been meeting places for people across cultures and geographies; an opportunity to come together and celebrate human ingenuity and forge meaningful human connections. As the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, and with the participation of more than 192 countries, Expo 2020 Dubai looks to take this legacy even further. The Build Bridges track of Expo 2020 Dubai’s Programme for People and Planet features a tapestry of event series and experiences that celebrate our common humanity and the vital connections that can help us prosper together as a worldwide community.

Knowing One Another Better

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Build Bridges 

Build Bridges Icon

Ready to see the world from another perspective and solve some of our biggest biodiversity challenges? 

Explore the intersection of ancient knowledge and new technologies, delve into the realm of law-making for mother earth and learn from award-winning collaborations and Indigenous leaders. 

This one-day event offers attendees the chance to re-imagine global systems through the lens of Indigenous cultures, to learn how to collaborate with nature, exploring innovative Nature-based Solutions and the long-standing relationship between the natural world and human communities. 

Join a discussion where tradition meets science andIndigenous experts convene with business executives. An unique opportunity to learn why Indigenous knowledge systems are at the forefront of planetary protection, central to designing regenerative and biodiverse global systems and critical to governments’ abilities to meet new international targets for biodiversity and climate.

Spotlighting Indigenous Voices and Knowledge

LNBS

A spotlight on rural and indigenous communities’ unique expertise in local and nature-based sustainable development.

Marketplace: Stories of Nature-based Tech and Innovation

More than Trees: How to Build a Working Ecosystem

Debate: Law and Policy Making, Why the Voice on the Ground Matters

Natasha Elkington interviews Grandmother Mona Polacca during Conservation for Hope Local Nature Based Solutions and Livelihoods at Nexus for People and Planet Web Image m7944

Grandmother Mona Polacca speaks during Conservation for Hope Local Nature Based Solutions and Livelihoods at Nexus for People and Planet Web Image m7943

New Zealand Pavilion

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The Whanganui River is so important to New Zealand’s Maori people that in 2017, it was granted a special legal identity, giving it the rights of a citizen. Now, the New Zealand Pavilion offers a sweeping cultural tour narrated by the Whanganui River itself.

With a design inspired by the Maori tradition of hand-crafting containers to safeguard items of value, the pavilion leads you on a journey of conservation where the greatest treasure to be protected is our natural world. Immerse yourself in the river’s story, deepen the experience with the pavilion’s web-based app, and journey through a 10-metre-high “vertical river” of water droplets.


New Zealand

The New Zealand Pavilion features a tall box clad in titanic wavy panels of chainmail-like architectural mesh called Kaynemaile. Its flexible façade pulses to evoke a living building and sits on a base crafted from New Zealand Abodo eco-timber. The ground floor’s wooden exterior lends a warm feel to the modernist design, welcoming visitors through a small gap beneath the mammoth Kaynemaile panels.

Visitors at the New Zealand Pavilion Web Image m48842

'kaitiakitanga'

Maori

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In tropical Costa Rica, the friendly term “pura vida” (or “pure life”) can mean everything from “I’m doing great” to “no problem!” to “you’re welcome”. The Costa Rica Pavilion shows that the term is gaining an even more profound meaning as 99 per cent of Costa Rica’s power grid runs on renewable energy, reflecting the country’s dedication to a pure, sustainable way of life. Embark on a journey through Costa Rica’s pristine rainforests, and explore the country’s winning fight against deforestation and climate change.


Costa Rica

Embark on a journey through Costa Rica's pristine natural beauty.

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Costa Rica Pavilion

Mona Polacca is an educator and facilitator whose knowledge, empathy and values motivate others to speak and act. She has a special interest in older people and youth, and has led or participated in many effective initiatives related to Indigenous water issues and culturally appropriate health treatments for Native Americans. Mona has held posts of responsibility within her own community, such as Treasurer for her tribe. She is the founder, President/CEO and faculty member of the Turtle Island Project, a non-profit program dedicated to promoting a vision of wellness and providing trans-cultural training to individuals, families, and healthcare professionals, and she is an active member of the Healing the Border Project of the Indigenous Alliance Without Borders. 

Grandmother, International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers


Mona Polacca

Asan Alymkulov has been involved in organic agriculture for over 15 years. He began his organic journey working as a translator for the Public Fund Bio Service, and after one year was trained as a consultant. He was invited to join BIO-KG Federation of Organic Development team, the main work of which is to lobby organic agriculture in the Kyrgyzstan, and promote it with practical implementation of organic agriculture in organic aymaks (villages). He is an active member of Organic Youth Forum, which includes more than 2000 members from more than 40 countries. While in the Philippines for the Asian Organic Congress, he was awarded as Organic Youth Ambassador. Asan works closely with farmers and communities in organic aymaks, as well as actively participating in lobbying and promotional campaigns with the FOD team. 

Project Coordinator, BIO-KG FOD - Federation of Organic Development Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Asan Alymkulov

Dr. Elizabeth C English has experience in education, practice, teaching and research in both the fields of Architecture and Civil Engineering.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture and Urban Planning from Princeton University, a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a PhD in Architectural Theory from the University of Pennsylvania. Elizabeth is a pioneer in the emerging field of amphibious architecture. Her current research focuses on developing amphibious foundation systems as a flood risk reduction and climate change adaptation strategy that supports the preservation of traditional housing forms and respect for local cultural practices, with projects addressing the needs of Indigenous and low-income populations in Vietnam, Canada, Nicaragua, Jamaica etc. 

Urban 1

Prof. Elizabeth English

Jorge Recharte, Ph.D., President Instituto de Montaña, non-profit mountain institute working on the interphase of research and action. He holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Cornell University. He was head of the Andes Program of The Mountain Institute between 1997 and 2019. Prior to this position he headed the graduate research program Mountain Societies and Sustainable Development at the Latin America Faculty of Social Sciences. He was also an associate researcher at the International Potato Center where he developed participatory research methodologies in agriculture. He has been project leader of several climate change adaptation projects in the Andes region.



Dr. Jorge Recharte

A Masaai from Kenya, Ms. Mulenkei has many years of experience in community development work, focusing on issues related to environmental issues which include the work in the conventions on biological diversity, climate change, desertification and others. She is also active in human rights; women and girls rights that include reproductive health rights, education; and development that impacts on Indigenous Peoples and their local communities. Lucy has experience in local level advocacy, and also to national, regional and international levels where she brings the international discussions to the local level. As the Executive Director of the Indigenous Information Network, she has advocated for the recognition and for the voice and rights of remote Indigenous Peoples, and women and girls to be heard. 

Executive Director, Indigenous Information Network

Lucy Mulenkei

María Janet Arteaga Ordaz is the project manager for Mujeres y Ambiente, a community enterprise established in Querétaro, Mexico. This women-founded, women-led association has been working with an environmentally-minded Spanish company, the Mexican Government, and a local university to develop and market cosmetics based on native plants. The agreement signed between the parties is considered one of the first cases of full compliance with the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing. The association supports women to grow their agricultural micro-businesses, and engages in biodiversity conservation, restoration, stabilization of soils, and nursery cultivation. The activities have empowered women to create jobs and improve livelihoods in their community based on their traditional knowledge about local biodiversity, 

María Janet Arteaga Ordaz

Dr. Tamara Guadalupe Osorno-Sánchez studied Biology and carried out her Bachelor's and Master's degrees with a focus on ecological restoration at the Institute of Ecology of the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Specialising in ecology of communities of arid zones, and obtaining a PhD in Biological Sciences in the Institute of Research in Ecosystems and Sustainability, she was made a professor at the Faculty of Sciences of that same institution. Tamara is currently a professor-researcher at the Faculty of Natural Sciences of the Autonomous University of Querétaro and Coordinator of the Environmental Geography Department. She is part of the academic body "Territory and Natural Resources" for the Thematic Network of Non-Timber Forest Products, studying ethnobiology for their sustainable use. 

Professor - Researcher, Autonomous University of Querétaro

Dr. Tamara Guadalupe Osorno-Sánchez

Pharmacist by training at the University of Barcelona, Ricard is CEO at Provital, a Spanish company devoted to developing and marketing natural active ingredients for cosmetics. He has been President and Board member at different international associations related to cosmetics industry (European Organization of Cosmetic Ingredients Industries and Services (UNITIS), Spanish Society of Cosmetic Chemists (SEQC), International Federation of Societies of Cosmetic Chemists (IFSCC)). He has published many papers in the field of cosmetic science. He is a regularly invited speaker at conferences all over the world in the field of cosmetic science and sustainability.

Ricard Armengol

Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak has spearheaded progressive environmental protection and species conservation for over 20 years, most recently in her role as Managing Director of the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi. It is responsible for all environmental regulation, conservation and promotion of sustainable development in the emirate of Abu Dhabi. In her pioneering role as Secretary General and subsequently Managing Director she was the youngest woman to be appointed to lead an Abu Dhabi Government entity and one of the only women to hold such a position. The Environment Agency, under Razan’s leadership, strongly supported the IUCN Species Survival Commission, having hosted its specialist group chairs meeting four times since 2008. She is also the founding Managing Director of the Mohamed Bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund.

 Managing Director, Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi

H.E. Razan Al Mubarak

Natasha Elkington is an award-winning, independent multimedia journalist, producer, photographer, trainer and on-air presenter based in Nairobi, Kenya. With over 15 years of professional experience in the international media arena, she has worked and trained with several recognized global organisations including the European Union, United Nations, Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Thomson Reuters Corporation & Foundation, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), MediaStorm, Facebook, ActionAid and Purpose.com. Human impact and environmental issues fuel her fire while bringing a truthful, creative and global perspective to storytelling.

Natasha Elkington

Nina works to determine how the UN Biodiversity Lab can be useful to Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, supporting them to produce their own data through enhanced capacity, tools, and technology, respecting principles of data sovereignty. This includes assessing needs related to data and capacity, organizing and providing training related to drones, GPS, and other tech. Nina is also the co-founder of Tushevs Aerials, an initiative to democratize drone technology that includes design, building, data processing, and capacity building for Indigenous peoples, local communities, organizations and individuals to use drones for environmental and humanitarian goals. She has been a Strategic Adviser for Tribal Link Foundation, a non-profit organization developing the capacity of Indigenous peoples to advocate at the UN.

Senior Policy Adviser, Indigenous Peoples & Local Communities Engagement at UN Development Programme

Nina Kantcheva Tushev

Anne Lajla Utsi belongs to the Sami people and is based in the Sami village Guovdageaidnu in Norway, above the Arctic Circle, where she has served as managing director for the International Sami Film Institute since 2009. She was one of the founders of the Institute and has a background as a film director. Utsi has through the ISFI guided a new generation of Sami filmmakers. International Sami Film Institute represents a watershed in Sami film industry and the production has increased with 46 % in this period with 70 % women directors and producers. ISFI has under the leadership of Utsi built a strong international film network and initiated several international collaborations between indigenous filmmakers and institutions. 

Managing Director, International Sámi Film Institute 

Anne Lajla Utsi

Mumta sees law as a vehicle for social transformation in a paradigm of restoration reparation and healing. A former structured finance lawyer for top ranking global law firm Clifford Chance in the City of London, advising governments, multinational corporations and investment banks - turned public interest environmental lawyer - Mumta set up an NGO in the Caribbean to create a people's' movement to successfully save an island of global ecological importance and bring about legislative change. She is one of Europe’s leading experts and advocates for rights of nature; advisor to the UN General Assembly; initiator of a European Citizens Initiative to put rights of nature on the legislative agenda of the EU; and founder of the charity Nature’s Rights and the International Centre for Wholistic Law. 

Mumta Ito

Nixon Chamorro is a member of The Federation of the Indigenous Municipals of Chocó, Colombia and is a Guardian representing the Mesa de Dialogo y Concertación de los Pueblos Indigenas del Chocó (Roundtable for Dialogue and Consultation of the Indigenous Peoples of Chocó). He is a Zoo Technician and was Department Deputy of Choco, Mayor of the Municipality of Alto Baudo and Secretary of Economic Development for the Government of Chocó. In the North-west of Colombia, the Atrato river flows through Colombia’s Pacific rainforest, one of the most biodiverse regions in the world. The river is a source of life for many Afro-Colombians and indigenous communities living along its banks; but the environment has suffered as a result of illegal mining, logging and the armed conflict.

Nixon Chamorro

Marvin has a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management from the University of Belize. 
His work with the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance in Bonaire has honed his networking, coordination, and communication skills. His conservation work experience in Belize has been in project management, working alongside community-based organizations to improve their forest governance and conservation management skills. As Operations Director at Ya’axché, Marvin is committed to an integrated forest management approach in the Maya Golden Landscape, linking the community outreach and livelihoods, protected areas management and biodiversity conservation programmatic areas. As a team and community-oriented individual, his management experience remains centred at strengthening institutional capacities of organized groups.




Operations Director, Ya'axche'an and Trio of Farmers Cacao Growers

Marvin Vasquez 

 Local Nature-based Solutions and Livelihoods

Expo aims to deliver one of the most sustainable World Expos in history, supporting the UAE in its journey towards a green economy. Sustainability is integrated across both our operations and programming, embracing every opportunity to create meaningful impact, and inspiring the global community to play an active role in becoming part of a sustainable future.

The Live in Balance track of Expo 2020 Dubai's Programme for People and Planet features a tapestry of event series and experiences that spotlight our relationship with the natural world, and position Expo as a critical catalyst for restoring balance with our planet.

Expo Live Impact Series: Innovating with communities (lights on)

Expo Live Impact Series

Speaker of the day

Speaker

Omar Ghanem

Speaker

Ami Valdemoro

Speaker

Helene Papper

Speaker

Omar Ghanem

Speaker

Ami Valdemoro

Speaker

Helene Papper

Urban & Rural Development Week.

This event is part of the
Expo Live Impact Series.

Expo Live Impact Series

Speaker of the day

Speaker

Omar Ghanem

Speaker

Ami Valdemoro

Speaker

Helene Papper

Speaker

Omar Ghanem

Speaker

Ami Valdemoro

Speaker

Helene Papper

Urban & Rural Development Week.

This event is part of theExpo Live Impact Series.

This event is part of the
Expo Live Impact Series.