A Worldy Affair

In 2010 the eyes of the world will turn to Vancouver, Canada, to watch the 21st Olympic Winter Games. However, that's not the most exciting thing about 2010 (and I'm not even counting the launch of this fine apparel company!). On May 1, Singapore is hosting the next World's Fair. A new, dazzling display of architecture and industry, of great minds producing wonders. Next year's fair promises to not only produce, but show to the world that international expos like these are once again globally acceptable in today's modern world!

Shanghai's own pavilion, entitles "My Dream, Our Vision" is a pixelated skyscraper built from 3,866 glass and plastic cubes of varying opacity.  It was designed to serve as a physical manifestation of the intangible: digital information floating above the green landscape.  Visitors to the expo will be invited inside the pavillion to post their dreams of the future, in order to incite innovation!

A very... odd though interesting entry comes from Macau, China!  This towering building in the form of a rabbit represents a friend to nature, using little to no groundwater (a scarce and exploited resource in many parts of the world, believe it or not) in it's construction.  The pavillion itself will also feature solar panels to create energy, and will also collect rain water!  Oh, and the bunny ears are inflatable balloons, that will bob up and down!

Possibly one of my favorite entries is the Danish Loop!  This circular structure has been built to be a perpetual loop, featuring a city bike path, a nature playground, a harbor bath and an ecological picnic area.  What's so incredible about this, is that at it's very core is a fountain pool filled with water directly from the Copenhagen Harbor, shipped in to symbolize the magnificent work they have done cleaning up their harbor that was polluted with industrial waste 20 years ago.  At the heart of the fountain will reside Copenhagen's very own iconic statue, the "Little Mermaid", to watch over the pavillion during the length of the expo.

Romania seems to be pulling out all the stops as well, creating this very green park area.  They have decided to call it "Greenopolis" and it will cover about 21,527 square feet of space. The 5 levels will include music and cultural performance areas, plus restaurant, terrace, and office facilities. 

Many people don't realize that hosting the World Expo is the third best global event in terms of cultural and economical impact next to the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup.  It is an honour to host one, and provides the people with a glowing outlook of todays industry and tomorrow's opportunity.  I mean, just look at what Australia is building for the 2012 World Fair in South Korea!  That's intense!

My very home town - Edmonton, Alberta, Canada - is in contention for this honour in 2017.  One should keep in mind, instead of being disassembled and shipped back to their countries of origin, there have been numerous times that structures built by other countries have been left behind as gifts to the host.  This chance alone is why, starting today, I'm throwing my full support behind the promotion of the 2017 World Fair Bid in Edmonton, Canada!

You can visit the World Expo Blog website for a full listing of participating countries and a list of their entry websites.  While you're there, they have a number of interesting articles regarding the history of the fair and previous entries!

For more information on Edmonton's Expo Bid 2017, visit the website at the link!

Impossible is Possible,

-Dan