BY HERMOINE MACURA-NOBLE
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES KUWAIT
Expo 2020 Dubai unveiled the inspiring visitor experience for Mission Possible – The Opportunity Pavilion today, an interactive exhibition journey that focuses on the global challenges of our time and sheds light on what can be achieved when individuals and communities work together.
As the pavilion that brings the Sustainable Development Goals to life, Mission Possible will also be the home of the United Nations’ office at the World Expo, through a dedicated space, the UN Hub. The Mission Possible experience welcomes visitors with three parallel ‘tracks’ that focus on water, food and energy – resources that were chosen as they are basic human needs, illustrating how unlocking opportunity at a local level can be used for the greater global good.
Visitors are ‘guided’ through the tracks by three individuals whose innovative projects were implemented with minimal resources, yet had a life-changing impact: Abel Cruz from Peru addresses water shortages through fog nets that harvest fog and turn it into water; UAE National Mariam Al Juneibi is a sustainable organic farmer who promotes sustainable farming and healthy eating practices, while encouraging people to grow their own vegetables; and Fatma Juma Haji, a master trainer who teaches other women to install solar panels, helps to create sustainable energy in Zanzibar, where less than four per cent of the population has access to electricity.
The fascinating experience concludes with the Pledge Room, an upside-down space entered ‘through the clouds’, where visitors are asked to commit to a course of action that will make a difference in their own and their community’s lives. Their pledges are transported to the ‘garden’ – a representation situated on the ceiling of the room.
Building on the interactive visitor journey, the UN Hub will provide a dynamic set of programs throughout the six months of Expo 2020 that will inform, inspire and engage visitors to take impactful action towards a thriving future for people and planet.
Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director General, Expo 2020 Dubai, said: “The Sustainable Development Goals are at the core of the UAE’s strategic vision and, in turn, drive the goals of, and activities at, Expo 2020 Dubai. The pavilion will serve as a beacon of hope and source of inspiration for all visitors, reminding them that no matter where they come from and regardless of age or gender, they have the power to make a difference and now is the time to do so.”
Maher Nasser, United Nations Commissioner-General for the UN presence at Expo 2020 Dubai, noted: “World Leaders adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015 as a blueprint for humanity to build a brighter future for people and planet.”
Designed by AGi Architects, the Opportunity Pavilion was conceived as a large plaza to reflect its aim of providing a platform for social and cross-cultural engagement. Floating 32 metres above the ground, the pavilion’s canopy represents clouds, which are in constant transformation, and the dreams that we all aspire to achieve, while a terracotta ‘carpet’ covers the ground and the pavilion’s facade, representing Earth and inviting visitors to share their experiences.
Standing alongside Expo 2020’s two other subthemes, Mobility and Sustainability, the Opportunity subtheme aims to examine how the potential of communities and individuals can be unlocked to help shape the future and create an equal playing field for everyone.
One of the first global mega-events to take place since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Expo 2020 runs from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022, inviting visitors from around the world to join the making of a new world and experience a six-month journey of human creativity, innovation, progress and culture.
Expo 2020 Dubai will welcome visitors from every corner of the globe to join the making of a new world, as it brings together the planet in one place to reimagine tomorrow.
By Hermoine Macura-Noble
The first Australian English speaking News Anchor in the Middle East. She is also the Author of Faces of the Middle East and Founder of US-based 501c3 charity – The House of Rest which helps to ease the suffering of victims of war. For more from our Contributing Editor, you can follow her on Instagram, here.
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