So far, 2020 has brought with it challenges that have left the world, and humanity, irrevocably changed, forcing us to turn inwards to look after ourselves. But one year from now, almost 12 months later than originally scheduled, Expo 2020 Dubai will provide the platform where the world will come together again.
It is the chance for us all to respond to how our world has been altered, and to move forward together to tackle other, equally urgent priorities such as climate change.
From 1 October 2021 until 31 March 2022, Expo 2020 will bring together the world in a spirit of solidarity and optimism – a global forum that will demonstrate and amplify the need and desire for positive change, and provide tangible opportunities to create just that.
Through our participation in Expo 2020, we are demonstrating our commitment to helping create a strong and sustainable future. Everyone must play their part, because through recognizing our common humanity, we will realign our purpose and accelerate our shared progress.
Through showcasing and celebrating our achievements, we will know that there is no limit to what can be accomplished.
Expo 2020 has a responsibility to inform and inspire a planet that deserves a brighter tomorrow, and through our participation we are committed to helping to seek tangible, real-life outcomes that will enable future generations to thrive.
Because at the same time as dealing with the impact of COVID-19, the world is also facing a wealth of other challenges, including ensuring a climate-friendly future, sustainable food supply, and equality of access to education, digitalization and healthcare.
Expo 2020 is an unprecedented opportunity to find collaborative, action-driven solutions to these challenges, uniting more than 190 countries in the unwavering belief that great things happen when we come together.
By harnessing the togetherness, ingenuity and compassion born out of the pandemic, further exciting innovations and collaborations will ensue.
As an Expo 2020 participant, we have the opportunity to showcase the very best of our culture, heritage and techonology to a global audience of millions.
Our nation’s contribution is a Philippines Pavilion inspired by Bang-kó-ta or the Philippine coral reef. It is designed by Principal Architect Royal L. Pineda. As of September 2020, the Pavilion is 70% complete and handover is expected in December 2020.
The Pavilion itself deploys leading-edge art, architecture, and design to present a nation bound by interconnectivity, a culture of compassion, and creative imagination.
Meanwhile, the curatorial direction set by Marian Pastor Roces sets a dialogue between music and architecture, which interlinks visual arts and digital production with scientific data.
Taken together, the interlinkages are themselves the narrative. Bangkóta, the reef, perfectly communicates the Filipino’s embrace of permeability in spatial and social systems through a passion for creating interfaces and a genius in cultural sustainability.
Philippine Pavilion called the ‘Bangkota’ for the much-awaited Expo 2020 Dubai (DTI)
We, and the whole Expo community, are ready. We have worked hard to continue our preparations throughout the pandemic and ensure that we seize the opportunity to help shape a greater world, working collectively with the organisers and other participating countries to achieve a better, stronger and more equitable future for all.
So, our journey continues. If 2020 was the year the world almost came to a halt, then 2021 must be the year of unprecedented, universal acceleration towards the attainment of urgent global goals, because while the Expo’s timelines may have altered, our participation and shared goals remain firmly unchanged.
