Slovenia will also participate in this year's edition of the world's oldest exhibition, which since 1751 combines knowledge, creates business opportunities and seeks answers to humanity's challenges. The exhibition will be held for the first time in an Arab country, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and will take place between October 1, 2021 and March 31, 2022.
Record-breaking performances will be presented on it 190 countries, among those that will have their own pavilions specially designed for this occasion, is also Slovenia. The main themes of EXPO 2020 will be mobility, opportunity and sustainability, the Slovenian pavilion will also be part of the latter. It will host business gatherings, gastronomic experiences and surprises with a Slovenian signature every day. Visiting the world exhibition EXPO is always an experience with added value, as it opens the door to new business partnerships and opportunities.
Slovenia will perform in Dubai under the slogan Slovenia. Green Smart Experience, with which it will present itself to the world public as a sustainable, modern and creative and forward-looking country in which a green environment, knowledge, breakthrough ideas and innovations and an economy with added value are intertwined. Preservation of green nature, as a result of constant thinking about the effects that people and business have on our environment, is something that has been a hallmark of Slovenian activity and thinking for centuries. As the only country in the world that has a word in its name love (English Love), Slovenia represents a collection of natural beauties that have always been an inspiration for many sustainable innovation and a healthy lifestyle.
Slovenia is presented as the green heart in the heart of Europe and a person can only truly know it if they feel it, which is why the heart will also be at the center of the Slovenian pavilion. Visitors will have the opportunity to feel with their hearts what it means to live with nature and sustainable development, and by sharing their heartbeats to contribute to the continuation of sustainable ideas for a better tomorrow.
Slovenian pavilion at Expo Dubai 2020
The conceptual design for the pavilion was prepared by an architectural studio Magnet design, doo, and it will be set up by the company Riko, doo The pavilion is architecturally designed as a floating green oasis on a water cushion and shows Slovenian wisdom, innovation and energy. It highlights three elements that characterize Slovenia the most: water, which is our face and represents the source of life, vitality, the flow of materials and ideas; nature, a floating forest – an oasis that floats and connects the earth with the universe, knowledge and innovation and represents the heart of Slovenia and innovation, which is represented by a huge wooden shade, our shield, which is a technological invention with a strong Slovenian identity. In the visible construction of the pavilion innovatively used elements that are prefabricated, sustainable and degradable: metal, glass, wood and stone.
The attractively designed exterior of the pavilion presents Slovenian forest. Around the perimeter of the building made of wooden construction, green vegetation will be installed in the area of the floating green oasis, which during the exhibition will be with a special innovative technology that is the fruit of Slovenian knowledge, properly cooled and humidified at all times, thus offering beneficial refreshment to visitors. The innovativeness of the Slovenian economy is represented by the sieve-shaped roof of the building from Slovenian wood, which was one of the pond dry goods products, which 400 years ago were the first Slovenian products to be licensed for sale abroad. Slovenian wood will provide shade for the pavilion and the pleasure of visitors. The pavilion will be lowered 70 cm into the ground, which will ensure natural coolness and connection with nature, the karst subsoil and water. Water will surround the entire pavilion.
The pavilion is designed as a smart environment that will allow visitors to virtually visit and experience the future using advanced digital solutions. It is inside the building emphasis on modern technologies, LCD walls, floors and ceilings, which will present with a system of showcases and smart installations Slovenian innovation, knowledge and Slovenian economic surpluses. With light flickering to the rhythm of the heartbeat, the pavilion will invite visitors from afar to a unique holistic experience of Slovenia with all the senses.
The Slovenian pavilion will be set up as part of the Sustainability theme 1,550 m2 large exhibition space, which is distinguished by its excellent location in the immediate vicinity of one of the three entrances to the venue of the world exhibition. The Slovenian pavilion has three floors.
Interesting facts about Expo 2020
World Expo exhibitions are organized every five years with the aim of addressing certain current world topics. All the countries of the world are invited to participate, which educate the public through a certain topic, present ways to meet the needs of civilization, present progress in one or more areas of human activity, and inform the public of guidelines for the future.
On Expo Dubai 2020 more than 190 participating countries will participate, representing more than 95 percent of the total world population. The event offers excellent an opportunity for international promotion and consolidation of Slovenia's reputation in the world and at the same time offers the possibility to strengthen bilateral and multilateral political, economic and cultural relations of Slovenia with other countries of the world. The participation of Slovenia is also interesting from the point of view of the underlying themes of the exhibition, which are closely related to Slovenia's development policies.
Slovenia is with almost 60 percent of the area is covered with green forests and numerous water sources the exact opposite of the UAE and, from this point of view, also very interesting as a tourist destination. With appropriate communication and promotional strategy of "green" tourism at "EXPO 2020 Dubai", it can be expected that part of the tourist flows, which in recent years have been directed to other Alpine countries (e.g. Switzerland, Austria, Italy and Germany), could also be redirected to Slovenia.
