Theme: “Designing Future Society for Our Lives”
Japan’s Expo History:
1970 Osaka
1976 Okinawa
1985 Tsukuba
1990 Osaka
1991 Portopia (Non-BIEevent)
2005 Aichi
2025 Osaka
Under cloudy skies which later turned to rain and wind sending visitors scurrying for the exits, 13 April, 2025 marked the opening of the most recent Expo to be held in Japan; over 140,000 visitors had plans to attend the opening day but, due to inclement weather, the headcount was about 119,000 which is, still, a lot of people closely assembled on a mostly flat, paved parking lot. (see side bar with events and years). Unique in the history of Expos where cities who host an Expo rarely repeat the feat, the latest Japanese Expo was held in the same city – Osaka – as the 1970 Expo which held the record for many years for attendance of 64 million, until Shanghai’s Expo 2010 attracted 73 million attendees. The latest Osaka event, a Category A or World Expo according to the classification system of the BIE (Bureau of International Expositions), had a duration of six months and about 160 countries participated, more than twice the number of the 1970 event. The major increase in participation by countries at recent Expos is largely due to the growth in membership of the BIE which now includes numerous developing countries whose presence is aided through various forms of assistance provided by the host Organizer.
The site of the 2025 Osaka Expo is an artificial island, formerly a landfill which is intended to accommodate future redevelopment as a “MICE” (meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions) venue retaining a substantial amount of infrastructure and facilities for Post-Expo use. Attendance at the Expo is estimated to top 28.2 million. The landfill, while engineered to accommodate the type of facilities which comprise an Expo such as pavilions, temporary restrooms, roads and pathways, etc. had a history of emitting methane gas; evidence of continued emissions was reported from time to time during and prior to the Expo which sparked controversy and public concern.
While many of the prominent features of Expo 2025 were those found at previous Expos including futuristic international and corporate pavilions, food and beverage services, and music performances it was the ubiquitous presence of information technologies, some of which appeared at recent Expos, that was very apparent. The process of engaging with the event, from purchase of tickets, use of a lottery system to manage dates and times of attendance at popular pavilions, to delivering detailed information about individual pavilions, personal communications devices (i.e. cellphone, iPad, etc.) were everywhere given that they were necessary for visitors, staff, and others to navigate the world of Expo 2025. Along with the communications produced and operated by the Organizer and other participants there was also a significant rise in the presence of online communications on social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and others. The low cost and availability of these media platforms have provided a means for individuals (content creators) and organizations to present content which can be generated quickly and frequently thereby providing ample opportunities for a variety of coverage of the event. Sometimes quite professional and sometimes quite amateurish, content and opinions and presentations – positive and negative – are easily accessed by interested parties everywhere; thus, the international audience which Expos can reach has, thanks to technology, expanded enormously. This “new” means of experiencing an Expo has extended to the possibility of undertaking a complete visit to an international or corporate pavilion. In the past, the experience of visiting these facilities was possible only by making in-person, on-site visits.
For the pavilion hosts, this extended audience means that their exhibits and the messages they convey can be an attractive investment when compared with more conventional media. The downside of the need for visitors to engage in almost constant use of the personal communications devices is that a lot of time, perhaps several hours per visitor are consumed in engaging with the Expo information; this time and effort requirement is largely antithetical to the possibilities and aims of a major in-person event. The appearance of cellphones at large concerts has become a flashpoint for some artists and promoters who are requiring spectators, upon entry to the venue, to insert their device in a protective, locked envelope which will temporarily cause the owners to forego use during the performance. While such measures may be an extreme for an Expo, the experience in Osaka suggests that some thought regarding the cellphone as an obligatory feature of the experience is timely.
Given that most Expos have set their operations schedules to coincide with the summer months of the host city, it has historically been the case that Expo visitors could expect their days at the event to be conducted on sunny and, more than often, hot days. Thus, while climate and climate change must be a key component of planning for the visitor experience at an Expo, the measures in place in Osaka appeared to be overall well short of a successful approach. As the sea of umbrellas held aloft by visitors indicated, the requirements for the provision of various devices to accommodate the many visitors who were not inside the various structures on-site was woefully inadequate; some visitors reportedly cut short their visit to the Expo as a result of discomfort from heat. Testimony to the recognition of the extent of the problems was apparent when, after about three months of operations, the Organizer announced that additional measures to attenuate heat-related issues would be taken; these included additional shading, seating, water stations, etc. Another measure was the provision of buses which were parked with motors running to provide a brief respite for visitors who could sit inside and enjoy the air conditioning which each bus had available. While heat and crowds may be common in Japan, it is apparent that future international events, including Olympic Games, Expos and the like may need enhanced levels of accommodations so that the health of visitors – and staff – can be given the facilities and services needed as a first priority, and not as a mid-event gesture to avert serious problems.
As with all Expos, the experiences of prior events provide important lessons for the hosting of future gatherings. Thus, Osaka, which undoubtedly provided a memorable day out for hundreds of thousands of visitors, can serve a vital source of information for upcoming Expos in Serbia and Saudi Arabia.