Milan Expo to focus on creating healthy world

Milan Expo will focus on innovation to promote discussions between nations and businesses, and leave both material and intangible legacies on humanity, Piero Galli, general manager of the Expo's event management division, told China Daily in an exclusive interview on Thursday.

"Expo Milano 2015 will be the platform to share ideas and solutions on the topic of nutrition. It will stimulate creativity and promote innovation of companies, and promote discussion and cooperation between nations, organizations and businesses," Galli said.

Taking place between May 1 and October 31, the Milan Expo will see participation of 140 countries, of which 53 have built their own pavilion with a total investment of one billion euros.

The expo will also feature three pavilions from China, which are the China Pavilion, the China Corporate United Pavilion, and the Vanke Pavilion. The China Corporate United Pavilion will feature a wide variety of Chinese companies across different sectors, and the Vanke Pavilion will showcase the work of Vanke, a Chinese developer with a big focus on green buildings.

Galli endorsed the contribution of the Chinese pavilions, saying that every single voice from the exhibitors is highly appreciated by his team and contributes to the overall event in an important way.

"I am sure that being one of the major players on the today's global arena, China has lots to say to 20 million of visitors who will come to see Expo Milano 2015 during six months of work," he said.

Themed "Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life", the event hopes to generate discussions on the important global issues of supporting the environment and improving the quality of life.

"Nutrition is a crucial issue for the future of humanity. The increase in population, the scarcity of water and land resources require a serious and thorough reflection on strategies to ensure healthy food that is safe and enough for everyone," Galli said.

He said the Milan Expo will provide opportunities to discuss and find solutions to the contradiction of having undernourished people in the world and at the same time others dying from diseases related to obesity, and as well seeing food being wasted every year.

"We need to make conscious political choices, develop sustainable lifestyles, and use best technology available to create a balance between the availability and the consumption of resources," he said.

In organising the expo, Galli said that it is important to leverage on the past experience of previous organizers, and one example is the Shanghai Expo that took place in 2010.

But one key way he hopes to make the Milan Expo different is by focusing on attracting more international visitors.

"While in Shanghai 98 percent of the visitors were Chinese tourists, Expo Milano 2015 is the first universal exhibition where the focus has been on the international visitors. We are doing our best to attract 8 million foreign tourists to Expo, which is about 40 percent of the total estimated tickets to be sold," he said.

Galli said that one highlight of the Milan Expo's innovation is the use of clusters, which represent shared exhibition areas dedicated to countries that do not have their own pavilion, so that more countries can showcase their strengths without having a pavilion.

Some Clusters will be dedicated to the presentation and tasting of products, such as cereals and tubers, cocoa and chocolate, coffee, fruits and legumes, rice, spices, while others will group countries around themes that characterize specific regions (bio-Mediterranean, islands, sea and food, and arid zones).

He said that Milan Expo believes that cooperation between people is fundamental to achieving the goal of finding a balance between availability and consumption of resources.

"Expo Milano 2015 will be a laboratory of innovation and research, a time for international discussion and debate to find concrete solutions that can improve the lives of people, while respecting the planet," Galli said.