The Italian Pavilion is one of the most popular pavilions of Expo Dubai 2020, concluding the first part of the Universal Exhibition with a very positive outcome, with more than 700k visitors.
In addition to the public physically present, thanks to the project “Virtual Expo” 7 million virtual visitors were involved during the first three months of the Expo, participating in the hundreds of activities and events organized by the Italy Pavilion through social media, its website and online communities.
According to a survey carried out by the CRA-Carlo Ratti Associati firm – one of the co-designers of the Italian Pavilion out of the 190 national pavilions present at the Expo, and apart from the Pavilion of the hosting Country – the Emirates, the Italy Pavilion was the most cited in the online media in the world, after the US pavilion. In the period from September 2019 to today, the Italy Pavilion has been mentioned over 4 thousand times.
“We are glad to notice that the experiments we have carried out together are intriguing, stimulating discussion and the expression of opinions. We hope that this experience marks the beginning of a season of experiments increasingly involving circularity and sustainability in similar future events”, said Carlo Ratti, one of the designers of the Italian Pavilion together with the Italo Rota Building Office, Matteogatto & associates and F&M Ingegneria.
The success of the Pavilion was also achieved thanks to the combination of the main themes that characterize the philosophy of the Italian project: safety, technology and sustainability.
The implementation of strict safety measures – including social distancing, sanitizing the premises, measuring visitors’ temperature at the entrance and regulating entrances to a maximum number of visitors at a time – combined with the development of technologies aimed at reducing the risks of Covid contagion, have allowed to welcome the public in a unique and safe experience.
The fusion of technology and safety has been achieved through cutting edge techniques such as nanotechnologies for sanitisation, developed to accompany more traditional methods such as natural ventilation and the open visit route, that guarantees a continuous air exchange inside the Pavilion.
Specifically, the Octo PurePIace system uses nanotechnology, originally developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), to diffuse a disinfectant that eliminates virus, bacteria and fungi.
The quality of the air inside the Pavilion is further improved by an intensive cultivation of algae installed and managed by the TOLO Green company on a surface of over 300 square meters, which increases the absorption of the C02 emitted by visitors and strengthens the air exchange system.
