ITALY-EXPO/SWISS-KOREAN Swiss and Korean pavilions at Milan Expo use innovation and interactive features to educate and inspire visitors

Record ID: 147608

  • Title: ITALY-EXPO/SWISS-KOREAN Swiss and Korean pavilions at Milan Expo use innovation and interactive features to educate and inspire visitors
  • Date: 9th July 2015
  • Summary: MILAN, ITALY (RECENT) (REUTERS) VISITORS OUTSIDE SWISS PAVILION
  • Embargoed: 24th July 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Italy
  • Country: Italy
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA2STD3FACYV22ACNUFM1VAT5ZY
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Over six million visitors have passed through the gates of Expo Milano 2015, since May 1 marking it as far more successful than many others in the long and controversial tradition of 'world fairs'.
    Most cite the reason for its success is the variety and quality of innovation and interactive features that many of the 140 countries taking part are using to draw in the crowds to their exhibits 'focused on feeding the planet'.
    At the Swiss pavilion, enthusiastic guides explain the concept of their exhibition to the visitors which focuses on four towers filled with water, salt, coffee and apples rather than more traditional Swiss icons such as chocolate, watches or cuckoo clocks.
    'Are you afraid of being left without?' reads a wall at the end of a corridor which visitors walk down before taking lifts up to the top of the towers, where they can help themselves to as much of the four basic products as they want.
    As they exit the lift they are welcomed and the concept of a 'responsible supermarket' is explained before they decide how much of the product they take.
    As the towers get emptied, the platform on which they stand gets lower, modifying the appearance of the Pavilion: a lesson in over-consumption.
    Communications manager for the Swiss pavilion, Andrea Arcidiacono, said they were averaging 8,000 visitors per day, and have had an enthusiastic response to their exhibit.
    "The visitors are encouraged to take an active role interacting with our guides and the majority understand the message of responsible consumerism that has now become even stronger because on the fourth floor, the towers of apples and water are empty," said Arcidiacono.
    "This emptiness makes one reflect and makes people more aware that resources are finite and there is the need to use them wisely," he added, hopefully.
    Depending on consumer greed - there might not be enough of the products to last until the end of the expo in October, unless the message that resources should be distributed equally and people take the opportunity to practice responsible consumer habits including the fight against food waste.
    There are many international visitors amongst the people flocking in to graze and gaze at the displays.
    "I think the effort they've made to present their countries is truly fantastic, the diversity of the food and the biodiversity which is the theme of the expo. The exhibits of the different countries are varied and very, very well put together. I don't regret at all coming here!" enthused Catherine Petit who had travelled from France.
    The Republic of Korea pavilion focuses on the future of providing food for humanity. A future in which food is provided in a safe, healthy and equitable manner, utilizing highly advanced science and technology in the fields of food, environment, and human physiology.
    The exhibits are designed to encourage visitors to think about how to feed the planet and improve the food security situation for those who go hungry.
    A haunting projection of a malnourished child provides a strong reminder of the inequality of food availability in the world.
    An official of the Korean pavilion, Jo Deok Hyun, explained that their concept was simple - namely to think of the future and change eating habits now, as too many of us eat more than we need while other starve - as well as the desirability of returning to traditional ways of cooking and using seasonal products.
    "We learned a lot of messages from traditional Korea, the regional traditions," explained Mr Jo standing in front of the entrance wall scrawled in words related to food.
    "We combined that wisdom and our highly developed IT technology. So, we adopted two robots and through the robotic arms that carries the two large LED screens we'd like to show that we have to eat balanced food and fermented food to stay healthy," Jo added.
    A truly impressive robotics installation demonstrates the preparation of Hansik, a name that not only encompasses Korean food, but a whole way of eating based on balance and on dishes complemented with vegetables and fermented cereal species, a preservation technique that inspired the entire Korean eating tradition.
    Italy is hoping that some 20 million visitors come to the six month-long exhibition of products and technologies from around the world. They hope it will bring in 10 billion euros ($10.75 billion), and if visitor trends continue, they will be successful.
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