Posted on April 13, 2022
For the first time in its history, the World Expo was held in the Gulf region. From 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022, more than 190 countries showcased their innovations and sustainable achievements at Expo 2020 Dubai. As one of the National Partners of the Dutch Pavilion, Van Oord played an active role in the event.
Van Oord has been involved in a number of iconic waterfront and infrastructure projects in the Middle East over the past 40 years, particularly in Dubai. The Dutch contribution to the Expo focused on ‘Uniting water, energy and food’ and how the three themes interact to create solutions for such global issues as climate change and the energy transition. Our participation as a National Partner of the Dutch Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai allowed us to demonstrate and share our knowledge and expertise in the field of marine engineering and energy infrastructure.
We highlighted our work to international visitors over several theme weeks, for example by:
- presenting and contributing to Expo-related events
- hosting our own hybrid event on ‘How to empower nature and communities’
- staging an exhibition
- joining round-table sessions and economic trade missions.
The unifying factor in all these efforts was our emphasis on how Van Oord uses sustainability, innovation and collaboration to tackle today’s global challenges.
How to empower nature and communities?
In March, during the Expo’s Water Week, Van Oord organised a hybrid event focusing on how to empower nature and communities. The event brought leading experts, innovators and community programme enablers together to share proven and innovative solutions on coastal resilience and the power of community-driven programmes. It demonstrated how nature-positive solutions can protect people and valuable assets of coastal communities.
