Can the Osaka World Expo find its purpose in a world torn apart by conflict?

OSAKA – On the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower in Paris is a tribute to the 1889 World Expo, the very event that led to its creation.

The now iconic landmark was meant as a temporary installation – a “celebration of industry, art and science”, as the sign describes it – to mark the international fair. Then the world’s tallest structure, the tower was “a display of technical expertise, an invention ahead of its time”.

Paris, where the World Expo’s regulating body is headquartered, hosted the “ode to everything marvellous and magical” again in 1900. But by the time the city hosted its final fair in 1937 – two years before World War II – there was “a sense of uneasiness in the air (as) nations have begun belligerently challenging each other”.

Which of these descriptions will Osaka 2025 go down in history for?

Against the backdrop of a trade war, bloody conflicts and increasingly fraught superpower competition, Japan hopes the World Expo can be a

celebration of togetherness

and a platform for forging a spirit of multilateralism and inclusivity.

Organisers aim to attract at least 28.2 million visitors during the jamboree, which starts from April 13 and runs for six months on the reclaimed island of Yumeshima (“Dream Island”).

There is plenty of symbolic unity. The pavilions of 158 countries and regions, as well as seven international organisations, are housed within a Grand Ring that is certified as the world’s largest wooden structure at 20m high and 2km around.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who once described the trade uncertainties Japan faces as a “

national crisis

”, said on April 12 during the nationally broadcast Expo opening ceremony: “As the world confronts various crises of division, it is extremely meaningful for people from all over the world to gather here, experience different cultures and contemplate the overall theme of life.”

But it will take a lot more than inspirational speeches to transform ideals into reality. Looking beyond the rah-rah enthusiasm of the ever-so-consummate hosts, I wonder how far Japan can paper over the scars.

During a media preview on April 9, Palestine’s space within a common exhibition hall was starkly empty, save for a sign that read: “Shipments have been delayed due to the Israeli military occupation”.

This notice was later removed, but not before a war of words played out in the Japanese media, which television commentators brought up during the opening ceremony. Palestine accused Israel of erecting “numerous barriers” against its participation; Israel said that was nothing more than a “poor excuse” for not having anything to show, adding that it was “not here to make political statements”.

Russia wasn’t even there, having pulled out in November 2023

amid diplomatic tensions due to Japan’s opposition to its invasion of Ukraine

. Ukraine’s display, themed “Not For Sale”, aims to send the message that its sovereignty and democracy are non-bargainable.

The domestic strain on supply chains and crippling construction labour crunch, among other reasons, have manifested in five countries – India, Nepal, Brunei, Vietnam and Chile – failing to finish their pavilions in time for opening day, MBS News reported.

Inflation was borne out in the Expo’s price tag of 235 billion yen (S$2.2 billion) that was nearly twice the initial budget, although the government estimates the overall economic benefits to total 2.9 trillion yen.

The extravaganza has also been beset by negative headlines: lacklustre advance ticket sales,

dangerous methane levels

, and doubts over disaster preparedness. Yumeshima is connected to the mainland by only a bridge and tunnel, and organisers say they have stockpiled three days worth of rations in case the island is cut off.

It has been such a roller-coaster ride that Osaka Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura looked emotional on April 12 when, speaking for just four minutes, he said “thank you” seven times.

Yet even beyond that, the very purpose of an event like the World Expo has become fuzzy.

It is very much unlike the Olympics and the World Cup, which unite through the power of sport. And as the speed of innovation gains pace and the world becomes far more interconnected than ever before through air travel and the internet, what is its raison d’etre?

It is not 1853, when the lift made its debut at the fair in New York, or 1876, when the telephone was shown to the world in Philadelphia. Neither is it 1970, when the World Expo was held in Asia for the first time, incidentally also in Osaka.

Japan at the time was brimming with confidence as its post-war industrial ascent gained pace, and the Expo then was spiritually akin to Paris 1889 and 1900. Osaka 1970 wowed the world with mobile phones, travelators, magnetic levitation technology, and conveyor belt sushi, while outside the venue, the world’s first fully automated ticket gantries were in use.

“I still vividly remember being amazed by the cutting-edge technology at the time,” Emperor Naruhito said during the opening ceremony as he reminisced about visiting the 1970 Expo as a 10-year-old, expressing his hopes that the 2025 event can likewise inspire today’s generation of children.

The 2025 edition, themed Designing Future Society For Our Lives, is a festival of futuristic technologies. Besides foreign-built pavilions, there are pavilions by Japanese companies, along with eight commissioned Japanese experts across various fields from robotics to biology and anime.

Among the highlights are a “human washing machine” that automates the entire bathing process, and unmanned flying vehicle demonstrations.

I was awed by a

pulsating artificial heart

made wholly from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells that mark a medical breakthrough, and a tactile video experience allowing visitors to physically feel the sensation of what they touch on screen.

More than that, the Expo is a celebration of soft power. Myaku-myaku, the bizarre yet endearing mascot, may take some warming up to, but the event also features beloved icons, from Astro Boy and Gundam to Hello Kitty and Pikachu.

There are even portable saunas on site, in recognition of Japan’s ongoing

sauna boom

, while among the special events is a celebration of the country’s

sumo culture

on Aug 3, when wrestlers will duel on site.

The Expo is also a journey of inventive architectural and interior design. China’s pavilion was inspired by an unfolded traditional calligraphy scroll; Saudi Arabia’s, by its traditional souk market; and Singapore’s spherical bright-red pavilion was derived from its “

Little Red Dot”

moniker.

“Our tag line is Where Dreams Take Shape, and we hope the journey will inspire visitors to create their own dreams and have these dreams shape the world,” says Ms Carrie Kwik, Singapore Tourism Board’s executive director for the World Expo.

Jordan, meanwhile, wants to bring visitors on an experiential journey by filling its pavilion with sand from its Wadi Rum desert and salt from the Dead Sea.

More important, Jordan’s acting commissioner-general Shifa Zghoul Haddad tells me, is conveying the message of unity: “We are all humans. When there is an emergency, our blood can help one another. We are one.”

And therein, I realise, is the power of the World Expo. In an age of relentless cynicism as chaos unfolds around the world, there is a time and place for a wholesome kindness that serves as a reminder that the world can always be a better place.