The Swiss pavilion at Expo Milano 2015 has opened its towers
Bern, 01.05.2015 - The Swiss pavilion has opened its doors today on the occasion of the inaugural ceremony of the universal exhibition of Milan, dedicated to the theme “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life”. The Swiss pavilion is an open platform that invites the public on a journey of discovery of Swiss excellence: in agriculture, agri-food industry, development cooperation, education, culture, tourism and transport. Switzerland’s intention is to invite visitors to reflect on their relationship with consumption through a visit to the pavilion towers, filled with typical Swiss products. The social conscience of each visitor determines what’s left for those who come later. And for how long: will there be enough for all?
Switzerland, along with 144 other countries and three international organisations, has opened the doors of its pavilion. The exhibition, which will occupy 1 million square metres, is expected to attract 20 million visitors, of whom two thirds will be from Italy and the remainder from abroad. As Expo Milano is taking place on Switzerland’s doorstep, many Swiss visitors are expected to attend. Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) has organised additional trains that stop at the Rho-Fiera site as part of a special offer.
The Swiss pavilion, with its 4,433 m2 surface area, takes the form of a big open platform with four towers filled with apples, coffee, water and salt. The visitors access the towers via lifts and on reaching the top can help themselves to the various products. As the towers gradually empty the supporting platforms will lower, thus changing the structure of the towers which will be reused as urban greenhouses at the end of Expo 2015. Designed by the architects of Netwerch, the Swiss pavilion also includes a restaurant and a takeaway with Swiss food specialities and wines, the exhibitions of the Gotthard partner cantons dedicated to water, the exhibitions of the partner cities of Basel, Geneva and Zurich, Nestlé’s interactive scientific exhibition, an installation dedicated to the New Rail Link through the Alps (NRLA), Switzerland Tourism’s Switzerball installation, the Swiss Chocolate Workshop, and the interactive Plant Doctor Game which has the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), a division of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA).
An open, educational platform
“Expo 2015 is an opportunity for presenting Switzerland to the world as a country that is open, responsible and practices solidarity in the field of nutrition. The Swiss pavilion is an important platform for strengthening bilateral relations and meeting the political representatives of many other countries”, as Dante Martinelli, Switzerland’s Commissioner General for Expo Milano 2015, stressed during the inauguration ceremony of the Swiss pavilion.
“We want to win over the public at the universal exhibition with our food specialities, the exhibition spaces and a rich programme of events throughout the 184 days. But beyond that: ours is a pavilion based on a value that I would call ‘slow education’, which provides the general public with information on the challenges of sustainable development that face us all. Each of us, whether we’re standing in the supermarket, in front of the fridge or next the waste bin, can make a positive contribution to the challenges involved in feeding the planet”, noted Ambassador Nicolas Bideau, head of the FDFA’s Presence Switzerland, who is entrusted with managing the Swiss pavilion. The four Swiss mascots – Sylvie the apple, Philipp the salt, Daniele the coffee and Cristina the water – will help visitors to understand the messages of the Swiss pavilion in an enjoyable way.
A strong partnership between the public and private sectors
“The Swiss pavilion is the result of a close public-private partnership that illustrates Switzerland’s ability to innovate in the agri-food sector”, concluded Giancarlo Kessler, Switzerland’s ambassador to Italy.
In 2012 the Federal Parliament approved Switzerland’s participation in Expo 2015 unopposed, with a CHF 23.1 million credit, of which at least CHF 8 million was to be funded by sponsors. This objective has been exceeded, with total sponsorships worth CHF 9 million: CHF 6.5 million in cash and CHF 2.5 million in the form of products. The private sector is contributing 60% of the funding through these sponsorships. The main sponsors include the four Gotthard partner cantons – Graubünden, Ticino, Uri and Valais – the cities of Basel, Zurich and Geneva, and from the private sector Nestlé, United Swiss Saltworks, Vacheron Constantin, Clariant, Geberit and various suppliers.
Swiss agriculture plays a major role in one of the four towers of the pavilion. Apple rings, provided by small producers in eastern Switzerland, represent the quality, biodiversity and capacity for diversification of the agricultural sector in Switzerland. This sector has invested approximately CHF 2 million in Expo 2015.
Presence Switzerland has entrusted the provision of catering services in the Swiss pavilion jointly to Palexpo (Geneva's exhibition and convention centre), and to Agro Marketing Switzerland (AMS).
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