The Yomiuri Shimbun
Representatives from participating countries make a presentation about their expo pavilions at the forum held in Osaka on March 24.
6:00 JST, April 2, 2025
OSAKA — Representatives of 14 countries participating in the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo gave a presentation about some of the sights and experiences attendees can look forward to, at a forum on March 24 hosted by The Yomiuri Shimbun, Osaka.
Of these countries, 12 are among the 47 that will have self-built pavilions at the expo set to open on April 13 on the artificial island of Yumeshima in Osaka. These pavilions are all located inside the Grand Ring, a wooden structure with a circumference of two kilometers and a height of 12 to 20 meters, alongside eight signature pavilions produced by prominent scholars and artists from Japan.
“In our beautiful wooden pavilion, you will experience both Nordic daily life in our exhibition and also seasons and different landscapes,” said Sweden’s Marie Eck, director of the Nordic Circle pavilion. Eck spoke during the “Yomiuri Shimbun Forum on Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai: Heartbeat of the Future,” held at the Imperial Hotel, Osaka.
In the Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden joint pavilion, Eck said: “You can eat and taste some interesting Nordic food and beverages on our rooftop terrace. We also have a shop where you can bring with you some nice handcrafts and Nordic design.”
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Participants experience the “echorb,” which Murata Manufacturing Co. is scheduled to begin displaying at the expo.
The United Kingdom’s Commissioner General for the expo Carolyn Davidson explained the concept of their pavilion, which was built using small blocks. “It is about how small ideas come together to build a better future … those small blocks, like small ideas, can come together to create a world-changing innovation,” she said. The pavilion will display the country’s past innovations, such as a steam engine and a television, as well as technologies of the future.
The theme of Portugal’s pavilion is “Ocean, The Blue Dialogue.” Designed by renowned Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, it will feature Portugal’s history as a nation of maritime trade and its nearly 500 years of ties with Japan. Pavilion Director Bernardo Amaral said, “We want to create awareness to all visitors for the importance of sustainable ocean. We have only one planet and one ocean.”
South Korea’s Deputy Commissioner General and Pavilion Director Park Young-hwan explained how their exhibits aim to express one of the subthemes of the expo, “Connecting Lives.” Using artificial intelligence, visitors’ voices will be transformed into music, which will create a connection between people of different countries, regardless of language barriers, he said.
Forum attendees got a chance to experience food from around the world. Kura Sushi, Inc. demonstrated its Revolving Sushi Bar, where plates of traditional sushi and foods from participating countries, such as pickled herring from the Netherlands and bread pudding with nuts from Saudi Arabia, moved on a conveyor belt. The company will operate the restaurant the same way at the expo venue.
Murata Manufacturing Co. displayed its expo exhibit called “Wonder Stone ‘echorb,’” a round, palm-sized device. A person holding the device feels as if their hand is being guided by special vibrations toward “resonant experiences.”
As participating countries are accelerating their preparation ahead of the opening, the forum provided representatives with an opportunity to interact with each other.
“It touched my heart. We find out that, as different as our pavilion may be, we want to achieve the same thing, and that was very inspiring. We want people to talk together, to listen to each other, not to fight, and to connect,” Manuel Salchli, commissioner general of the Swiss Pavilion, told the Yomiuri Shimbun. “I go to the Expo site and I see all the international crews working. It’s really exciting,” he added. “With the Ring, it’s amazing … I think it [the Expo] will be spectacular.”
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