by James Ogul, InPark World’s Fair editor
Expo 2016 Antalya will operate from April 23 to October 30 on a 276-acre site. Its theme is “Flowers and Children” and it has signed 51 participating counties, which is the highest total for an event of this kind since Expo 90 Osaka, the International Garden and Greenery Exposition. With the support and endorsement of both the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) and the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH), Expo 2016 Antalya is the first A1 Category International Horticultural Exhibition to be held in Turkey.
Photos: Antalya Expo 2016
During the six months of operation, various national and international conferences, seminars and panel discussions will be held around the main theme and sub-themes, addressing Issues such as global warming, ecological farming, the protection of biodiversity, sustainability and food security.
Sudan, South Korea, Pakistan, Georgia, Turkmenistan, Kenya, Yemen, Nepal, Mauritania, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, China, Japan, Guinea, Senegal, Niger, Palestine, Bangladesh, Kosovo, Qatar, Madagascar, Netherlands, Burundi, Eritrea, Union of Comoros, Zimbabwe, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Benin, England, Ghana, Hungary, Italy, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, India, Myanmar, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Uganda, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Ethiopia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Ukraine, The Republic of South Africa, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Germany, Serbia, Bulgaria.
The BIE, headquartered in Paris, regulates World’s Fairs such as the recent 2015 Expo Milano – a highly successful 6-month event with 21 million visits. It also regulates International Specialized Expos (smaller world’s fairs of 3 months duration) such as Astana Expo 2017 (Kazakhstan), which opens a little over a year from now.
Not widely known is that the BIE also regulates Horticultural Expositions. Vicente G. Loscertales, Secretary General of the BIE, recently commented: “Horticultural Expos share the same goals as World Expos in each of their respective field: education and progress. Expo 2016 Antalya is a wonderful opportunity to focus on the paramount issues of education and innovation, of sustainable environment, and of nature as a source of inspiration for future generations.”
There have been 19 BIE-approved Horticultural Expos since 1959. They operate from three to six months on sites of at least 123 acres. Like World’s Fairs and International Specialized Expos, audiences can reach into the millions. Antalya organizers project an audience of 8 million people.
Horticultural Exhibitions that have been regulated by the BIE:
-1960 ROTTERDAM – Netherlands
-1963 HAMBURG – Germany
-1964 VIENNA – Austria
-1969 PARIS – France
-1972 AMSTERDAM – Netherlands
-1973 HAMBURG – Germany
-1974 VIENNA – Austria
-1980 MONTREAL – Canada
-1982 AMSTERDAM – Netherlands
-1983 MUNICH – Germany
-1984 LIVERPOOL – Great Britain
1990 OSAKA – Japan
-1992 THE HAGUE – Netherlands
-1993 STUTTGART – Germany
-1999 KUNMING – China
-2002 HAARLEMMERMEER – Netherlands
-2003 ROSTOCK – Germany
-2006-07 CHIANG MAI – Thailand
-2012 – VENLO – Netherlands
-2016 – ANTALYA – Turkey