brief
Expo 2020 brought together leaders from around the world for 182 days under the theme of Programme for People and Planet. In addition to the top-down discussions led by global leaders Expo had the desire to create a platform for diverse voices from around the world to unite. The objective was to inspire people to gather, take ownership, and re-think pressing global issues through non-conventional, largely transdisciplinary lenses.
RESPONSE
Challenging the norms
Benchmarking against global activations, Alserkal Advisory developed a programme titled Cultures in Conversation to challenge the conventional ‘talks’ format. Consisting of ten themed weeks of immersive experiences, artist interventions, informal conversations, and performances the programme was designed to draw in audiences and foster their participation.
Thought leaders and prominent artistic voices
Cultures in Conversation adapted each of its ten weeks of programming to various thematics under Expo 2020. Experimenting with different formats allowed notable participants such as Charles Landry, Lumumba Di-Aping, Nujoom Al-Ghanem, Mary Ellen Carroll, 3 137, the Engage 101 collective, and others to collaborate in unexpected ways bringing forward new ideas to tackle global challenges.
Breaking down boundaries
Over the course of Cultures in Conversation, audiences were introduced to and then immersed in intercultural dialogue, a lever that Expo 2020 had identified as being crucial to bridging the gap between people and fostering collaboration on bringing global progress to life. A motor of Expo 2020’s differentiation was to cultivate, through its programming, the people who would become ‘agents of change’ in our region. By evoking alterative outcomes and framing creative problem-solving, Cutlures in Conversation opened new avenues of transdisciplnary thought to equip these decision-makers of the future.
