Announcing the May/June 2015 Issue III, Vol IX
Cover Story: World Expo Milano, The Future of Food: Production, Innovation, and Technology
Featured: Interview with Claudio Bisogniero, Ambassador of Italy to the United States
PLUS: Uprooted: The Future of Vertical Farming; Food and Diplomacy; Who Are the Happiest People in the World? A Brave New World for MNCs; and More!
Washington, DC: For nearly 165 years, referred to variously as the World’s Fair, the Universal Exposition, and World Expo, this meeting place shows off not what it is, but what might be hope tomorrow. Together, the host nation and participants have built something they can be proud of. The world has built a lasting tradition.
As Milan peers into the century ahead, with its theme “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life,” it brings together 145 of the world’s nations, multinationals, and civil society to solve the world’s food security issues before 2050. As the world’s third largest gathering—after the Olympics and the World Cup—the World Expo has always been one of the most unique and enduring gatherings of global publics, its reach amplified exponentially with the advent of social media.
Chicago’s “World’s Columbian Exposition” in 1893 opened the door for a look at the century to come. Its “White City” was an architectural marvel; its abundant white lights the stage from which home and industrial electricity were launched. All the while, lines remained for the event’s six months for a ride on the “Ferris Wheel,” the beginning of what today is known as the amusement park.
Perhaps the most celebrated of U.S. Expos, the 1939 World’s Fair in New York City came in the shadow of a developing World War, a symbol of the ability to look beyond the dark inevitable with hope. Forty four million visitors witnessed exhibits like “Futurama” and the “World of Tomorrow” in the first future themed fair. The electronic calculator was unveiled as was the idea of enhanced transportation through mass highways and automatic cars. And modern cities expanded where big business and colloquial suburban living were shown side by side, an image of a world that can now be taken for granted.
In these pages, there are reflections on how the private sector, nations, and civil society can play a part in feeding the future. The possibilities of vertical farming to provide eco-friendly produce to city populations, innovations in food and health, improvements and advancements in global business and trade—no single problem will be solved within these pages, but the steps towards solution convey what so often is birthed at the World Expo.
They convey the chance for a renewed world.
And in renewal we find the truth that an event expected to draw the inclusion of 145 nations, multiple businesses and non-governmental organizations, and millions of visitors can bring out the best in us, can allow us to experience idea and possibility together.
Ana C. Rold is Editor-in-Chief and Founder of Diplomatic Courier.
Announcing the May/June 2015 Issue III, Vol IX
Cover Story: World Expo Milano, The Future of Food: Production, Innovation, and Technology
Featured: Interview with Claudio Bisogniero, Ambassador of Italy to the United States
PLUS: Uprooted: The Future of Vertical Farming; Food and Diplomacy; Who Are the Happiest People in the World? A Brave New World for MNCs; and More!
Washington, DC: For nearly 165 years, referred to variously as the World’s Fair, the Universal Exposition, and World Expo, this meeting place shows off not what it is, but what might be hope tomorrow. Together, the host nation and participants have built something they can be proud of. The world has built a lasting tradition.
As Milan peers into the century ahead, with its theme “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life,” it brings together 145 of the world’s nations, multinationals, and civil society to solve the world’s food security issues before 2050. As the world’s third largest gathering—after the Olympics and the World Cup—the World Expo has always been one of the most unique and enduring gatherings of global publics, its reach amplified exponentially with the advent of social media.
Chicago’s “World’s Columbian Exposition” in 1893 opened the door for a look at the century to come. Its “White City” was an architectural marvel; its abundant white lights the stage from which home and industrial electricity were launched. All the while, lines remained for the event’s six months for a ride on the “Ferris Wheel,” the beginning of what today is known as the amusement park.
Perhaps the most celebrated of U.S. Expos, the 1939 World’s Fair in New York City came in the shadow of a developing World War, a symbol of the ability to look beyond the dark inevitable with hope. Forty four million visitors witnessed exhibits like “Futurama” and the “World of Tomorrow” in the first future themed fair. The electronic calculator was unveiled as was the idea of enhanced transportation through mass highways and automatic cars. And modern cities expanded where big business and colloquial suburban living were shown side by side, an image of a world that can now be taken for granted.
In these pages, there are reflections on how the private sector, nations, and civil society can play a part in feeding the future. The possibilities of vertical farming to provide eco-friendly produce to city populations, innovations in food and health, improvements and advancements in global business and trade—no single problem will be solved within these pages, but the steps towards solution convey what so often is birthed at the World Expo.
They convey the chance for a renewed world.
And in renewal we find the truth that an event expected to draw the inclusion of 145 nations, multiple businesses and non-governmental organizations, and millions of visitors can bring out the best in us, can allow us to experience idea and possibility together.
Ana C. Rold is Editor-in-Chief and Founder of Diplomatic Courier.
