Expo 2020 Dubai today delivered the first public roll-out of its $100 million Expo Live programme to help fund, accelerate and promote creative projects that will improve lives while preserving our planet.

Organisers stressed that they have no prior expectations of where successful proposals will emerge from, understanding that innovative solutions can come from anywhere, to everyone.

The programme calls for individual entrepreneurs, SMEs, non-for-profit organisations, or government-related entities to submit their solutions, which should be at a demonstration and implementation stage, to Expo Live.

A low-key pilot introduction of this important pillar in long-term Expo 2020 Dubai strategy was made last year and has proved a considerable success already. But this is the first time a public outreach has been launched by the World Expo and it will be the first of twice yearly cycles up to June 2018 to find suitable projects.

Four years ago, during the UAE’s successful campaign to stage the first World Expo in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region and the Arab world, its leaders had committed that such support for local businesses and innovators of all shapes and sizes would be a major ambition that it intended to see through.

Her Royal Highness Princess Haya bint Al Hussein, wife of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai, told the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the body which oversees World Expos, that such partnerships would be paramount for a successful Expo 2020 Dubai.

Princess Haya explained at the time in 2013: “The true legacy of an Expo is not in its physical buildings or monuments, but in the connections it makes and the people it inspires and the future it builds.”

She continued: “The theme of Expo 2020 Dubai, ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’, is just such a pledge of partnership…in Dubai we have built a city that has become an incubator for new models and new ideas.”

Expo Live will deploy a combination of programmes, challenges and knowledge-sharing events in the run-up to the 2020 World Expo, focusing on the universal drivers of progress - Opportunity, Mobility and Sustainability – which are core themes to Expo 2020 Dubai.

These programmes include the Innovation Impact Grants, Innovation and Best Practice Exposure Grants, Innovation Challenges and the Youth Programme.

Reem Al Hashimy UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and director general, Expo 2020 Dubai, said: “Expo Live will be the next great programme in the storied history of World Expos to serve as a catalyst for innovation and progress. It has been at the heart of our thinking and planning from the bid stage and I’m delighted that we can show the world how we intend to meet our promise in such a wide-ranging and ambitious way.

“Our roll-out today expands on our earlier pilot started last year and I’m delighted that it’s already shown very promising results. This phase, which ran from June until September 2016, drew 575 applications from 71 countries from six continents, a reflection of the diversity and inclusiveness of the programme. “

She added that of all the entries, 168 were identified as potential projects and are now undergoing a technical review. Those that progress to the final stage of evaluation will present their project in Dubai in the coming months.

Her Excellency continued: “Expo Live not only symbolises what World Expos stand for, but also embodies the bold vision for Dubai and the UAE, a diverse and open nation, which is actively working to become one of the leaders in innovation and the promotion of a knowledge economy.”

The Innovation Impact Grants – the flagship programme of Expo Live – is the first to open its 2017 biannual call for proposals starting today for 60 days until March, 15 2017.  

The programme not only seeks to identify advanced technological solutions, but also to extend the impact of simple initiatives at grassroots level to improve people’s lives.

Expo Live is focused on addressing the areas of Opportunity, Mobility and Sustainability in the following ways:

• Mobility grants aim to create smarter and more productive movement of people, goods and ideas through addressing issues in transportation, travel and exploration, personal mobility, logistics and digital connectivity.
• Opportunity grants plan to unlock potential within individuals and communities through addressing issues in education, employment, new industries, financial capital, and governance.
• Sustainability grants are targeted to promote living in balance with our planet through addressing issues around natural ecosystems and biodiversity, resources, sustainable cities and built habitats, climate change and green growth.

Commenting on the launch of the 2016 Innovation Impact Grants Programme, Yousuf Caires, Vice President, Expo Live, said: “Our world is changing rapidly, and with Expo Live, we wish to contribute to this change by funding, accelerating and promoting creative solutions with a social impact. Expo Live is here for the greater good, and to be a meaningful mechanism for human endeavour and creativity.

“Expo Live will help to empower problem-solvers from the region and wider world through the funding, acceleration and promotion of creative solutions to global challenges. Furthermore, the open and inclusive nature of Expo Live demonstrates the inclusivity of World Expos, as it is open to individuals and organisations from around the world, regardless of their background, resources or social status. “

Applicants with demonstrable projects are invited to complete the registration process at www.expo2020dubai.ae/expolive and submit a short explanation of the challenge they are tackling, and the solution they propose. – TradeArabia News Service