Yesterday in Paris, the General
Assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) voted to make
the United States a finalist to host a World’s Fair (“Expo”) in 2023.
The United States/Minnesota, Argentina/Buenos Aires and Poland/Lodz will
continue to promote their respective Expo projects until the 162nd
General Assembly of the BIE in November 2017, when Member States of the
BIE will vote for the organizing country of Specialized Expo 2022/2023.
World’s Fairs bring millions of visitors, and generate digital
impressions in the billions on a global scale. The proposed Expo in
Minnesota with the theme “Healthy People, Healthy Planet” would bring
more than 12 million visitors during the three-month event, and feature
exhibits and experiential learning opportunities from around the world.
The overall national economic impact of Expo 2023 USA-Minnesota is estimated to be over USD $4 Billion. However, as per the United States Wants to Compete for a World Expo Act (H.R. 534), funding for all World’s Fair projects in the US must come from private sources.
Expo 2023 USA-Minnesota is expected to generate over 40,000 jobs across
the state in support of the event. Expo 2023 USA-Minnesota will place
the Twin Cities region, and its seven-county population of 3.5 million,
on a global stage, introducing Minnesota to the world.
Today’s announcement is a positive development in our quest to bring the
World’s Fair to Minnesota, but we still have our work cut out for us in
the competition. The next phase of work has two parallel,
time-intensive paths. First, we must work closely with the U.S. State
Department and trusted advisors to reach out to the BIE member nations
for their vote in November. We additionally need to make major headway
in the development of our themes and have committed to bringing global
health ministers together in September to develop themes in line with
global health considerations.
We are celebrating today, but tomorrow we get right back to work. Now is
the time for U.S. businesses, as well as public and civic leaders to
come together to make the strongest case possible to ensure that the BIE
selects USA-Minnesota as the site for Expo 2023. Stay tuned for details
on how to get involved and ensure we have the resources needed to be
successful in November.
Warmly,
Mark Ritchie
President and CEO
Minnesota's World's Fair
|
|
|
