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The Journey Continues

A number of public and private sector leaders from the metro area joined Mark Ritchie, President and CEO of Minnesota's Expo 2023 bid committee, in Paris. Meetings and events were held with diplomatic delegations from many of the countries that will vote for Minnesota’s continued candidacy as a host for the 2023 World Expo, historically known as a World’s Fair. The year we’re competing for is a slightly smaller version of the larger Expos that occur on years ending in 0 and 5 (i.e., Milan, Italy hosted one of these in 2015). The proposed Expo dates are May 13 - Aug. 13, 2023.

The outcome was positive as the Minnesota bid will now continue to be evaluated until a final decision is made in November of this year. Had our bid not received enough votes in this round, we would have been disqualified from continuing in the process with the other finalist cities: Lodz, Poland and Buenos Aires, Argentina. According to Ritchie: “The 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.”

Here is a look at the comparison of three bids: http://www.bie-paris.org/site/en/expo-candidature-en/specialised-expo-2022-23

The Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) is the body that selects cities for the various Expos that have occurred around the globe since 1928. According to the BIE, an Expo is a global event that aims at educating the public, promoting progress and fostering cooperation. It is the world's largest meeting place, bringing together countries, the private sector, the civil society and the general public around interactive exhibitions, live shows, workshops, conferences and much more.

This is no longer just a Minnesota bid, since both the U.S. Departments of State and Commerce have become intimately engaged in the process to help secure the bid with us. We are the U.S. candidate location for an Expo, just as Los Angeles is the U.S. candidate city for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games.

With the theme “Healthy People, Healthy Planet,” the proposed Expo in Minnesota 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 $4 billion nationally. The last full Expo in Milan ultimately attracted 21 million visitors.

Stay tuned for additional updates on Expo 2023 USA-Minnesota. Our global profile will rise as we compete with cities from Argentina and Poland. This is certainly not our normal competitive set!

The outcome was positive as the Minnesota bid will now continue to be evaluated until a final decision is made in November of this year. Had our bid not received enough votes in this round, we would have been disqualified from continuing in the process with the other finalist cities: Lodz, Poland and Buenos Aires, Argentina. According to Ritchie: “The 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.”

Here is a look at the comparison of three bids: https://www.bie-paris.org/site/en/expo-candidature-en/specialised-expo-2022-23

The Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) is the body that selects cities for the various Expos that have occurred around the globe since 1928. According to the BIE, an Expo is a global event that aims at educating the public, promoting progress and fostering cooperation. It is the world's largest meeting place, bringing together countries, the private sector, the civil society and the general public around interactive exhibitions, live shows, workshops, conferences and much more.

This is no longer just a Minnesota bid, since both the U.S. Departments of State and Commerce have become intimately engaged in the process to help secure the bid with us. We are the U.S. candidate location for an Expo, just as Los Angeles is the U.S. candidate city for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games.

With the theme “Healthy People, Healthy Planet,” the proposed Expo in Minnesota 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 $4 billion nationally. The last full Expo in Milan ultimately attracted 21 million visitors.

Stay tuned for additional updates on Expo 2023 USA-Minnesota. Our global profile will rise as we compete with cities from Argentina and Poland. This is certainly not our normal competitive set!