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30 years after Expo02 there will be another state exhibition. Nexpo positions itself with an idea.
It’s all about this: In Switzerland, 30 years after the Expo 2002 in Biel, Neuchâtel, Yverdon and Murten, a national exhibition is to be held again. This will be in 2032 at the earliest, not in 2027 as originally planned.
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This is how the Nexpo managers imagine the Bern site.
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Those responsible presented the concept of “Nexpo” 2032 in Bern on Monday. In addition to Nexpo, the cantons of north-western Switzerland are pursuing their own project under the project name “Svizra”.
Where should the Nexpo take place? So far, a city or region has always been the focus of the state exhibitions. The Nexpo, on the other hand, is to take place across Switzerland, in all four parts of the country. That would be a novelty.
“The Nexpo comes to the people’s homes,” says Bern’s Mayor Alec von Graffenried. He can imagine that the Nexpo will rise in Bern’s Museumsquartier and that this will receive a development boost because of the Nexpo.
By taking place throughout Switzerland, Nexpo builds bridges between the center and the periphery, from the city to the mountains.
«Our national exhibition will not be a classic expo on a defined and fenced-in site. By taking place throughout Switzerland, Nexpo builds bridges between the center and the periphery, from the city to the mountains,” says Ticino City Councilor Filippo Lombardi.
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The decentrally organized Nexpo wants to strengthen the cohesion of the country.
Nexpo
So-called Nexpo routes are intended to take visitors throughout Switzerland to a wide variety of exhibitions.
Nexpo could use an empty shopping center, for example.
The Nexpo does not climb in expensive new buildings. Rather, existing buildings are to be used for the Nexpo. “It can be an empty shopping center or a church that is being refurbished,” said Zurich Mayor Corinne Mauch to SRF.
How much does the Nexpo cost? The organizers expect 600 million Swiss francs. How much the federal government is involved is open. In March 2023, the Federal Council announced that due to the tense financial situation, it would not comment on a financial contribution from the Confederation until 2028 at the earliest. That is why the Nexpo should not rise in 2027 as originally planned, but in 2032.
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Zurich Mayor Corinne Mauch wants to start Nexpo 2032.
Keystone/Alessandro della Bella
What is the focus of Nexpo? Nexpo focuses on social cohesion in Switzerland. According to Mauch, prosperity is based on this, as are democracy and the rule of law.
“Nexpo promotes this social cohesion by not focusing on one region, but by involving many different communities and regions as well as the population as a whole,” said Mauch. The organizers promise a “participative national exhibition to join in”.
Legend:
The last Expo took place in 2002. Many people may still remember the monolith in Murten.
Keystone/Gaetan Bally
Who is curating the national exhibition? In recent months, Sibylle Lichtensteiger, director of the Stapferhaus Lenzburg, has further developed the artistic concept for the Nexpo together with the exhibition organizer Detlef Vögeli and the curator Sonja Enz.
Who is behind the Nexpo? 26 towns and municipalities in 18 cantons now belong to this initiative. In addition to the founding cities of Basel, Bern, Biel, Geneva, Lausanne, Lugano, Lucerne, St. Gallen, Winterthur and Zurich, today there are also Aarau, Chur, Frauenfeld, Fribourg, Glarus, Grindelwald, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Neuchâtel, Pontresina, Porrentruy, Saas-Fee, Schaffhausen, Sion, St. Moritz, Uster and Zug are part of the Nexpo. The Nexpo idea was launched in 2016.
