Expo 2020 Dubai has announced an exciting new project in collaboration with Cartier. The Women’s Pavilion will reaffirm a shared commitment to closing the gender gap and promoting gender equality. The collaboration will Cartier will celebrate changemakers from around the globe.
As part of this unique project Expo 2020 will be the first World Expo to have a standalone pavilion dedicated to women. Under the exhibition titled “New Perspectives”, the Women’s Pavilion will invite visitors to recognise the central role that women, known and unknown, have played throughout history, leading up to the present.
Celebrating the significant – and often forgotten – contributions of women, the pavilion will demonstrate an important principle: when women thrive, all of humanity thrives. It will highlight important contributions women have made in advancing societies, as well as the challenges women still face, especially as the world navigates through the COVID-19 pandemic and works toward a more sustainable future.
Breaking stereotypes and deconstructing misconceptions on women’s roles, the pavilion will raise awareness by showcasing both female and male contributors to women’s empowerment and gender equality, inspiring visitors of all ages to become change-makers within their own communities and beyond.
Expo 2020’s focus on women’s empowerment and gender equality builds on the example of the UAE, recognising the important roles women play and the contributions made by all members of society.
Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director General, Expo 2020 Dubai, said: “The international community has made progress in gender equality and women’s empowerment, but much more needs to be done. By welcoming visitors from across the planet and from every walk of life, Expo 2020 Dubai is a unique, powerful platform that will drive the necessary attention to this issue.”
She continued: “Gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) has been a central principle of the UAE since its inception 50 years ago as evidenced in initiatives by great female leaders such as Her Highness Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak and Her Highness Sheikha Hind bint Maktoum bin Juma Al Maktoum. We in the UAE have practiced empowering women as integral to national development, and so it has proven in half a century of unprecedented growth. The pace of our development is only going to quicken with what we aim to achieve in the next 50 years. Unless we place gender equality and women’s empowerment centre stage, we will not progress at the pace we need to.”
Cyrille Vigneron, President and CEO of Cartier International said: “At Cartier, we believe that empowering women has a multiplier effect: it helps drive economic growth and development, and benefits societies and humanity at large. As gender inequality persists and continues to impact women’s lives, it is ever more imperative to show unity and togetherness in promoting women empowerment. We are honoured to take our long-standing support to women change-makers further by collaborating with Expo 2020 Dubai and present the Women’s Pavilion to a truly global audience. More than ever, we remain committed to sharing our vision of a future where all women are empowered to reach their full potential and of a more inclusive society for generations to come.”
The Women’s Pavilion will feature five structures with different narratives located on the ground floor: the Introduction will explain the purpose of the pavilion; the Achievements section will shine a light on women’s impact on the world; Challenges will acknowledge what is holding women back; Solutions will highlight the initiatives enabling women to thrive so humanity can thrive, and Engaging with visitors will encourage visitors to become champions of gender equality and women’s empowerment and take the journey forward.
The Women’s Pavilion and Cartier have gathered a diverse community of creators and artists to contribute both to its design and curation including Oscar-winning film director Nadine Labaki, French actress, screenwriter and director Mélanie Laurent, French architect Laura Gonzalez and Dubai born artist Kholoud Sharafi.
The pavilion will feature a Majlis, a vibrant and inclusive space for everyone – including artists, scientists, thought leaders, politicians, entrepreneurs and business leaders – to engage in constructive and solution-oriented conversations on women’s empowerment.
Across the six months of Expo, the Women’s Pavilion will host an array of events, programming and meaningful dialogues that will not only enhance knowledge and understanding of gender equality and women’s empowerment but also drive tangible, collaborative action that can be shared with the world.
Expo 2020 will run from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022, inviting visitors from around the world to join the making of a new world, experiencing a six-month celebration of human creativity, innovation, progress and culture.
