Delegates at the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) International Horticultural Expo Conference received the positive news of progress from seven cities that are busy preparing their upcoming, AIPH-approved events.
The conference held online on 30 September and sponsored by PERA Event and Expo 2021 Hatay, heard from the following A1 World Horticultural Expos:
- Expo 2022 Floriade Amsterdam Almere (the Netherlands)
- Expo 2023 Doha Qatar
- World Horticultural Exhibition 2027 Yokohama (Japan)
Each of these events will last around six months and between them expect to attract over 20 million visitors. They follow the successful Expo 2019 Beijing that took place in China last year, attracting 10 million visitors. The city of Łódź in Poland also expressed its desire to host an A1 Expo in 2029.
Cities preparing B category International Horticultural Exhibitions were as follows:
- Expo 2021 Hatay (Turkey)
- 2021 Yangzhou International Horticultural Exhibition (China)
- Expo 2023 Kahramanmaras (Turkey)
- Suncheon International Garden Expo 2023 (South Korea)
Each event will expose millions of visitors to the world of horticulture and help in communicating the vital role that plants, flowers and the landscape play in improving the environment and the health and wellbeing of citizens. The Expos stimulate city greening and create better places to live.
An audience of over 150 delegates from over 50 countries was made up of host cities, potential host cities, AIPH Members, horticultural industry representatives, service providers and media.
Commenting on the conference, AIPH Secretary General, Tim Briercliffe said “The COVID-19 pandemic has created real challenges for organisers of major events like Expos but it has also highlighted the importance of green spaces and leisure experiences to improving quality of life. During 2020 Expo organisers have continued to prepare their events and new applications from cities around the world demonstrate the importance they attach to creating greener places to live and making better cities for the future.”
As part of their application process for AIPH approval, the conference also received presentations from Chengdu (China), Izmir (Turkey) and Quang Binh (Vietnam), all seeking to host B category International Horticultural Exhibitions in the coming years. There was also an application from Euroflora in Genoa (Italy) for C category approval in 2021.
Delegates attending the 3D virtual conference also had the opportunity to participate in presentations on the AIPH Green City initiative, how to become a host city and how to become an AIPH Preferred Partner. We wish to thank our current Preferred Partners at this event include: PERA Event, CSM Live, Enabling Abilities, Losberger De Boer and Transport Management Services.
Partners for the conference were AGES (Association of Global Event Suppliers), the UK’s Biophilic Cities, Department for International Trade, ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability), IAEH (International Association of Event Hosts), Major Events International ULI (Urban Land Institute) and media partners HOST CITY and FloraCulture International magazine.
To view Expo progress reports visit http://aiph.org/expo-conference-2020/. For further information about AIPH-approved Expos visit http://aiph.org/events/exhibitions/.