Expo 2025 German Pavilion
Client: Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz
Year: 2025
Pavilions and world exhibitions
The Expo 2025 sees itself as a testing ground for the society of the future. Under the motto "Designing Future Society for Our Lives", the countries of the world will meet at Expo Osaka from 13 April to 13 October 2025. The aim is to discuss how society can achieve the United Nations' sustainability goals. As a "People's Living Lab" - an experimental laboratory for the society of the future - the Expo will become a testing ground for new systems and technologies. It is intended to stimulate innovation and show ways of realising the sustainable society of tomorrow.
The German Pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka is dedicated to a topic that is central to shaping our future: the circular economy.
Andreas Horbelt, Creative Director
Titel わ！ドイツ Wa! Germany
This title is pronounced: Wa! Doitsu and means translated: Wa! Germany. The term "Wa" has several positive meanings in Japanese: It means "circle", which makes it a perfect fit for the leitmotif of circularity. However, "Wa" also means "harmony", which means that the term represents the harmony between nature and technology, which is the goal of the circular economy. And: "Wa" stands for "Wow!" and thus for the enthusiasm that Germany and its pavilion are generating at the Expo.
The pavilion is inhabited by cute, spherical creatures: the Circulars. Inspired by Kawaii - the Japanese aesthetic of cuteness - the little circulars are cute mythical creatures that already live in a circular world. The small, likeable creatures love everything circular. They appear everywhere in the pavilion and serve as guides for visitors.
Pavilion and nature, technosphere and biosphere merge into one.
The German pavilion itself will be an exhibit for circular and sustainable construction. Wherever possible, circular materials are used, the reuse of all parts has been considered from the outset and non-reversible material connections are avoided.
Visitors to the exhibition embark on an emotional and multi-sensory journey in which they discover tangible visions of life in a circular society. The exhibition has been developed as a sequence of immersive spatial experiences, with the pathways here also following the leitmotif: the cycle.
The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK) is responsible for the German presence at Expo 2025 Osaka.
The BMWK has commissioned Koelnmesse GmbH with the organisation and operation of the German Pavilion. Cologne has been in charge of the preparations since 2022. The ExpoTeam of the Cologne trade fair company will be your host on site in 2025 together with the BMWK.
The concept, planning and realisation of the German Pavilion are the responsibility of the "Arbeitsgemeinschaft Deutscher Pavillon Expo 2025 Osaka", consisting of the two companies facts and fiction GmbH (Cologne) and GL events (Lyon and Japan).
facts and fiction is responsible for the content concept as well as the exhibition and media design, while GL events is responsible for the structural realisation. The architecture and spatial concept were developed by LAVA - Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (Berlin).