New Zealand reveals full pavilion experience at Expo 2020 - a showcase of ground-breaking new technology fused with
indigenous culture and storytelling
United Arab Emirates, Dubai: 30 September 2021: This morning, Emirati Officials and Māori Leaders met at dawn for a special dedication ceremony for Aotearoa New
Zealand’s pavilion ahead of the opening of Expo 2020 on 1 October. For the duration of Expo, Aotearoa New Zealand will
invite guests to its immersive pavilion visitor experience to deepen their understanding of the country and the
innovation and care for people and place exemplified through the Māori ethos of kaitiakitanga, an innate connection with
the natural environment. Visitors will also gain an insight into a society that is inclusive and multicultural.
To honour the United Arab Emirates’ role as host of Expo 2020 Dubai, Whanganui iwi tribal elders and the New Zealand
delegation invited Qasr Al Hosn, an Emirati cultural group to join the dawn dedication ceremony, which began shortly
after Fajr prayer. The ceremony began with Emirati Al Ayyala, followed by the Tāngaengae ritual performed by members of
Whanganui iwi.
In Māori culture, everything has ‘mauri’ or life principle. The Tāngaengae ritual recounts the connection of humankind
with the natural world and was accompanied by the beat of poi (woven balls on strings), intertwined with specific
rituals to give rise to the mauri of the pavilion.
“The mauri roused by the Tāngaengae will inspirit visitors to the Aotearoa New Zealand pavilion with the same sense of
connection to nature as we have” said Whanganui tribal leader Gerrard Albert. “Our sentinel tribal proverb is Ko au te Awa, ko te Awa ko au - I am the River, the River is me. This proverb represents an innate connection with the natural world that we know all people share.”
Aotearoa New Zealand pavilion experience revealed.
A showcase of creativity and innovation, the Aotearoa New Zealand pavilion experience combines sound, vision and other
sensory inputs to bring to life its “Care for People and Place” theme. Guided by the indigenous environmental ethos of
kaitiakitanga, the understanding that humans and the natural world are inextricably connected, visitors will be
challenged to rethink their own relationship with the natural world as they journey through the pavilion.
Powerfully evocative, its story is inspired by the world-first legal status accorded to the Whanganui River, one of the
nation’s most precious natural resources and the first river in the world to gain legal personhood. Under Te Awa Tupua
(Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Act 2017, the river is recognised as a living and indivisible whole, to better
provide for the river’s health and wellbeing. Each pavilion space, designed in partnership with Whanganui iwi, aims to
make visitors consider their own relationship with the environment and to feel and connect with this ethos so they may
leave the world in a better place for future generations.
“The New Zealand Pavilion is an immersive experience that contains a ground-breaking combination of new technology fused
with indigenous culture and storytelling. The people of Whanganui have generously allowed us to share their story on
behalf of Aotearoa New Zealand. We look forward to sharing this universal story, about the need for us to protect and
care for people and place for future generations with visitors to Expo 2020 Dubai. We believe visitors will leave
inspired to find out more about how we can innovate together to solve global challenges” said Clayton Kimpton, New Zealand’s Commissioner-General to Expo 2020 Dubai.
Located in the Sustainability District, the New Zealand pavilion’s innovative architectural design demonstrates the
connection between people and the environment. Its façade moves in time with a low-frequency sound to create a rippling
pulse effect. This is a reference to the mauri, or life-force within the pavilion.
“Mauri is the life principle of the universal order, and we are part of that universal order along with all natural
elements. In entering the pavilion, it is as if you are entering your ancestor, entering back into yourself to
understand that connection to the mauri we share with nature” said Whanganui tribal leader Gerrard Albert.
Visitors will be led into a space with textured walls made from sustainable strong-wool supplied by T Interior Systems. The three-dimensional sound absorbing panels are 100 percent biodegradable and renewable. In this
space, visitors will be able to take a moment to reset from the heat, noise, and bustle outside of the pavilion and
enjoy the cool air and muted sounds before continuing into the pavilion.
Visitors then move into a digitally interactive zone where they will see their own shape displace the digital
projections of nature and its pulsing energy – a representation of how we affect, impact, or interrupt the course of
nature and its wellbeing. At the end of the long room, visitors will see themselves reflected in a glass wall where the
words ‘I AM’ in English and Arabic float before them, interspersed in te reo Māori: 'KO AU' giving guests an open
invitation to feel and be part of something bigger.
That something bigger unfolds in the next space, a room with water falling from a height of nine metres on either side
of the visitor, as a representation of the Whanganui River, Te Awa Tupua. Here, visitors will learn about the Whanganui
River legislation and how an indigenous value set has been shared by Whanganui iwi and imbodied in law. Visitors are
invited to consider more broadly their own relationship with the environment – the idea that humanity’s wellbeing is
innately connected with nature’s wellbeing.
Located at the heart of the room is a toka (boulder) brought to Dubai from Mount Tongariro, the source of the Whanganui
River. The mauri is centred here and is the point from which the pavilion’s pulse emanates.
The next space in the visitor journey is the Presentation Room, a six-minute state-of-the-art audio-visual experience
that transports visitors as they become part of the multidimensional storytelling of how New Zealand innovates to Care
for People and Place. The film begins with a narrator, a young leader from Whanganui iwi named Ngaroma, diving into the
Whanganui River, declaring “I am the River, the River is me.” Visually, the River then flows out to the sea and a
majestic life-size Humpback Whale greets guests, the film opening a symbol of the interconnectedness of people, land,
rivers, and the sea. Ngaroma then takes visitors on a journey of sector-led stories about New Zealand’s integrity,
ingenuity, care, and creativity, including its space and satellite launching programme, regenerative farming practices,
and some of the nation’s breakthrough healthcare technologies. Ngaroma intersperses the journey with a an immersive
360-degree shot of the River, and a narrative on the efforts of her tribe to have the true essence of her River
acknowledged, allowing her to begin to heal. This honest and powerful subtext ultimately has Ngaroma joining in
confidence and strength with her tribe in an invitation for all peoples to share in a deeper relationship with nature,
and with one another.
“The approach to storytelling and design within the visitor experience of the New Zealand pavilion has been all about
representing who we are intrinsically; it is about speaking and representing our story with authenticity rather than
talking at culture,” says the pavilion’s Creative Director, Karl Johnstone of Haumi. “We hope that sharing our worldview in this way, will enable people from all around the world to engage, understand and
draw inspiration from what is essentially, a universal narrative.”
Az James, one of the Directors of Workshop e, a New Zealand-based exhibition and experience design and production team, and one of the creative forces behind the
pavilion’s visitor experience commented: “It has been an honour to be part of New Zealand’s Expo 2020 journey. The pavilion truly showcases our nation’s spirit
of innovation and technical production through the individuals and companies that collaborated to deliver this unique
experience. We hope visitors will enjoy and appreciate a taste of Aotearoa New Zealand and the significant story that is
told through the pavilion.”
Visitors can also enjoy some of New Zealand’s finest produce at the licenced pavilion restaurant Tiaki, which showcases
the nation’s special connection with both land and sea, and the warm and generous hospitality for which it is known.
For more information about the New Zealand Pavilion and events at Expo 2020 Dubai visit www.nzatexpo.govt.nz
ABOUT NEW ZEALAND AT EXPO 2020NewZealand’s theme for Expo 2020 is Care for People and Place, which is based on the indigenous environmental ethos
ofkaitiakitanga, the connection and responsibility between people and the natural environment.The theme was inspired by the world-first status given to the Whanganui River by legislation thatrecognisedit as a
living entity.TeAwa Tupua is a legal person and has all the rights, powers, duties and liabilities of a legal person.
The story is a universal narrative that represents a paradigm shift from overlooking to valuing our relationship with
nature.New Zealand architects Jasmax led the global multi-disciplinary design consortium, designed the pavilion and visitor
experience concept.Haumi, in partnership with Jasmax, led the cultural design aspects of the building. Development and
delivery of the visitor experience is through the collaboration of Haumi, Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi and Workshop e. The
pavilion’s kinetic façade is designed byKaynemaile.The 2,000 squaremetrepavilion features a visitor experience, a restaurant showcasing New Zealand food and beverage and
hosting facilities and is in Expo 2020’s Sustainability District.Creative Parris Goebel will curate New Zealand’s entertainment and culturalprogrammefor Expo 2020. Parris is a five-time
World Hip Hop dance champion. Her talents span choreography, dance, music, directing and acting.Sponsors of New Zealand at Expo 2020 are known as the Care Collective: Fonterra, Comvita,Kaynemaile,
Zespri,MrApple,Shadowspec,Abodo, Air New Zealand, Caroma,Città, Craggy Range, David Trubridge, Gallagher, MEO, Method,
Methven, Moffat,noho, Raw Coffee, Resident, Rodd & Gunn, Scion, Sistema,Skope, T Interior Systems, Tait Communications, Tim Webber Design andToitūEnvirocare.ABOUT EXPO 2020 DUBAIExpo 2020 Dubai is the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa or South Asia region. 191 nations will
participate in Expo 2020 with country pavilions that will showcase achievements, creativity, and innovations.Connecting Minds, Creating the Future is the overall theme for Expo 2020, with three thematic districts: Mobility,
Opportunity, and Sustainability.Expo 2020 was postponed, due to Covid-19, and will now run from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022.