Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai

Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan took place between 13 April and 13 October 2025 with the theme "Designing Future Society for Our Lives". Over its 184 days, it welcomed more than 29 million visitors from around the world. As the first post-Covid-19 Expo, Expo 2025 provided the world with an opportunity to come together in one physical place to explore the theme of “life” with all five senses.

It connected people with diverse values from across the globe, sparked new conversations and interactions, and showcased the latest technologies, resulting in new human networks and creative endeavours. Expo 2025 shared hope for a brighter and sustainable future with the world by addressing current global crises, saving and empowering lives, and reflecting on life and various lifestyles.

Eight Theme Weeks were held during the Expo period during which 429 programmes were held, accelerating the creation of solutions to global-scale issues through dialogue. A total of 158 countries and territories and 7 international organisations participated in this Expo, which was the most extensive international representation ever seen at an Expo in Japan.

Designing Future Society for Our Lives

The theme, "Designing Future Society for Our Lives", encouraged individuals to think about how they want to live and how they can maximise their potential. This theme also aimed to drive co-creation by the international community in designing a sustainable society that supports individuals’ ideas of how they want to live.

In other words, the Expo asked a straightforward question: “What is a happy life?” at a time when new social challenges, including growing wealth inequality and heightened conflicts, are emerging, and new technologies are evolving, such as AI and biotechnology, which stand to change humankind by extending life spans, etc.

Saving Lives, Empowering Lives, and Connecting Lives were the three subthemes of the Expo. Japanese culture has long been based on the belief that any material, from all living creatures to even a pebble along the road, has an inherent life force. With this in mind, the Expo welcomed the consideration of "life" not just for human beings, but also in a broader sense of the diverse creatures and nature that surround us.

Saving Lives focused on protecting lives. This subtheme was associated with, for example, countermeasures against infectious diseases through improvements in public health, ensuring safety through disaster readiness and disaster risk reduction initiatives, and harmonious coexistence with nature.

Empowering Lives focused on enriching the lives of individuals and expanding their potential. Related topics included, for example, high-quality remote education using ICT, the extension of a healthy life span through appropriate exercise and diet, and the maximisation of human potential through the use of AI and robotics.

Connecting Lives focused on engaging people, building communities and enriching society. This subtheme related to subjects including the power of partnership and co-creation, advanced communications enabled by ICT, and the design of a data-driven society.

The concept of Expo 2025 was People's Living Lab. This concept represented the Expo’s approach toward putting its theme into practice and served as a guideline for the practical implementation of projects. The most distinctive characteristic of the Expo was the endeavour to give a realistic picture of a future society not just through thought, but also through action. This endeavour was launched before the Expo, by inviting diverse participants to come together with various initiatives to tackle challenges with solutions that help achieve the SDGs, both on and off the Expo site.

The Expo was held on Yumeshima Island, an artificial island located on the waterfront in Osaka, which offered visitors a view of the Seto Inland Sea. The Expo was connected to the world through the surrounding sea and sky, and various programmes took advantage of the site’s location.

With an area of 1.55 km2, the site had a pavilion area in its centre with water to the south and greenery in its western area.

Unity in diversity - The Expo site, as a place of union between diverse cultures and lifestyles, not only celebrated rich diversity but also brought visitors together across divisions. The iconic Grand Ring, which is recognised by the Guinness World Records as the world's largest wooden architectural structure, towered over the Expo site serving as its main symbol. It was designed to represent and advocate for diversity based on the principles of "decentralisation" and "dispersion", which have been embraced by the Organiser since its candidacy. This was paired with the concept of "connection" between diverse beings to enable visitors to experience Unity in Diversity and one world shared by countless unique lives.

One Sky - This was a symbol of connection between diverse beings. Everyone around the world looks up at the same sky. The One Sky connects us all and thus represents Unity in Diversity.

Expo of the sea, sky and earth - The site for the Expo was surrounded by the sea and included an enclosed part of the sea. This enclosed portion of sea mirrored a slice of the One Sky towards which visitors raised their eyes. On the ground, the site was dotted with diverse pavilions and various natural features in a decentralised, dispersed layout.

Clear line of flow and diverse areas arranged in a decentralised and dispersed manner - The main line of flow, through which all parts of the Expo site were accessible, was designed as a loop to provide both clear navigation and varied viewpoints. The site was dotted with plazas of various sizes and designs along the main line of flow, adding variation to the visitor experience. These plazas were used for various events filled with excitement.

To bring the theme of the Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai to life, eight Signature Pavilions were conceived as visionary spaces for visitors to contemplate and experience Future Society. Each Signature Pavilion was aligned with a different theme and had been created under the supervision of a renowned producer. Find out more about the Signature Pavilions.

Following the closing of Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai on 13 October 2025, the pavilions and facilities on the site have been largely disassembled, with many exhibits and components going on to have a second life. Across the Kansai region, throughout Japan and beyond, many of these items are now installed in new locations, some temporarily and others permanently. The “Legacy Map”, compiled by the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition, shows where they can be found.

The design of the official mascot of Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai, Myaku-Myaku, was inspired by the Expo logo combined with water – the symbol of Osaka. With no fixed form, Myaku–Myaku is fluid; its red parts are able to be split apart, and its watery body can change shape freely with endless variations.

Designed by mountain mountain/Yamashita Kohei, the mascot was selected following a call for proposals that received 1,898 design proposals. A total of 33,197 name suggestions were then submitted to the Expo Organiser. The chosen name - Myaku-Myaku – meaning something passed down from generation to generation – was announced on the occasion of the 1,000-day countdown to the opening of the Expo.