Expo Zaragoza 2008 :: Citizen's Initiative Pavilion

This pavilion, in the shape of beacon, will represent a symbol of hope for the future of Water in our world. It will house citizens' proposals and a display of the positive experiences of the general public. This Citizens' Initiative Pavilion will express the rich vitality and capacity for innovation of ordinary people, when it comes to the theme of Water and Sustainable Development.

Following a tradition started by the NGO Global Village Pavilion at Expo 2005 in Aichi, Japan, the Citizen’s Initiative Pavilion will be of equal importance to the Participant Pavilions at Expo 2008 in Zaragoza. In this people-centred pavilion, there will be room not only for non-governmental organizations (NGO’s), but also for all kinds of popular organisations, of all types and sizes, undertaking all kinds of different activities. They will all have a space of their own to display good, innovative, practices, making use of new technologies, focused on social change or examples of sustainable lifestyles, all under the umbrella theme of Water and Sustainable Development.

Beacon, the Citizen’s Initiative Pavilion will be situated in a key spot, just by the Bridge Pavilion entrance, that has its own excellent exhibition, entitled “WATER, A UNIQUE RESOURCE”. With an approximate surface area of between 1,600 and 1,800 square metres, the pavilion will be an attractive and functional building, designed to be as efficient as possible in its use of energy and sustainability, promoting technologies and materials that respect the environment.

A special committee called the Ecology and Development Foundation (ECODES) was set up in September 2006 with the aim of coordinating this area, open to initiatives from the general public. It boasts such prestigious and important organisations in this area as World Wildlife Fund/Adena, Intermon Oxfam, the Red Cross and the New Water Culture Foundation.

This body is working intensively to ensure the success of this initiative, contacting NGOs from all over the world, as well as receiving proposals online from entities interested in participating . Already, around 150 NGO’s and entities have responded, with real interest in being present at this major global opportunity to contribute to changing our attitude to water management and the environment in general.

For more information about the Beacon, the Expo Zaragoza 2008 Citizen’s Initiative Pavilion, www.faro2008.org.