The Commissioner General for Italy at
Expo 2025 Osaka, Mario Vattani, went to Wakayama for an
institutional meeting with the Governor of the Prefecture Shūhei
Kishimoto on the occasion of the recording of a Radio Wakayama
special on the Italy Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka that will be
broadcast in the coming days. Ambassador Vattani's visit to
Wakayama, a prefecture rich in historical and cultural sites,
received great attention from the local press and saw the
presence of numerous journalists and television news outlets. It
was an enthusiasm that confirms the growing attention for Italy
in view of Expo 2025.
During the interview on Radio Wakayama, Vattani illustrated the
characteristics of the Italy Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka,
highlighting the importance of involving young university
students, protagonists with innovative projects that intertwine
local products, agriculture and rural communities. During the
episode, a reflection emerged on how to promote local products
and territories in a touristic key, also addressing the
challenge of overtourism with the creation of thematic
itineraries such as the "Wine Roads," routes that combine food
and wine traditions and culture; the offer of immersive
experiences, from tastings to artisan workshops; and the
adoption of sustainable models such as 'widespread tourism',
which enhances villages and actively involves local communities
and the promotion of packages to encourage tourism in the low
season. Finally, the importance of strategies to guide visitors
towards lesser-known areas was highlighted, diversifying tourist
destinations also thanks to the telling of authentic stories
through social media and influencers specialized in sustainable
tourism.
Subsequently, in the meeting with Governor Kishimoto, Vattani
highlighted the value of Universal Expositions as a development
engine for territories, citing the positive experience of Expo
Milano. He underlined how the exhibition route of the Italy
Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka is designed to enhance the Regions,
which will be presented in rotation week after week. The
Commissioner General also anticipated that a detailed calendar
of the participating Italian regions is being prepared,
accompanied by references to their most representative
universities, companies and production sectors. This material
will be shared with the interested Japanese prefectures,
stimulating collaborations and synergies, with a particular
focus on the Kansai area. Among the initiatives discussed to
strengthen relations between Italy and Japan are the mutual
promotion of local products, through joint initiatives in the
Italy Pavilion and in the space dedicated to Kansai, which also
hosts Wakayama; the involvement of businesses and universities,
with moments of meeting to promote exchanges of knowledge and
good practices between Italian and Japanese companies; regional
thematic events, such as tastings, exhibitions and
demonstrations, to promote the excellence of the Italian and
Japanese territories. Vattani then underlined the importance of
collaborations between Italian Regions and Japanese Prefectures,
presenting the proposal to bring to Wakayama the musical events
scheduled at the Italy Pavilion during the six months of Expo,
expressing interest in using the spaces of the Wakayama Castle
Hall, which include two modern rooms, ideal for concerts and
shows.
Governor Kishimoto underlined how Ambassador Vattani's visit was
an important opportunity to strengthen the ties between the
Prefecture of Wakayama and Italy. During the meeting, the
Governor proposed using Expo as a platform to invite students
from Wakayama's primary and secondary schools to visit the Italy
Pavilion, with the aim of broadening their horizons and
encouraging cultural and international dialogue. Innovative
ideas were also discussed, such as collaborations between
Wakayama's traditional umeshu - a traditional Japanese
plum-based liquor - and Italian wines and cuisine, as well as
educational and cultural exchange projects related to Mount
Koya. The Governor said he was certain that Expo 2025 will be an
extraordinary opportunity to develop new forms of cooperation
and friendship between the Wakayama region and Italy.
"I would like to thank the Governor of Wakayama Prefecture
Shūhei Kishimoto for his warm welcome. Wakayama is an important
historical and cultural center of Japan, characteristics that
are also typical of many of our territories and which are one of
the levers for creating a strong synergy between Italy and
Japan. This visit takes place at a particularly important time:
thanks to the support of the director of Rcast - Research Centre
for Advanced Science and Technology, Professor Sugiyama
Masakazu, we are very proud to announce that we will bring a
special session of the Koyasan-Kaigi to the Italy Pavilion,"
said Vattani. "The event will develop as a thematic discussion
followed by artistic interventions and aims to preserve the
legacy of Expo for the younger generations. Identifying a
"legacy" for young people, the society of the future, starting
from the experiences of Expo 2025 Osaka at the Italy Pavilion,
seems necessary and important to us and the prestigious forum of
Koyasan-Kaigi is the ideal environment to develop this project".
Koya-san, the sacred mountain home to the Buddhist and esoteric
Shingon sect founded by the Buddhist monk Kukai, is one of the
sacred places in Japan. Koyasan Kaigi is the cultural forum that
brings together the most important personalities in the world of
Japanese culture. Inspired by the teachings of Kukai, it
promotes new cultural models based on the integration of art and
science. The special edition scheduled for the Italy Pavilion
next autumn will develop as a dialogue between ancient
philosophies that look to the future and will offer the
opportunity to reflect on the results of Expo 2025 and lay the
foundations for developments beyond the Universal Exhibition.
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