![Expo17 Logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/Expo17_Logo.jpg)
Expo 17 was a Canadian non-profit organization founded in 2005 to promote an
international exposition
A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...
, or world's fair, to celebrate the
sesquicentennial of Canada
The 150th anniversary of Canada, also known as the 150th anniversary of Confederation and promoted by the Canadian government as Canada 150, occurred in 2017 as Canada marked the sesquicentennial of Canadian Confederation.
Planning
Major pl ...
in 2017. In 2007, the organization publicly unveiled a 51-page proposal, i
Frenchan
Englishfor a "hybrid" expo, named Expo 17, to be staged on the southwest shore and the two islands originally created for
Expo 67
The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...
, in the city of
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...
, Quebec. In an unofficial capacity, the historic section of
Old Montreal
Old Montreal (French: ''Vieux-Montréal'') is a historic neighbourhood within the municipality of Montreal in the province of Quebec, Canada. Home to the Old Port of Montreal, the neighbourhood is bordered on the west by McGill Street, on th ...
was also included in the expo plan—as an entirely car-free "buffer" zone.
Proposal
The original "Expo 17" proposal attempted to analyze and address flagging interest and attendance experienced by the most recent world's fairs. Citing an expo's theme—or purpose—and its ability to portray, as well as resolve, modern humanity's most pressing concerns as paramount to success, the proposal recommended sweeping social and environmental initiatives. It also suggested the implementation of city- and province-wide energy efficiency programs to reduce the unusually high consumption of electricity in Quebec, thereafter selling the resulting surplus to help finance the exposition. Other financing suggestions included overhauling Montreal's taxation system to allow for the creation of positive financial incentives for citizens who strive to save energy, and increased costs for those who do not.
Perhaps most novel was the suggestion of a "hybrid" world's fair composed of a BIE-sanctioned "recognized" exposition, a horticultural exposition, and a housing ("Habitat 2017") exposition. This was apparently due to the fact that in 2017, only a very small "recognized" expo would be permitted by the
Bureau of International Expositions
The Bureau international des expositions (BIE; English: International Bureau of Expositions) is an intergovernmental organization created to supervise international exhibitions (also known as expos or world expos) falling under the jurisdiction ...
(BIE)—the Paris-based body which governs world's fairs. By holding three smaller expos simultaneously, a city could ostensibly stage a relatively sizeable exposition with a greater degree of flexibility, yet less cost (apparently), than a single larger ("universal") expo such as
Expo 67
The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...
. The proposal also states that the housing and horticultural aspects would be jointly financed through public-private partnerships. Lastly, the proposed housing expo, "Habitat 2017", in order to address the disappearance of young families from increasingly unaffordable urban centres (the "demographic time bomb"), borrows heavily from the original "
Habitat 67
HABITAT 67, or simply Habitat, is a housing complex at Cité du Havre, on the Saint Lawrence River, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, designed by Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie. It originated in his master's thesis at the School of Architectu ...
" urban residential concept introduced by architect
Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie ( he, משה ספדיה; born July 14, 1938) is an architect, urban planner, educator, theorist, and author, with Israeli, Canadian, and American citizenship. He is known for incorporating principles of socially responsible des ...
for Expo 67.
Following the
World Urban Forum 3 in Vancouver in 2006,
special addendumwhich further addressed social initiatives was added to the proposal, but not publicly unveiled.
Reactions
On April 28, 2007—the 40th anniversary of the opening of Expo 67, copies of the proposal were delivered to the office of
Gérald Tremblay
Gérald Tremblay (born September 20, 1942) is a former Canadian politician and businessman who served as mayor of Montreal from 2002 until his resignation in 2012. He also served as president of the Montreal Metropolitan Community. Before b ...
, mayor of Montreal. Soon thereafter, the proposal and the "Expo 17" web site were publicly unveiled. Though public reaction was generally positive, including outside of Quebec, the mayor's office rejected the idea, citing concern for basic infrastructure and Montreal's potholed streets as more pressing priorities. Expo 17 executive director Richard Barham publicly admitted that an official endorsement was not expected, and that the organization's goal would be to concentrate on grass-roots support before getting the mayor more directly involved. In the spring of 2009, however, the
Department of Canadian Heritage
The Department of Canadian Heritage, or simply Canadian Heritage (french: Patrimoine canadien), is the department of the Government of Canada that has roles and responsibilities related to initiatives that promote and support "Canadian identity ...
, through the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, requested a "letter of intent" from all cities within Canada interested in staging an expo in 2017. Cities had approximately six weeks to reply. Thereafter, in November the same year, interested cities would be required to submit a full bid proposal. Only
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
and
Calgary (Alberta) replied in the affirmative. Montreal, despite last-minute talks with the Expo 17 organization, declined. Calgary, after a brief period, also withdrew its bid, making Edmonton the only city in Canada allowed to submit an expo bid to the BIE in Paris.
Aftermath
Soon before the
2011 federal election, Ottawa's support for Edmonton's expo bid was withdrawn, despite official backing from the province. Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel accused Stephen Harper's conservative party of taking Alberta's traditionally conservative vote for granted, calling the decision "frankly wrong and extremely short-sighted." Mandel also claimed Ottawa had encouraged the bid, yet did not give the city a chance to change it before cancelling support.
Expo 17 regrouped in 2009 to concentrate on alternative projects for Canada's sesquicentennial.
References
{{reflist
* http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/edmonton-s-expo-2017-bid-a-no-go-1.918046
* http://www.ctvnews.ca/feds-won-t-back-edmonton-s-bid-to-host-expo-2017-1.578098
External links
Expo 17 official website English variantEdmonton Expo 2017 official website
See also
*
Edmonton Expo 2017
*
Expo 2017
Expo 2017 Astana was an International Exposition which took place from June 10 to September 10, 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan. The expo's theme was "Future Energy", and aimed to create a global debate between countries, nongovernmental organizati ...
World's fairs in Canada
Proposed buildings and structures in Canada
Economy of Montreal
150th anniversary of Canada