Expo Milano 2015

"Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life" is the theme of  Expo Milano 2015. Why this choice? About 870 million people are undernourished, about 1.3 billion tons of foods are wasted every year.
The site of Expo Milano comprises an area of 1.1 million square metres, an exposition garden with more than 12.000 trees, a canal and two wide avenues with the pavillions of the participating countries. There are also four thematic areas and nine Clusters (for countries that do not have their own pavillions) which bring together countries that have a relationship with a specific food (e.g. rice, coffee) (via). 145 countries and three international organisations (United Nations, European Union, Caribbean Community) are the offiicial participants. In addition, civil society organisations and representatives of the corporate world participate (via). In case you are interested, there are a great many live shows so it could be a good idea to check the schedule before going to Milan.



"When talking about hunger, the only acceptable number is zero."
United Nations

The theme for the United Nations' participation in Expo Milano is "The Zero Hunger Challenge. United for a Sustainable World". In 2012, the UN launched the "Zero Hunger Challenge" aiming to create a world free from hunger (via).



"In many countires (sic), women represent the backbone of the agricultural sector and food systems and make up the bulk of the work force in the primary sector. Women also play a key role in guaranteeing food security for the whole family: when women suffer from hunger and malnutrition, so do their children. Over 19 million children are born underweight each year. This is often a consequence of their mothers’ inadequate nutrition before and during pregnancy. Despite this, around 60 per cent of those who suffer from chronic hunger are women. This is due to the fact that women often do not have equal access to resources, education and income generation along with having a minor role in decision-making." (literally via UN Expo Milano 2015)



"Despite the fact that women play a key role in agriculture, livestock and fishery activities worldwide, many of them have unequal access to land, financial services, education, training, extension services, markets, decision making processes and technology. Promoting women’s empowerment and gender equality is crucial to winning the Zero Hunger Challenge: if women were to have the same access to productive resources and investment and income opportunities as men, productivity and family income would increase significantly and nutrition and health would improve at the household level. Evidence also shows that increasing women’s access to education and improving their overall welfare can have a major impact on their own nutrition status and that of their children." (literally via UN Expo Milano 2015)



photographs by Gianni Berengo Gardin via and via and via and via