The ‘Ring of the Princess,’ as the interior of the Vila Franca do Campo islet in São Miguel is known, tops the ‘press pack’ that Portugal distributed yesterday about the world exhibition, which will be held from April 13 to October 13 this year in Osaka, Japan, and is entitled ‘Portugal at Expo 2025 – The Ocean in the Design of Future Societies for our Lives’.
160 countries will be represented at this exhibition, which is expected to attract 28 million visitors. The Azores, a more than thousand-square-kilometer sub-area of the Exclusive Economic Zone, will give Portugal a dimension.
Dedicated to promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Japan’s Society 5.0 strategy, Expo 2025 Osaka will take place on Yumeshima Island, an artificial island in Osaka Bay covering more than 155 hectares.
Focusing its participation on the ocean and its preservation, Portugal has proposed to the Osaka Expo organizers that they deepen Sustainable Development Goal 14 – Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources – as a primary objective; and Sustainable Development Goal 7 – Ensure access to reliable, sustainable and modern energy sources for all – as a secondary objective, guaranteeing its articulation with themes related to the blue economy.
With jurisdiction over 48 percent of the European Union’s marine waters and one of the largest exclusive economic zones in the world, with 1.7 million square kilometers, Portugal has increased responsibilities in matters related to ocean governance, including its conservation, knowledge, defense, and “exploitation.” The million square kilometers of the Azores sub-area give the Portuguese EEZ its great dimension.
At Expo 2025 Osaka, Portugal intends to “affirm its leadership in scientific and economic ocean research.” By establishing a direct link between the country’s history and that of science, knowledge, art, and culture, Portugal’s participation aims to “contribute to a deeper collective awareness of the importance of a healthy ocean.” With this participation, Portugal also intends to “boost professional exchange and specific know-how between organizations in clusters related to the blue economy, enhance the excellence of the Portuguese academic community and its relationship with companies, presenting scientific projects to promote cooperation and the exchange of knowledge between national and foreign entities.”

In Correio dos Açores-Natalino Vivieiros, director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.