The UAE Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai is a testament to global collaboration, uniting Emirati, Japanese, and international expertise in a collective design process that fuses tradition with innovation. Drawing inspiration from the iconic date palm, the UAE pavilion reinterprets Areesh – traditional Emirati vernacular architecture – by integrating agricultural date palm waste with masterful Japanese woodworking expertise. The pavilion’s signature feature is a striking forest of 90 rachis columns, soaring up to 16 meters. Inside, visitors embark on a multi-sensory journey that celebrates the UAE’s explorers of space, catalysts of healthcare, and stewards of sustainability through immersive multimedia, art installations, and thoughtful interior design.
The Earth to Ether Collective
The Pavilion was designed by the Earth to Ether Collective, an interdisciplinary group of collaborators working at the intersection of architecture, engineering, technology, wood craftsmanship, and design. Spearheaded by the UAE Expo Office’s team of artists, poets, and architects, the Earth to Ether Collective brought together a diverse network of creative partners. The UAE Pavilion, titled Earth to Ether, offers an immersive multisensory journey through the UAE story, from our values and cultural heritage to our pioneering innovations.
Key partners included Rimond – a Milan-based integrated design and construction firm that served as the main contractor, collaborating with Japanese subcontractors to bring the project from schematic design to completion; Process Iguchi – renowned Japanese woodworking experts who co-developed an innovative supply chain with MENA region farmers to source date palm waste, and who designed bespoke interior interventions using this sustainable material; and Shelter – a leading Japanese wood and timber technology specialist responsible for fabricating the pavilion’s 90 signature columns.
Other collaborators also include Atelier Brückner – a German experience design consultancy that crafted the immersive, multi-sensory guest experience; R/O/U/Y/A – a UAE-based strategic storytelling consultancy that developed the pavilion’s authentic, interwoven narrative across its design and guest experience; and SLA – a world-renowned nature-based design studio from Denmark and Norway that conceptualized and designed the pavilion’s landscape.
Material Exploration
Innovative material exploration lies at the heart of the pavilion’s 90 signature rachis columns. To source agricultural date palm waste materials for these columns, the Collective co-developed an innovative supply chain in partnership with farmers from across the UAE and MENA region – placing people and nature at the heart of the design process. In addition, the entrance features pavers made from Datecrete – a sustainable alternative to cement crafted from crushed date seeds by UAE material innovators.
Key thematic pillars
The UAE Pavilion is a story of deep humanity and remarkable transformation – rooted in strong values. When the UAE’s founding father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and his fellow rulers brought together seven emirates, they did so with the knowledge that strength lies in unity. From its early beginnings, the UAE overcame critical challenges in healthcare, education and development. Together, its leaders and people have built a thriving nation in just over 50 years.
The UAE’s history of perseverance has shapes its identity – resilient, welcoming, and ambitious – and its vision for a future where all life thrives on our planet and beyond. Today, the UAE is an ambitious young nation – home to more than 200 nationalities – at a new inflection point in its journey. Looking ahead to the next 50 years guided by visionary leadership, the people and innovators of the UAE – known as Dreamers Who Do – are working to shape a future where all life thrives in partnership with the world. The UAE Pavilion tells the story of these Dreamers around three primary pillars.
Explorers of Space: Explorers, innovators and collaborators who are redefining the boundaries of what is possible to elevate the quality of all life on Earth and beyond. Visitors are invited to learn how the UAE is advancing through innovation, education and international partnership. Catalysts of Healthcare: through global partnerships, innovation, and interdisciplinary research, the UAE is prioritizing the wellbeing of communities locally, regionally, and globally. Stewards of Sustainability: rooted in the practices of its ancestors, the UAE is building a climate-resilient future through innovation, collaboration, and global facilitation of sustainable progress.
Landscape Design as Cross Cultural Dialogue
The pavilion’s landscape is a living dialogue between cultures. Japanese satoyama woodlands are represented by oak and red pine trees that frame the front landscape, evoking the harmonious coexistence of nature and people. Guests can enjoy the shade of a pergola made from Japanese cedar, paired with a canopy featuring Emirati khoos patterns, a traditional form of palm-frond weaving. Moreover, the pavilion’s outdoor furniture artfully combines recycled agricultural date palm waste and Dateform, a pioneering date seed-based material from the UAE.
Legacy
This project builds on a legacy of global collaboration, from Expo ’70 to Expo 2020 Dubai. Today, as the UAE Pavilion returns to Osaka, its design continues to push the boundaries of what is possible by drawing on heritage to drive innovation through material experimentation and global collaboration. The pavilion reaffirms the enduring partnership between the UAE and Japan, and is an expression of heritage, sustainable practices, and the transformative power of global collaboration.
