Throughout the World Expo in Osaka, ULiège's research projects will be showcased through the theme of virtual digital twins and the demonstration of connected objects. A ULiège delegation will be on site, while several students and young graduates from the University of Liège have already been working for several months on an exceptional mission at the BelExpo Pavilion.
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ULiège is taking part in the ministerial mission to the Osaka World Expo, as part of the international Wallonia-Brussels week from May 25 to 30, 2025.
Pr DUYSINX, Vice-Rector for Mobility and International Affairs, Pr HAUBRUGE Advisor to the Rector for Innovation and Regional Relations, and Pr Thomas DESAIVE, have joined the mission. They will also be visiting partner universities in Nagoya, Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka.
In 2025, ULiège is collaborating with 29 partner institutions in Japan, including 20 framework agreements and/or mobility conventions for study stays and 9 research collaborations.
The theme chosen by Wallonia for presentation at Expo concerns research into virtual digital twins, a field of research covered at ULiège. ULiège and GIGA researchers are involved in this field, notably through the European EDITH program.
Thomas DESAIVE, engineer-physicist, associate professor at the Faculty of Science, researcher at GIGA and ULiège representative within EDITH, and his team are working on models to improve the management of intensive care patients, such as personalized glycemia control or prediction of responses to cardiovascular treatments. Liesbet GERIS, also an engineer, professor in the Aerospace and Mechanics Department of the Faculty of Applied Sciences and researcher at ULiège's GIGA, coordinates the EDITH project and is conducting research into the modeling of osteoarthritis and the development of personalized biomedical implants. The aim is to make digital twins a key tool for personalized and predictive medicine.
Find out more about digital twins in Le Quinzième Jour
ULiège's Smart Gastronomy Lab will be demonstrating connected objects (smart meal trays, connected glasses, eye tracking, etc.) designed to track the eating behavior of consumers in settings such as hospitals, nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
These themes are in line with the research fields in which the Belgian Pavilion will be showcasing advances: health and biotechnologies, but also green technologies, smart cities, sustainable mobility and water.
For several months, they will be welcoming visitors to the Belgian Pavilion and flying the flag for our country:
These six students and alumni from the Faculty of Philosophy and Arts will be welcoming and guiding visitors in English, but above all... in Japanese! An exceptional opportunity to practice these languages in an unprecedented context, and to represent Belgium on the international stage.
The World Expo returns to Osaka after its first edition in 1970. It takes place on the artificial island of Yumeshima, built specifically for the occasion.
This year's theme is: "Designing the society of the future, imagining our life of tomorrow", with the sub-themes of "Saving lives", "Inspiring lives" and "Connecting lives". At the end of this exhibition, Yumeshima Island is destined to become a hub of economic and technological development for the Kansai region.
Organized for the first time in London in 1851, the World's Fair aims to promote the exchange of knowledge and provide solutions to major contemporary challenges.
This five-yearly event aims to stimulate international cooperation and raise visitors' awareness of the need to co-create our future society. Candidate countries are free to submit the theme of their choice at the time of application. The next edition will take place in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) in 2030.
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