Tuesday, May 2, 2006

  Spirit of Vancouver

 SOLD OUT

Speaker:

The Hon. William R. Bennett, P.C., O.C., Former Premier, Province of British Columbia
The Hon. Gordon Campbell, Premier, Province of British Columbia

Topic:

Something's Happening Here... Again!
What can we learn from Expo 86?

It's been 20 years, but it seems like yesterday!

Expo 86 was more than just a milestone event celebrating Vancouver's 100^th birthday. Our world's fair on transportation and communications was a turning point for the entire province and a giant leap forward on the world stage. Expo 86 showed that British Columbians could do anything — absolutely anything — we set our mind to.

Now, 20 years later, we're counting down once again as we prepare to invite the world back to see us in 2010.  So what can we learn from Expo 86? How do we ensure that 2010 is a launch and not a landing pad for Vancouver and British Columbia?

Join Premier Gordon Campbell as he introduces our very special guest, former Premier Bill Bennett, who will highlight the legacies and lessons that came with Expo 86.  Then, a special panel of Expo 86 presenters will provide practical insights into the lessons we can learn from Expo 86 as British Columbia prepares to welcome the world... again!

Among the panelists are Deputy Minister, Intergovernmental Relations Secretariat, Office of the Premier, Virginia Greene, who was Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for tourism marketing during Expo 86; John Thomson, who ran the high-profile "B.C. Invites the World" program, which sent out 1.5 million personalized invitations from British Columbians to people around the world; and John Williams, who was one of Vancouver's best-known hoteliers and who is now Executive Vice President of Operations for Fairmont Hotels and Resorts.

Expo 86 ran between May 2 and October 13, 1986. The fair's original projection of 13.7 million visits was well below the final count of more than 22 million visits.

Some Expo 86 fast facts:

• The most popular ride at Expo 86 was the Scream Machine, with 15,000 riders per day
• There were 96 Expo 86 community committees across the province
• 62,000 people applied to work at the fair
• There were 43,000 entertainment performances during the fair
• Expo 86 featured the longest-running street entertainment program in the world
• 6.5 million people saw shows such as the RCMP Musical Ride at the Kodak Pacific Bowl
• A visit by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir required eight hotels
• 80,000 people were treated by some 200 first aid attendants; most common injuries were cuts and scrapes
• 4.2 million hot dogs were eaten at Expo 86
• 250,000 pounds of coffee were brewed
• Every day the NWT restaurant, Icicles, served 400 Muskox burgers
• The Unicorn Pub served 6,500 pints per day
• 32,000 items were reported lost or found
• Of the 4,721 lost or found persons on the fair site, 75 per cent were male
• Canada Customs processed 2.9 million more travelers during the fair months than during the same period in 1985, a 60 per cent increase at the time
  

Event#

070113

Date:

Tuesday, May 2, 2006

Time:

Registration: 11:45 a.m.
Lunch & Program: 12:15 to 2 p.m.

Location:

Renaissance Vancouver Hotel Harbourside - Ballroom
1133 West Hastings Street

Sponsors:

Canaccord Capital Corporation

Concord Pacific

The Vancouver Sun

The Province

Global BC

Focus Audio Visual Services Ltd.

Tickets:

We are unable to offer online registration for this event. Please call our Reservations Line at 604-641-1248 for more information.

Return to main events page