Content & creative / PR & communications / Website design and development for Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

World Expo 2025 Osaka

Repositioning Australia on the world stage through culture, credibility and connection

THE CHALLENGE

World Expos are among the most competitive communications environments on earth. Over six months, more than 150 nations compete for attention, influence and relevance.

For World Expo 2025 Osaka, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) engaged ICON, in partnership with Japanese PR firm Sunny Side Up, to lead the integrated communications and public relations strategy for Australia’s participation.

Australia needed to stand out in a saturated, high-noise global environment. Key challenges included:

Competing against 150+ nations for attention over a six-month period
Shifting entrenched perceptions without rejecting Australia’s existing brand equity
Communicating complex themes (such as innovation, sustainability, and First Nations leadership) in culturally resonant ways
Delivering coherence and momentum across an extended campaign lifecycle.

Success would be judged not just by awareness, but by engagement, advocacy and attitudinal change.

WHAT WE MADE

ICON and Sunny Side Up delivered a phased, modular communications strategy that converted curiosity into visitation, engagement and long-term value.

Phase 1: Pre-Expo

Audience research and cultural insight development
Messaging and narrative framework aligned to DFAT policy priorities
Media briefings, storytelling seeding and anticipation-building.

Phase 2: During Expo

Intensive media relations in one of the world’s most competitive PR landscapes
Real-time content capture and bilingual storytelling
Leveraging pavilion milestones, cultural performances, VIP visits and unexpected moments to dominate earned media.

Phase 3: Post-Expo

Partner case studies and trade storytelling
Post-Expo sentiment research to quantify impact
Legacy content to extend value beyond the event.

This approach allowed ICON to maintain strategic consistency, while adapting stories for different audiences, channels and moments.

Execution spanned six months, multiple languages and dozens of partners.

ICON led strategic storytelling and international media engagement, while Sunny Side Up delivered Japanese media relations, translation and onsite support. DFAT provided diplomatic leadership, policy alignment and access to high-level networks.

Key execution highlights included:

A bilingual content ecosystem across earned, owned and shared channels
Print and broadcast storytelling to build trust and authority in Japan
Social-first content, including mascot performances, to drive visitation and cultural affinity
First Nations artists, female leaders and innovators featured prominently in Japanese media
A real-time, integrated PR calendar to capture every opportunity as it emerged.

The pavilion became both a destination and a content engine, anchoring Australia’s story in lived experience rather than abstract messaging.

WHY IT MATTERED

Awareness and reach

3 million pavilion visitors, almost double Expo 2020 Dubai
6,000+ earned media articles, more than triple Dubai
30.8 billion total PR reach, an eightfold increase on Dubai.

Engagement and advocacy

99% positive sentiment in Japanese media coverage
Social engagement rates tripled compared with Dubai
Social followers increased by 80%
Over 5 million video views, generating 4.8 million impressions.

Cultural and experiential impact

900+ cultural performances
1,000 mascot appearances
1 million+ food and beverage items served, embedding Australia’s identity through taste, culture and experience.

Long-term value

Post-Expo research confirmed significant perception shifts among Japanese audiences:
- Australians seen as accepting and tolerant: +17.8%
- Australia seen as a diverse society: +16.4%
- Australians seen as creative: +14.3%
- Respect for Indigenous peoples and culture: +13.9%.
Together, these results repositioned Australia as impossible to ignore – not just as a destination, but as a trusted, progressive partner in the region.