Sigrid
You’ve probably seen them by now: pianos standing in the middle of different squares in Berlin. People sit down, start playing, and somehow everyone just gathers around.

Coming from Latin America, I have to admit, I’m always a bit worried for their safety – in Mexico they might not even survive an hour – but here people enjoy and respect them. If you look closely, you’ll see they’re marked as part of “Berlin 2035.”

So the big question is: what is Berlin 2035? And for that, we have with us Henning Wehmeyer, managing director of Berlin 2035. Henning, thank you so much for being here.

Henning
Thank you very much for having me. My name is Henning Wehmeier and I’m the managing director of Expo Berlin 2035. I’ve been living, studying and working in Berlin for many years, and this city has shaped me deeply.

What drives me most is the belief that Berlin has a unique power to connect future optimism with citizen participation in everyday life. The seventeen pianos are one expression of that.

Seventeen pianos, seventeen goals

Sigrid
Let’s start there. What do these seventeen pianos actually stand for?

Henning
Each of the seventeen pianos represents one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.

So: 17 pianos, 17 goals, 17 public spaces. They are scattered across the city as an invitation to interact – with music, with each other and with the global goals.

Sigrid
And you play piano yourself?

Henning
Yes, I do. I’m a musician, and I also studied politics here in Berlin. That mix of art and politics really influences how I think about the city: culture as a way to talk about the future and about how we live together.

What is “Berlin 2035”?

Sigrid
So, what exactly is Berlin 2035?

Henning
At the heart of it is the non-profit Global Goals für Berlin e.V.

The association: connects people, institutions and companies in Berlin, links them to the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals, and helps translate global goals into local action. From that base, the idea emerged to bring a World Expo to Berlin in 2035. But not in the old, single-site way.

The concept is a multi-centric world exhibition: there will be a central site with national pavilions but the expo should also spread out into the city’s neighborhoods every district can become a stage: from balconies with solar panels to projects like swimming in the Spree.

The 17 pianos are an early prototype of that thinking: an expo that doesn’t hide behind fences, but lives in the streets and is part of daily life.

A world expo as a platform for global cooperation

Sigrid
Why should internationals, diplomats, companies and cities outside Germany care about an Expo in Berlin?

Henning
Because our vision is that this won’t just be “Germany’s expo.”

We want Berlin 2035 to be a platform for global cooperation – a place where:

-nations exchange concrete solutions

-not just for technology and business

-but also for peace, justice and sustainability

Berlin has a very specific story to tell: it went through dictatorship, war and division,  it became a symbol of a divided world and then it learned how to turn walls into bridges

Today Berlin stands for: freedom, diversity, constant reinvention. That transformation from separation to connection is exactly what our global community needs right now.

How long would the Expo last and what needs to happen first?

Sigrid
If this Expo happens, how long would it run?

Henning
Big World Expos usually last six months.

We imagine something like April/May to October/November 2035 here in Berlin.

But to get there, we need several steps. World Expos are awarded by the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) in Paris.

This year, we took an important step: we visited the BIE in Paris; I met Secretary-General Dimitri Kerkentzes

and presented Berlin’s civil-society-driven vision.

As far as we know, this is the first time a concept for a World Expo has been developed and presented by a civil society initiative rather than a government delegation. The response was very positive.

It showed that Berlin can send a strong signal that cities not only nation states are key engines of innovation, social justice and ecological transition.

Why Berlin? What makes this city special?

Sigrid
What’s your favorite thing about Berlin?

Henning
Honestly, the whole city.

In Berlin, every street can feel like a different city: different atmospheres, different communities and different histories.

That diversity is exactly what makes Berlin so powerful as a host city: it’s already a living expo of cultures, ideas and experiments.

Civil society and the future of the city

Sigrid
What made you personally say: “We need to do this as a civil society project”?

Henning
I believe civil society has to co-design the future together with politics and administration.

We need the energy and creativity of citizens, associations, initiatives and local projects.

There are already so many things happening in Berlin: neighborhood initiatives, climate projects, social innovation, cultural spaces.

The idea is:

How do we connect these pieces and make them visible – not just for Berlin, but for the world?

An Expo can be the framework that: connects small and big projects, gives them international visibility and shows people that they can shape the future of their city.

What outcome do you hope for in 2035?

Sigrid
Fast forward to 2035. The Expo has happened. What would a “successful” outcome look like for you?

Henning
From now until 2035, Berlin will have to transform in key areas: mobility, health and mental health climate and energy, public space and participation.

I’m convinced Berlin has everything it needs to do that in a positive way.

If we succeed, then in 2035 we’ll be able to show the world:

-how a city can become more sustainable and socially just

-how civil society, politics and business can work together

-and how diversity and openness can actually solve problems instead of creating them

Imagine over 190 nations coming to Berlin, and for six months we use the city as a space to seriously discuss:

“How do we manage the future together?”

That’s the core idea.

A message for the next generation

Sigrid
You have three children. What’s the main message you want to pass on to them?

Henning
For me, it’s crucial they learn that: you have to stay open, you should engage in society and you can actually shape your surroundings..

Small steps matter. Humanity matters.

If we accept that everybody is different – different cultures, identities, biographies – then diversity becomes a resource for solutions.

My hope is that in ten years we can show, here in Berlin, that:

“We are united in diversity and that’s exactly why we can move forward.”

Sigrid
Henning Wehmeier, thank you so much for being with us today.

We really hope Berlin 2035 becomes a reality, and that we’ll be here to welcome people from all over the world to this city we now call home hopefully with sunshine, maybe swimming in the Spree, and with a lot of music and conversation.

Thank you.