Meet Wiggli: The Curious Scout Bee Welcoming the World to Expo 2031 Minnesota

Wiggli is the Expo 2031 Minnesota USA Mascot

May 20, 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Official mascot launches a five-year, five-region American Tour and a global digital activation, bringing the first A1 International Horticultural Exposition in U.S. history to life long before opening day.

MINNEAPOLIS, MINN., May 20, 2026. Today, Expo 2031 Minnesota, host of the first A1 International Horticultural Exposition ever held in the United States, introduced Wiggli, a scout honeybee with a hive-full of curiosity who will serve as the official mascot of the world expo. Created in collaboration with experience design studio BRC Imagination Arts and biodiversity intelligence company HiveTracks, Wiggli embodies the expo’s theme, Human / Nature: Where Humanity and Horticulture Meet, and encourages visitors of every age to wonder, wander, and explore.

Expo 2031 runs from May through October 2031 in Dakota County, Minnesota, and expects to welcome millions of visitors from across the United States and the world. Wiggli’s adventure starts today. Beginning now, she becomes the face of a five-year story that connects Expo 2031 to audiences in every region of America and to communities around the world.

“Wiggli is how we begin the conversation. She is curious, she is brave, and she is built for collaboration with both people and the natural world. From today through 2031, Wiggli will carry the Expo 2031 story to communities across America and to audiences around the world. We couldn’t be more honored to introduce her alongside our extraordinary creative and conservation partners.”

Wendy Meadley, CEO and Founder, Expo 2031 Minnesota

ABOUT WIGGLI

Wiggli is a scout bee, the kind of honey bee whose job is to explore the world, gather new ideas, and bring her discoveries home to share with the hive. (She also takes good notes.) That role shapes everything about her. She slows down to notice. She asks big questions. She celebrates other people’s ideas as enthusiastically as her own. When something doesn’t work the first time, she shakes it off and tries again.

Five traits define Wiggli’s personality:

• Curious. Wiggli never buzzes past something interesting without stopping to take a closer look. She asks big questions, listens carefully, and loves connecting what she has just discovered to what she already knows.

• Adventurous. Wiggli flies straight toward the unfamiliar because she knows the best stories come from the places you have never been. She is not reckless. She scopes things out. If something doesn’t go as planned, she shakes it off and tries something new.

• Collaborative. Wiggli genuinely wants to hear what you think. She asks, she listens, and she makes sure everyone in the group knows their idea matters. When the team figures something out together, that is her favorite kind of win.

• Creative. Wiggli loves making things (sketches, designs, stories, solutions) and she is always mixing ideas from unexpected places to come up with something new. She doesn’t think there is only one right answer, and she always leaves room to tweak, improve, and try again.

• Inspiring. Wiggli is in it for the long haul, right by your side from the first idea to the final high-five. When things get tough, she has a talent for breaking big, scary problems into small, totally doable steps. Every little victory counts, and Wiggli makes sure you know it.

A PARTNERSHIP ROOTED IN REAL BEES

Wiggli was developed by Expo 2031 Minnesota in partnership with BRC Imagination Arts, the global experience design studio behind some of the most acclaimed national and corporate pavilions of the past four decades, and HiveTracks, a biodiversity intelligence company whose platform supports more than 17,000 active beekeepers managing over 50,000 hives across 145+ countries. That worldwide network of pollinator stewards inspires one of Expo 2031’s earliest communities, carrying Wiggli’s story from neighborhood gardens to international audiences’ years before the gates open in Minnesota.

“The greatest mascots make you part of the story. Wiggli does exactly that. She walks alongside visitors at Expo 2031 and across every community that welcomes her in the years before opening day, turning the meeting of humanity and horticulture into something you can actually feel.”

Christian Lachel, Chief Creative Officer, BRC Imagination Arts

“Bees have always been nature’s scouts, the messengers who tell us how the land is doing. Wiggli, inspired by the global community of beekeepers and conservation partners on HiveTracks, shares that role with the world. Long before the gates open in Minnesota, we will help bring Expo 2031 to life across the world, connecting pollinators, people, and habitats.”

Max Rünzel, CEO,  HiveTracks

A FIVE-YEAR STORY

The expo’s six-month run begins in May 2031, but Wiggli’s work begins today. As Expo 2031’s official ambassador, she will spend the years leading to opening day in active conversation with audiences of every age. The time between now and 2031 becomes an unfolding story that millions can join.

That conversation lives across digital channels and real-world programs, including:

•        Short-form video and social platforms.

•        Family activities and storytelling.

•        Classroom and library partnerships.

•        Content collaborations with creators, brands, and educators.

•        On-the-ground appearances at festivals, gardens, and community events.

Wiggli will meet families where they already are: at home in the garden, in the classroom, and on the platforms where stories travel fastest, extending far beyond the United States. Wiggli will help build a living, global community of pollinator stewards, inspiring a global audience, helping carry her story, share pollinator awareness, and amplify Expo 2031’s message of Human / Nature from day one. The result is an expo that is already alive, already moving, and already part of a worldwide conversation, five years before the doors open.

WIGGLI'S AMERICAN TOUR

To bring Expo 2031 to people where they live, Wiggli is launching a five-region engagement program across the United States. Each stop mirrors one of the expo’s climate zones and horticultural pavilions, offering a preview of what visitors will explore in Minnesota in 2031, a celebration of regional identity, and an invitation to be part of the story. Each region also becomes a starting seed for what Wiggli encounters and learns as she explores America.

• Wiggli Heads West (Arid). Desert water resilience and solar farming, where ingenuity grows under the sun.

• Lush America (Tropical). Exotic plants and tropical crops, the warm ecosystems that feed and inspire.

• America in Bloom (Temperate). Home and garden, the everyday horticulture of American life.

• America’s Breadbasket (Continental). Food and agriculture, the working landscapes that nourish the nation.

• Northern Lights (North Star). Trees and forests, the great northern ecosystems beneath our boldest skies.

Each regional engagement aligns key tourism markets and partner communities across America with their corresponding Expo 2031 climate zone, inviting them to host Wiggli, share their region’s story, and travel to Minnesota in 2031 already feeling like they helped build the expo. As Wiggli flies coast to coast, she carries one message: this expo is for all of America, and all of America is part of this expo.

WHY A BEE

Honeybees travel between flowers, always return to their hives, and bring together communities, weaving the natural world together one small act at a time. That is why Wiggli is the right symbol for an expo built on the meeting of humanity and horticulture. She represents hope and the power of collective effort, a reminder that every action, no matter how small, adds up to meaningful change. In that sense, Wiggli is the American Dream in miniature: a small, optimistic worker convinced that better things grow when people work together.

Wiggli looks forward to welcoming you home to Minnesota in 2031. Until then, she is coming to you.

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ABOUT EXPO 2031 MINNESOTA

Expo 2031 Minnesota , USA will be the first A1 International Horticultural Exhibition ever hosted in the United States, convening nations, innovators, growers, and industry leaders to explore the future of horticulture, agriculture, and livable communities. Presented under the governance of the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) and supported through the United States federal government, the six-month global exposition will feature international pavilions, gardens, cultural programming, innovation exhibitions, and global convenings focused on solutions for a rapidly changing world.

Expo 2031 is expected to attract millions of visits from across the United States and around the world. Through immersive gardens, international pavilions, cultural programming, and global leadership forums, Expo 2031 will demonstrate the power of horticulture, agriculture, and technology to improve how people live. The Expo will leave a lasting legacy through the creation of a permanent Future Living District, transforming the site into an enduring center for education, tourism, and healthy living. Learn more at expo2031.org.

ABOUT BRC IMAGINATION ARTS

BRC Imagination Arts is a full-service strategy, design, and production company that transforms how people feel, think, and connect. For 45 years, BRC has turned brand and cultural stories into destinations built for lasting change, powered by Deep Story™ and guided by a creative philosophy called Magic with Heart: the belief that imagination and precision belong together, and that the best work moves hearts and moves numbers in equal measure. The portfolio includes the Johnnie Walker Experience on Princes Street, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Las Vegas Raiders Allegiant Stadium Tour, Great Wolf Lodges, and World Expo pavilions for nations and corporations across the globe, from Shanghai and Milan to Osaka 2025. Proudly independent, with more than 500 international awards, BRC remains the most trusted name in transformational experience design. Learn more at brcweb.com.

ABOUT HIVETRACKS

HiveTracks, Inc. empowers beekeepers and businesses worldwide to increase pollinator health and biodiversity locally, and to crowd-source environmental intelligence for measurable, data-driven impact. With dedicated apps for beekeepers and businesses, HiveTracks turns everyday field observations into actionable data for pollinator health and habitat stewardship. The platform supports dozens of businesses and more than 17,000 active beekeepers managing over 50,000 hives across 145+ countries. HiveTracks is headquartered in Creston, North Carolina. Learn more at hivetracks.com.

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