Dubai's vast Expo 2020 site rises from the desert One year out from the Expo 2020 trade fair, the mammoth site taking shape in the desert is currently a tangle of steel, concrete and dust. But Dubai hopes the event will deliver an economic shot in the arm when it welcomes the world in October 2020, as it struggles to shake off a downturn that has hit hard in an emirate defined by its skyscrapers and mega-projects. IMAGES