The Look Company recycles 131 Science World panels into new goods

The Look Company is turning the 131 panels from its 65,000-square-foot Science World World Cup installation into donated materials and a limited product line, with none headed to landfill. Sales of The Beautiful Dome 2026 Collection will support Science World’s STEAM education programs across British Columbia.

Why it matters: - The project turns a major temporary sports installation into reusable material instead of waste. - 100% of net proceeds from The Beautiful Dome 2026 Collection will support Science World’s STEAM education programs across British Columbia. - None of the 131 panels will go to landfill. - The effort puts a new focus on what happens to event builds after the cameras leave.

What happened: - The Look Company is giving a second life to all 131 panels used in its 65,000-square-foot transformation of Vancouver’s Science World for the FIFA World Cup 2026. - The panels are being cleaned, sorted and recut into products for a limited-run collection sold through Science World. - Removal began in September, four months after the 40-metre installation went up. - The dome came down over two weeks in September. - The same five-person rope access team that installed the dome in May handled the removal.

The details: - The Beautiful Dome was engineered and installed by The Look Company and became one of the tournament’s most photographed images. - Selected panels have been donated to seven institutions across British Columbia, including Science World, BC Place and the Museum of Vancouver. - The Look Company’s Seattle facility is cleaning and cutting the panels into 260 tote bags, 100 duffle bags and 25 umbrellas. - Each item will include added accessories and a printed label with its own sequence number. - Another 24 panels are being packaged whole for people and organizations that requested a full-size piece of the dome. - Production for the goods should take about five weeks before distribution to buyers and recipients. - The Beautiful Dome was produced with Destination Vancouver, Science World, the Province of British Columbia, the FIFA World Cup 2026 Vancouver Host Committee and the Vancouver Hotel Destination Association. - More information is available in the project's announcement.

Between the lines: - The project was designed with end-of-life planning from the outset, not as an afterthought. - Large-format graphics are often built for single events and discarded afterward, so the dome’s reuse strategy stands out in an industry that usually treats temporary installs as waste. - The initiative also extends the public life of one of Vancouver’s most visible World Cup images by turning it into objects, donations and keepsakes.

What's next: - The Look Company will finish production of the recycled goods over the next five weeks. - The finished items will then go to their buyers and recipients. - Science World will use the net proceeds to support STEAM education programming across the province.

The bottom line: - The Beautiful Dome is being dismantled as a materials recovery project, not a disposal problem.