International Conference on the Intangible Cultural Heritage

-- in Celebration of the Tenth Anniversary of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage

June 14 to 16, 2013, Chengdu, China

The year 2013 marks the tenth anniversary of the adoption of the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage (hereinafter referred to as “the Convention”). For celebrating the tenth anniversary, the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China and Sichuan Provincial People’s Government, in collaboration with UNESCO, are planning to jointly hold the Chengdu International Conference on the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Celebration of the Tenth Anniversary of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage from 14th to 16th June 2013 during the 4th International Festival of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Chengdu, China.

The Conference will take the opportunity of the tenth anniversary to review the historical drafting process of the Convention, exchange experiences in implementing the Convention at both international and national levels, and identify challenges, constraints and opportunities encountered in the implementation of the Convention.

The purposes of the Conference will be to raise awareness of the significance and values of the Convention and ICH, and to ensure the healthy development of ICH safeguarding in the right track globally. Representatives from States Parties to the Convention, prominent experts and scholars who participated in the drafting of the Convention, and UNESCO senior officials who have made great contributions to the adoption and implementation of the Convention will be important participants of the Conference. The Conference will focus on the following topics:

1. Achievements of the Convention: Changing the discourse of ICH and implanting new concepts;

2. Inventorying and listing;

3. Parallel universes: intellectual property, world heritage and cultural goods and services;

4. Open questions and future directions;

5. ICH safeguarding practice in the States Parties.