Lessons from China in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage

CULTURE embodies the way of life of a society. From language, knowledge, customs and beliefs to ideas, skills, arts and crafts, culture is how a society organises itself. Heritage is an aspect of culture that is transmitted from generation to generation. According to the Unesco Convention for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage, “tangible cultural heritage” includes artistic creations, built heritage such as buildings and monuments and other physical or tangible products of human creativity that are invested with cultural significance in a society. Meanwhile, “intangible cultural heritage” indicates “the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge, skills – as well as the instruments, objects, artefacts and cultural spaces associated therewith – that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognise as part of their cultural heritage” (Unesco, 2003).

Under the invitation of the consulate-general of China in Kuching, a group of ten participants from public and private sectors in Sarawak took part in the “Seminar on intangible cultural heritage conservation and development in Malaysia” from Oct 25 to Nov 5, 2021. The seminar was also attended by five participants from cultural industries in West Malaysia. The event was hosted and organized by the Central Academy of Culture and Tourism