Consultative Meeting of the UNESCO Global Project Creation of an Open Digital Library on Traditional Games

The Consultative Meeting of the UNESCO Global Project Creation of an Open Digital Library on Traditional Games will be held on 9 September 2019 at the UNESCO Headquarters (Room VIII) in Paris, France.

This event will bring together UNESCO representatives from pilot countries, experts on intangible cultural heritage, traditional games and sports, digital preservation and innovation, and youth representatives to review the present status and develop a roadmap of the project for 2020-2022 with a multi-stakeholder participatory approach.
Traditional games and sports convey values of solidarity, diversity, fair-play, respect. They contribute to logical thinking, mathematical and civic education, and inter-generational learning; they reflect cultural diversity and foster mutual understanding and tolerance among communities and nations; they help girls and women build self-esteem and develop skills to become equal participants and leaders in their communities; they create awareness about social inclusion, including of persons with disabilities. The United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development acknowledges sport as an important enabler of sustainable development.

However, many traditional games and sports, expressions of traditional knowledge and ways of life contributing to the common identity of humanity, have already disappeared; and those that survive are threatened by imminent disappearance or extinction due to globalization, migrations, demographic changes, and the lack of interest of the younger generations, partially due to the development of modern technology.

The UNESCO project “Open Digital Library on Traditional Games” (ODLTG) builds upon UNESCO’s activities on creating an International Network on Traditional Sports and Games, and on safeguarding and promoting intangible cultural heritage. The ODLTG project utilizes Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) for the construction of a digital library for the preservation and promotion of information and knowledge on traditional games and sports. This corresponds to UNESCO’s mandate to create inclusive knowledge societies and empower local communities by increasing access to and preservation and sharing of information and knowledge in all of UNESCO’s domains.

Since 2015, with the generous support from Chinese private sector partners, the project has been piloted in a few selected countries around the world for data collection and methodology testing. Data and audio-visual content of traditional games and sports have been documented by UNESCO experts at the country level in consultation and collaboration with the local communities and practitioners. Preserved in the digital library, this open and free content is accessible to the public for research, teaching and learning, and innovative re-usages.

Today, all over the world, youth are driving social change and innovation, and seeking new opportunities to learn and work together for a better future. Inspired by the ODLTG project, some young people have already started conducting research on traditional games, and exploring innovative ways to reuse the ODLTG content. The project also aims at building a global community of dedicated young women and men to advocate for and participate in the safeguarding of traditional games and sports.

The Consultative Meeting with bring together UNESCO representatives from project pilot countries, experts on intangible cultural heritage, traditional games and sports, digital preservation and innovation, and youth representatives.

The expected results are:
- Development and adoption of the ODLTG Roadmap 2020-2022, including a renewed Youth Engagement Action-Plan;
-Validation of project guidelines and user handbook for global adaptation and data collection;
-Soft launch of the ODL platform for feedback and improvements.