The 14th annual meeting of the South-East European Expert Network on Intangible Cultural Heritage will take place on 26 June 2020, in a virtual modality due to the travel restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 emergency.

The 2020 workshop is intended to provide participants with an opportunity to 1) share knowledge and experiences on the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage, as well as on related responses from relevant actors in the region; and 2) stimulate critical thinking and inspire action with regard to ICH safeguarding in Covid-19 times, beyond the current emergency period.

The meeting is organized by UNESCO through the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe, in cooperation with the UNESCO Culture Sector – Living Heritage Entity, with the support of the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in South-East Europe (Category 2 Centre operating under the auspices of UNESCO, based in Sofia, Bulgaria).

The Workshop on Cooperation and International Assistance in the field of Intangible Cultural Heritage (22-23 June 2020) is one of the activities planned under the project “Strengthening capacities for the effective implementation of the 2003 Convention of the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Lebanon”, funded by the Government of Japan.

The COVID-19 pandemic has seriously caused public disruption manifesting in different forms such as places on lockdowns, untimely shutdown of schools, cancellations of mass gatherings, and temporary closure of businesses. As the field of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) contends with the effects of the pandemic, ICHCAP and UNESCO Bangkok Office are organising sessions of interlinked online seminars dubbed as ICH Webinar Series to tackle important issues around ICH safeguarding in the time of COVID-19 and the future ahead of it. While the first couple sessions of the series will hear reports and studies about the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on ICH safeguarding, the series itself is conceived to be a platform of ideas relevant to key areas in ICH Safeguarding such as information-sharing, networking, and cooperation among stakeholders in the ICH field.

The first session of the ICH Webinar Series will assess how COVID-19 pandemic has affected the cultural lives of peoples in the Asia-Pacific region and identify possible roles ICH might take in crisis. In light of the many vulnerabilities the pandemic has exposed in ICH communities, the session will hold a discussion of innovative solutions for ICH safeguarding and transmission. Slated on 18 June 2020 at 17:00 (Korea time), the first session will feature presentations from Juliette Hopkins (Living Heritage Entity, UNESCO), Anna Yau (The University of Hong Kong), Kirk Siang Yeo (National Heritage Board, Singapore) Professor Christopher Ballard (The Australian National University), and Professor Eric Zerrudo (University of Santo Tomas).

The ICH Webinar Series aims to foster public participation in discussions about living heritage. Questions are welcome from the public. The concept note of the first session is accessible through this link

Those interested to join the conversation are advised to write their questions in this pre-registration form

Within the framework of the project “Strengthening national capacities for safeguarding Palestinian intangible cultural heritage”, the UNESCO Ramallah Office holds the workshop on preparing nominations and requests for international assistance, thanks to the generous support from the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism.

After the previous three workshops in Bishkek (2017), Almaty (2018) and Tashkent (2019), this fourth ICH Training of Trainers for Central Asia will be held in Dushanbe (Tajikistan) from 2 to 6 March 2020. Co-organized by UNESCO and the International Training Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (CRIHAP), it will be an opportunity for participants from four Central Asian countries to deepen their knowledge about the 2003 Convention and strengthen capacities around several themes, including the mechanisms of international cooperation foreseen under the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Implemented from January 2019 to July 2020, the UNESCO-EU project Engaging Youth for an Inclusive and Sustainable Europe proposes an innovative approach to education by inviting teachers and learners to explore their living heritage and learn not only about it, but also with and through it. Over the past few months, teachers and students from 10 selected UNESCO Associated Schools across the European Union have developed and implemented pilot projects in their own schools. Accompanied by UNESCO trained facilitators, each school team has conducted activities to identify the living heritage present in their school communities and to integrate it in lesson plans of subjects as diverse as mathematics, physics or languages, as well as in extra-curricular activities.

In this context, UNESCO, in close cooperation with the Netherlands Commission for UNESCO has brought together the ten ASPnet school teams to share their experiences, analyze the approaches used, and provide input for the development of the resource materials for teachers in Europe, to be produced by the end of the project.

The workshop was held from 27 February to 1 March 2020, in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Organized by Khartoum UNESCO Office in collaboration with the National Council for Cultural Heritage and Promotion of National Languages. The workshops are part of the project of “Strengthening National Capacities for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage in Sudan”, sponsored by Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Department (UAE).