ICH NGO Forum , The 17th UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee

17COM November 27, 2022 The 17th UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee was held at the Sofitel Hotel in Rabat, Morocco, for six days from November 28 to December 3, 2022. At the entrance to the conference hall was a large flag of the Commission, which forms the Intergovernmental Committee on the Protection of Intangible Heritage. It was a valuable place to share various activities such as intangible heritage protection activities and improvement plans between countries. One of the things that gets the most attention from the Intergovernmental Committee will be the new listing of the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List. Before the committee was held, a total of 46 applications were submitted for listing on the representative list, of which 31 were recommended for listing, 14 were requested for supplementation, and one was impossible. Thirty-nine of them were registered at the committee site. Some intangible heritage sites had a tense debate.

Full programme of the ICH NGO Forum for 17COM

PROGRAMME ICH NGO Forum Activities 17COM 2022Seventeenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural HeritageSection of Ballroom, Sofitel Hotel, 450 Quartier Aviation, Rabat, MoroccoSunday, 27 November to Saturday 3 December (The schedule is indicated in Rabat time, UTC+1, same as Central European Time, CET, UTC +1)Zoom link for online participation during the entire week:https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81821818235?pwd=Y0ZnUjZtRCtraVcyT2RRWTd0WWZiUT09ID of meeting : 818 2181 8235   Secret Code : 043359  Sunday, 27 November, 2022 10:00 to 11:50 AMPresentations of projects by recently accredited NGOsChairs: Tamara Nikolić Đerić, Association House of Batana (Croatia), and Sekou Berte, Mali Cultural Heritage Agency (Mali) 10:00 to 10:40 AMPaulina Adamska and Urszula Szwed, Serfenta (Poland)Susanne Verburg and Mark Schep, Dutch Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage (Netherlands)Chloé Battistolo, L’Institut national des métiers d’art français (France)Ahmet Akcan and Sona T

Traditonal Korean Performance captured through immersive digital content- Jeokbyeokga by Yun Jin-cheol

This service is the result of a collaboration between the Center for Intangible Culture Studies (CICS) and Korea Electronics Technology Institue (KETI) to carry out <3D performances of traditional Korean heritage performances and development of XR service platform technology>. This project is supported by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea. The research aims to provide immersive content for traditional performances through high-quality digital data archiving, based on performances in the field, creating 3D performance and XR service platform technology development for the preservation of the original form of traditional performances and the creation of new non-face-to-face inventory services. The key elements of this research are 1) multi-sensor-based high-quality 3D data acquisition device for performers, 2) AI-based performance site high-quality 3D performance generation system, 3) digital archiving-based interactive XR service platform, which digitizes all performance elements of traditional performances as it preserves its original form and meaning. It maximizes audience immersion by providing new services linked with various digital immersive contents. As the pilot application content of the first stage of the study, the research results were applied to Jeokbyeokga by Yun Jin-cheol, a master singer. Visit to expierence the traditional immersive content: <a href="https://c11.kr/keti-virtual-3d-pansori">https://c11.kr/keti-virtual-3d-pansori</a>

The seventeenth session (17COM) of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage

The seventeenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage will be hosted by the Kingdom of Morocco in Rabat (Sofitel Rabat Jardin des Roses) from 28 November to 3 December 2022.H.E. Mr Samir Addahre, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of the Kingdom of Morocco to UNESCO, will chair this annual gathering which will be attended by representatives of States Parties, non-governmental organizations, cultural institutions and other stakeholders from across the globe. Participants are invited to register as soon as possible and in any case before 14 November 2022.General information for this session will be published on this webpage. An information and exchange meeting was held on 4 October 2022 at UNESCO Headquarters.The working documents of the meeting will be published on this webpage by 31 October 2022.https://ich.unesco.org/en/17com

Launch of a Fund to Assist Intangible Cultural Heritage NGOs and Communities in Situations of Crises

Launch of a Fund to Assist Intangible Cultural Heritage NGOs and Communities in Situations of Crises Please click on this link to donate: <a href="https://gofund.me/431b7e64">https://gofund.me/431b7e64</a> The ICH NGO Forum is the membership organization of NGOs that are accredited to UNESCO’s 2003 Convention for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage. It operates, among other things, as a networking organization among NGOs most of whom operate on the ground working with local communities that are the bearers of this heritage and for whom it is often essential for their livelihoods and resilience. The Forum is launching this fundraising campaign to assist accredited ICH NGOs and communities in emergency situations. A growing number of NGOs and communities are being impacted by climate change (floods, cyclones, mud slides, heat waves, forest fires, drought) and armed conflict (destruction of physical ICH spaces, mortality, forced migration, loss of ICH practices), the two being often linked together. It appears to be increasingly certain this situation will expand over time. Over the past year, floods in Pakistan, heat waves in Africa and Southern Europe, and armed conflict in Eastern Europe and Africa have made the ICH NGO Forum aware of an urgent need to assist NGOs and communities in situations of crises. The fund aims to help safeguard threatened traditional practices and ICH bearers, but also to use living heritage in creative and constructive ways to help populations overcome the disruptive effects of natural disasters and armed conflict (i.e. basic physical needs, psychological needs, resilience and recovery). The fund will be managed by the ICH NGO Forum Executive Board and made available to an NGO or other civil society group located in any country in the world experiencing situations of crisis caused by armed conflict or natural disasters, considered emergency situations. The range of situations defined as emergency will be defined, while allowing for flexibility, following Article 50 of the Operational Directives of the 2003 Convention on disaster response which provides a definition and examples of such emergency situations. The fund is geared to respond quickly to the immediate needs of NGOs and communities in the areas of safeguarding ICH. Please click on this link to donate: https://gofund.me/431b7e64 Fundraising Committee Tamara Nikolić Đerić, Association House of Batana (Croatia) Sekou Berte, Mali Cultural Heritage Agency (Mali) Laurier Turgeon, Laurier Turgeon – Folklore Studies Association of Canada (Canada) Martin Andrade Perez, Erigaie Foundation (Colombia) Mohamed Lemine Beidieu, Association mauritanienne pour la sauvegarde du partimoine culturel immatériel (Mauritania) Laurier Turgeon Professeur titulaire d'ethnologie et d'histoire Directeur de l'Institut du patrimoine culturel (IPAC) Directeur du Laboratoire d'enquête ethnologique et multimédia (LEEM) Directeur du programme en sciences historiques et études patrimoniales (BISHEP) Université Laval, Québec, Canada, G1V 0A6 Tél. 418-254-3907 <a href="www.leem.ulaval.ca">www.leem.ulaval.ca</a> Sekou Berte, Mali Cultural Heritage Agency (Mali) Laurier Turgeon, Laurier Turgeon – Folklore Studies Association of Canada (Canada) Martin Andrade Perez, Erigaie Foundation (Colombia) Mohamed Lemine Beidieu, Association mauritanienne pour la sauvegarde du partimoine culturel immatériel (Mauritania) Lancement d&#39;un fonds pour venir en aide aux ONG et aux communautés du patrimoine culturel immatériel en situation de crise (English Follows/ L’Anglais suit) Veuillez cliquer sur ce lien pour faire un don : https://gofund.me/431b7e6e Le Forum des ONG du PCI est une organisation qui vise à regrouper les membres des ONG accréditées auprès de la Convention de 2003 de l&#39;UNESCO pour la sauvegarde du patrimoine culturel immatériel. Il fonctionne, entre autres, comme une organisation de mise en réseau des ONG dont la plupart opèrent sur le terrain en travaillant avec les communautés locales qui sont les dépositaires de ce patrimoine et pour qui il est souvent essentiel pour assurer leurs moyens de subsistance et leur résilience. Le Forum lance cette campagne de collecte de fonds pour aider les ONG accréditées du PCI et les communautés dans des situations d&#39;urgence. Un nombre croissant d&#39;ONG et de communautés sont impactées par le changement climatique (inondations, cyclones, coulées de boue, vagues de chaleur, incendies de forêt, sécheresse) et les conflits armés (destruction des espaces physiques du PCI, mortalité, migration forcée, perte des pratiques du PCI), les deux étant souvent liés. Il semble de plus en plus certain que cette situation s&#39;aggravera avec le temps. Au cours de l&#39;année écoulée, les inondations au Pakistan, les vagues de chaleur en Afrique et en Europe du Sud et les conflits armés en Europe de l&#39;Est et en Afrique ont fait prendre conscience au Forum des ONG du PCI de l&#39;urgence de soutenir les ONG et les communautés en situation de crise. Le fonds vise à aider à sauvegarder les pratiques traditionnelles menacées et les détenteurs du PCI, mais aussi à utiliser le patrimoine vivant de manière créative et constructive pour aider les populations à surmonter les effets perturbateurs des catastrophes naturelles et des conflits armés (c&#39;est-à-dire les besoins physiques fondamentaux, les besoins psychologiques, la résilience et le rétablissement). Le fonds sera géré par le Conseil exécutif du Forum des ONG du PCI et mis à la disposition d&#39;une ONG ou d&#39;un autre groupe de la société civile situé dans n&#39;importe quel pays du monde connaissant des situations de crise causées par des conflits armés ou des catastrophes naturelles, considérées comme des situations d&#39;urgence. L&#39;éventail des situations qualifiées d&#39;urgence sera défini, tout en permettant une certaine flexibilité, conformément à l&#39;article 50 des Directives opérationnelles de la Convention de 2003 sur la réaction aux catastrophes qui fournit une définition et des exemples de telles situations d&#39;urgence. Le fonds est conçu pour répondre rapidement aux besoins immédiats des ONG et des communautés dans les domaines de la sauvegarde du PCI. Veuillez cliquer sur ce lien pour faire un don : https://gofund.me/431b7e64 Comité de la campagne de levée de fonds Tamara Nikolić Đerić, Association Maison de Batana (Croatie) Sekou Berte, Agence malienne du patrimoine culturel (Mali) Laurier Turgeon – Association canadienne d’ethnologie et de folklore (Canada) Martin Andrade Perez, Fondation Erigaie (Colombie) Mohamed Lemine Beidieu, Association mauritanienne pour la sauvegarde du partimoine culturel immatériel (Mauritanie)

Seventeenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage

The seventeenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage will be hosted by the Kingdom of Morocco in Rabat (Sofitel Rabat Jardin des Roses) from 28 November to 3 December 2022. H.E. Mr Samir Addahre, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of the Kingdom of Morocco to UNESCO, will chair this annual gathering which will be attended by representatives of States Parties, non-governmental organizations, cultural institutions and other stakeholders from across the globe. Participants are invited to register as soon as possible and in any case before 14 November 2022. General information for this session will be published on this webpage. An information and exchange meeting was held on 4 October 2022 at UNESCO Headquarters. The working documents of the meeting will be published on this webpage by 31 October 2022.

The 2022 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (2022 JIAPICH)

As planned this year, the 2022 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (2022 JIAPICH) went successfully. The 2022 JIAPICH Award Ceremony, organized by the Center for Intangible Culture Studies (CICS), ended successfully on October 19. The winners were the Ms Anka Raik from Bosnia Herzegovina, The Ifugao Museum in the Philippines and The Serfenta Association in Poland. The Winners, intangible heritage Experts, and the general public gathered together at the Korean National Center for Intangible Heritage in Jeonju to share the value of intangible heritage. The video of the award ceremony will be uploaded to the YouTube channel Intangible Cultural Research Institute. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/CICSinKorea/featured">https://www.youtube.com/c/CICSinKorea/featured</a>

ICH NGO FORUM - Newsletter

The ICH NGO Forum has the pleasure to announce that the Newsletter is now back with the publication of the first edition of 2022. The Forum remains committed to strengthening the active and meaningful participation of NGOs in the implementation of the 2003 Convention on Intangible Cultural Heritage. Likewise, the Forum would like to inform its membership organizations that the Newsletter is now open to welcome news on shared mutual experiences, key updates that speak to the sustainable founding mission of our Forum. (Sekou Berte, Communication Officier, Steering Committee of the ICH NGO Forum)

Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage 9th General Assembly of States Parties ICH NGO Forum - Seminar 2022 Good Safeguarding Practices for Human Security

Over the past year, the ICH NGO Forum has mapped the expertise and safeguarding practices of 85 accredited NGOs across all regions of the world. Speakers at this side event will discuss how they employ ICH to mediate conflicts, build community resilience in crises, mitigate impacts of climate change, support economic wellbeing, improve the lives of women and girls, safety and integration of displaced persons, ensure food security through traditional agricultural practices and help to create a healthy and sustainable environmentProgramme Chair Laurier Turgeon, Folklore Studies Association of Canada, Chair of the ICH NGO Forum Steering Committee Women’s Activities in Maintaining Sustainable Agricultural Practices: The Geochang Cooperatives Hwang Eui Dong, Center for Intangible Culture Studies (CICS), South Korea Traditional Wisdom in Everyday Life : Supporting Social Transformation Cholponai Usbalieva-Gryshchuk, Aigine Cultural Research Center, Kyrgyzstan Intangible Cultural Heritage in Armed Conflict and Post-

« Good Safeguarding Practices for Human Security », to be held on July 5th from 1 :00 to 3 :00 PM on site at the UNESCO headquarters, room 6

Dear Accredited NGOs and Delegates / Chères ONG accréditées et Délégués, You are cordially invited to the seminar on « Good Safeguarding Practices for Human Security », to be held on July 5th from 1 :00 to 3 :00 PM on site at the UNESCO headquarters, room 6, (cold buffet served on site) organized by the ICH NGO Forum during the 9th session of the General Assembly of the State Parties to the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, UNESCO Headquarters, 7 Place de Fontenoy, 75007 Paris, 5 to 7 July 2022. - Because room 6 cannot accommodate more that 57 people, advanced registration is requested by sending an email to Laurier.Turgeon@hst.ulaval.ca and to rbtbaron@gmail.com as soon as possible and no latter than Sunday 18h00 Paris time. Places will be attributed on a first come first serve bases.  Vous êtes cordialement invités à participer au séminaire sur « Les bonnes pratiques de sauvegarde pour la sécurité humaine », le 5 juillet de 13h00 à 15h00 qui se tiendra dans la salle 6 (buffet

Gbofe of Afounkaha, the music of the transverse trumps of the Tagbana community, a cultural heritage in need of safeguarding

1. Definition of Gbofe The Gbofe is a musical-choreographic expression whose practice is based on four distinct forms: trumpet players called gbofé hienlin, singers named Kielé, dancers named Yoor féhelé, and drummers, ping hienlin. Put together, these four formations build what is called the Gbofé hienlin.[1] The gbofe trump players orchestra is translated into the Tagbana language by the singers. Their songs are set in stride by the Yoor Féhele, who dance to the rhythms of the pindrè ( chalice-shaped drum, with a membrane). The latter is accompanied by the djomanhan (two-membrane cylindrical tambour) which supports the pindre at a two-stroke rate. The Gbofe is Known as a music and dance performed by the Tagbana community of Cote d’Ivoire. However, It's found in many different parts of Country, but under other names. If tagbana gbofé is made of wood in other parts of Cote d'Ivoire, it is made from "Ivoiry, animal horn, bronze, iron. 2- Origins of the Gbofe According to Afounkaha's Gbofé custodians, the Gbofé will come from Koutiala, Mali. It was his entry into Senufo country and then into the Tagbana community, during the conquest of the region by Mory and Samory Touré. According to Traoré Otamnan, chief of the village of Afounkaha[2], “Gbofé would be a form of musical expression specific to the large Senoufo group. The Tagbana also practice it because like other Senufo communities, they are heirs to it. Following the wars of Mory and Samory Touré (1885 -1890) during which the Tagbana people dispersed, the Gbofé gradually died out and its original characteristics were lost. The elders who survived this disaster tried to restore it, but it was a waste of time”. A long time later, genies would have, through a dream, asked Ouattara Pétahaman (son of the Tagbana’s people) to take over the Gbofé. He then became the creator father of the Gbofé. They would have asked him to go into the bush, collect the roots of the nangran-an (tree from which the roots used to make trunks are extracted) and use them to make the gbofe. Then, they asked him to take the trunks of the fitioo (tree from which the drums of Gbofé are made), to make the drums. And finally, the genies asked him to teach to the women, the songs they have taught him in the dream, and to the young people the Gbofé yoor (Gbofe dance).These recommendations were followed to the letter by Pétahaman and the Gbofé was reborn. 3- Function of the Gbofe The Gbofe has the function of education, for youth in particular since this traditional knowledge is most often passed down from father to son, but also other young talents can also join in the training sessions. The Gbofe is also played at rituals and traditional ceremonies, and the messages conveyed vary according to the circumstances: praise, love, satire, mourning, moral or educational messages. The Gbofe played an important role by conferring respect towards the holders of the tradition, and maintains culture unity, peace and social cohesion between communities and people. The various Gbofe performers follow an apprenticeship. It is also used for celebration such us marriages, baptisms and funerals, but usually for authorities or great personalities. For it is formerly a sacred dance, a music reserved for the elites. The players are most often notables or important people of the community. 4- Gbofe as intangible heritage of humanity The Gbofe’s nomination in 2008 as intangible heritage of humanity by UNESCO was the result of long years of work and it was possible thank the studies and the promotion made by Yegnan Touré G Angeline[3], the Gbofe Expert in Cote d’Ivoire. In 1998, after her graduation at INSAAC (National Institut of Arts Cultural Action), she did a master’s degree in the field of music and musicology at the Félix Houphouët Boigny University. The master thesis subject was “the Gbofe of Afounkaha, the music of the transverse trumps of the Tagbana community” which allowed the Gbofe to be proclaimed as “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” by UNESCO in 2001". In At the national level, this research on the Gbofe of Afounkaha has allowed this form of musical expression, once endangered, to be reborn and so to be practiced again not only the village of Afounkaha but in all the Hambol region of Cote d’Ivoire. It sparked the development of crafts around Gbofé: the sculpture of Gbofé trumpets, the manufacture of drums, the weaving of the loincloths worn by the singers and dancers of Gbofé. 5. The Gbofe of Afounkaha in need of saveguarding However, most of the people in Cote d’Ivoire do know this precious cultural masterpiece. Few years after its nomination in 2008 on the Representative List of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity, once more again the Gbofe is endangered due to a lack of local promotion and because of the rural exodus the practice of Gbofe has ceased. Which causes a decline in the number of those mastering the art and techniques of the dance, songs and music. Since its creation in 2004, the Association for the Safeguarding of the Music of the Transverse Trumps of Côte d'Ivoire (ASMT-CI) is a non-governmental organization composed of owners, practitioners and supporters, its mission has been to work under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture to safeguard and perpetuate the Gbofe but its actions seem still limited. In addition, a contract was signed between UNESCO and the Cote d’Ivoire National Commission for UNESCO, for a safeguarding project’s implementation in 2013[4]. After some negotiations the The Secretariat was obliged to cancel the contract and request reimbursement of the advance as no nomination file was submitted within the statutory time-limits but the subject is still on the table. More efforts has to be done so that younger generations can know that one part of their identity through the Gbofe. Sources [1]. <a href="http://www.angelineyegnan.org/le-gbofe/ retrieved 2022.4.1">http://www.angelineyegnan.org/le-gbofe/ retrieved 2022.4.1</a> [2]. ibid (by Angeline Yegnan) [3]. Angeline Yegnan's full Biography <a href="https://www.iremus.cnrs.fr/fr/doctorants/angeline-gninwoyo-yegnan-toure retreived 2022.3.30"> https://www.iremus.cnrs.fr/fr/doctorants/angeline-gninwoyo-yegnan-toure retreived 2022.3.30</a> [4]. <a href="https://ich.unesco.org/en/assistances/-00292 retrieved 2022.4.4"> https://ich.unesco.org/en/assistances/-00292 retrieved 2022.4.4</a>

Zaouli, cultural heritage of Côte d’Ivoire

Zaouli 1. Summary Zaouli is a folk music and dance performed in the Guro community living in Buaflé and Zuénoula cities, in the western center part of Cote d’Ivoire. More specifically, the Gnan community of Goitafla, the Man community of Manfla and Minigui, and the Wadjè village of Buaflé and Bogopinfla. These communities belong to the southern Mandé ethnic language group. Major related villages include Zrabisseifla, Bléfla, Mangfla, Marminigwi, Tibeita, Dianfla, and Buafla. People from these communities, regardless age or gender difference have a deep relationship with the Zaouli heritage, and have been carrying it throughout their lives since they were very young. The mask dance is practiced not only during joyful ceremonies but also for funerals and rituals. 2. Origins of Zaouli In most african countries, the belief in the existence of two dominant worlds( the physical world and the spiritual or metaphysical world) have a deep influence on people’s everyday life, so on the morals and cultural practises. In fact, there are two types dance: the masked (or hidden) dance and the unmasked (or exposed) dance. The first one concerns the Zaouli of the Guro population in Cote d’Ivoire, which is a dance that used a masked and special wearing technic. There are several masked dances that represents Guro people’s culture such as Djéla, Flaly, Bei Péénin (Bgopinfla village), Pawè (Tibéita village) but Zaouli (Zrabisseifla village) stays the most famous in that part of Cote d’Ivoire. The origins of Zaouli vary form one source to another, but we can summarise them in two types of considerations. The first one is based on a more spirit-oriented legend and the second one on factual creative and cultural act. 2.1 the zaouli legend[1] The myth around the creation of Zaouli gives usan explanation about his of name: Djèla Lou Zahouli which mean Zaouli, Djela’s daughter. In fact the Zaouli dancer who wears the mask is man but representing a feminine figure. Zah was the only daughter of a man. Her magical beauty impressed the whole community to the point that her fame went beyond the borders of her region of origin (Zara bi Sehifla/Gohitafla). The whole region thus seduced by this admirable beauty spoke of Zah appreciatively and permanently. However, one day, after a short illness, Zah suddenly died. This dramatic situation which makes his father (Djèla) unhappy and inconsolable to the point that everywhere he went, he cried for his deceased daughter. She was buried in pain because no one wanted to part with her. But the most painful, was for him to meet other young girls in the village. Like an haunted person, the sight of those girls always brought back memories of Zah. He mourned her everywhere: in the village, at the camp, in the backwater, while hunting, etc. One day, during a hunting trip, he began to cry profusely and was inconsolable. He wept so much that his daughter's (returning) spirit appeared to him in the form of a snake. This consoled him. However, to make him stop crying for good, the snake vomits up seven masks with the effigy of the face of Zah, his deceased daughter. The snake later revealed to him that these masks should be the subject of a dance, the future Djèla Lou Zahouli. This is why he also showed the dance steps. 2.2 Contemporary origins The contempory history of the Guro population places the creation of Zaouli around 1950s by a group of seven friends, among them Sonnin Bi Tah called Wonninla, KOUAHI Bi Vohizié the fisrt Zaouli dancer and leader and KOUAHI Bi Dueh Jean-Piere, the only one still alive[2]. According to Zamble Bi Zamble Gaspard[3], one day, on the occasion of a funeral ceremony in Zirifla (Zuénoula) as usual, these seven friends, plus many other people from Zara Bi Sehifla, went to Zirifla to take an active part in funerals. During these, a mask named Blou (hernia in the Gouro language) will particularly mark them thanks to his legendary performance and his talent. But Blou is a hideous-faced mask that contrasts with the talent he shows. The seven friends therefore decide to found the same dance in their village Zara Bi Séhifla, with the difference that they will change the morphology of the mask by carving it with the effigy of a woman named Klanin (small basin). These masks were three at the start: Zahouli Lou Klanin, Zahouli Lou Monhon, Zaleklou having a hawk and a snake on his head. After carving the first three masks, they will spend a year and six months in the bush to learn the dance steps and the rhythms of the orchestration. It is after this initiation that they will make their first performance in the public square of the village. On the designation of the mask, according to the informant, the Zahouli mask was so named by what is considered the eldest daughter of Djèla. Subsequently, they will complete the first three masks, with four others: Zamblé, Gou, Bognan Lou Zeli and Mami Watta who carries on her head seven snakes being seduced by this water goddess herself. Thus, the implementation and final fixing of the codes of Djèla Lou Zahouli was completed. 3. The Zaouli dance When the mask must occur because all these conditions are met (co-presence of the mask, the orchestra and the public), he goes out, sits down and naturally waits for the orchestra to give him the alert. The orchestra is composed by more than ten musicians who plays five different kind of tambour (flihin blin, Djéhimba, Klaglé, Krinnin krinin, Poho, Tombalo, Flinhin wouhokounzan, etc.) and three flutes called Beli[4]. The lead singer, a member of the orchestra, sings the first song. This song is taken up in chorus first by the other members of the orchestra. When the mask comes, his guide (Zaouli Zouhozanki) first put off the headscarf (locally called pagne) that covers not only the head by all the upper side of the body. The Zaouli dance is based the slipping technic The mask performs extremely fast dance steps and rhythms by the flutes of the orchestra. In fact some sources count it among the most impossible dances in the word[5]. Before its classification as World Heritage, The best of them, which were auditioned by a UNESCO jury, one of the best Zaouli dancer’s foot steps were timed at more than 200 steps per minute[6]. The mask must be original and imaginative while executing the dance steps. He must never do the same things twice at the risk of being discredited. Several dancers can follow one another and compete their talents in front of the public which appreciates. It is a parade of seven different masks that dance in turn. The subject in the songs relates either to proverbs, to the Guro cosmogony or to legends. The Zaouli is a total art combining music and dance, weaving, mask and costume. 4. The mask and his costume From one village to another the pieces of the costumes remain the same but the colors and their textures can change. the costumes rely entirely on the dancer. He wears stockings and sleeves. His head completely hidden by the mask. He wears a raffia skirt and a loincloth attached to the mask covers the upper body. His hands hold fly swatters in an ox tail. The dancer has bells attached to his ankles, below which are also attached raffia fibers. The mask represents a face often surmounted by figures of animals such as snakes, panthers, birds, characters or ram's horns. 4.1 The snake The circular serpent plays a fundamental role in the semanticization of the myth and in the relationship it establishes between the past and the present. The myth of Zaouli informs that it was in the form of a snake that the ghost, the nyama, the double of the young girl appeared to her inconsolable father. This variety of snake is likened to the rainbow. In the mentality of the Gouro, the rainbow is the celestial representation of this serpent. The reminder of the genesis and the strong acts that marked it reappear in this myth where the snake is in full complicity with the young girl (gouro reincarnation of Eve?). However, when appearing, the serpent presents itself in two fundamental aspects: the circular shape; rainbow snake. First, the circular shape naturally recalls the circle. It is this shape that the sculptors take up when carving the mask. In his presentation, the Zahouli always has a smiling face, surrounded by a circular snake which holds in front of him a bird which he does not eat. 4.2 The Bird The revelation of the pigeon as the Zahouli's eternal companion is that the bird's locomotion system allows it to go in all directions and at high altitude. Pigeons travel. They are migratory birds that travel thousands of kilometers sometimes going from one continent to another and crossing oceans. This mask has traveled all over the world, traveling all continents and participating in most festivals where the most representative Negro-African arts have been invited. The Zahouli de Tibéita (Bouaflé) has been released on May 2004 in the United States of America where he participated in the Negro Arts Festival entitled “Memphis in May”. As we can see, the Zahouli actually travels around the world spreading its initial spirit: life. 5. Zaouli in the world’s culture In 2015, The British-Sri Lankan rapper Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam known by her stage name M.I.A. included a clip of a Zaouli dancer in her music video for the song "Warrior"[7], released as part of the video Matahdatah Scroll 01: Broader Than A Border. the Zaouli of Manfla was released in November 2017 in South Korea on the occasion of the elevation of Zaouli by UNESCO as an element of world heritage. From that time foreward Ivorian traditional music has been promoted in South Korea through an African dance team named AMENE, which permitted mixed representation of Korean Pop music and Zaouli. It is the K-pop girl group Nature that released In 2022, a music video for their single "Rica Rica", featuring choreography which is heavily inspired by the Zaouli dance[8]. The group was trained by a Djembe master KONATE Ibrahim who plays an important role for the ivoirian culutre in Asia and South Korea. In 2018, the Zaouli dance was presented at the Ohio University World Music & Dance Concert[9] in USA. In addition, a popular video that includes the song "Bungee Jump" by electronic music artists Captain Hook & Astrix utilizes footage of Zaouli dancers[10]. Sources [1].TOUOUI BI IRIE ERNEST Professor at Félix Houphouët- Boigny University <a href="https://www.fratmat.info/article/86132/63/connaissance-du-zahouli-un-moment-d-instruction-sur-le-masque-et-sa-prestation-a-travers-des-cles-d-appreciation. retrieved on March 23 2022"> https://www.fratmat.info/article/86132/63/connaissance-du-zahouli-un-moment-d-instruction-sur-le-masque-et-sa-prestation-a-travers-des-cles-d-appreciation. retrieved on March 23 2022</a> [2]. <A la decouverte de Zaouli>, a report of NCI channel (Nouvelle chaine Ivoirenne), 2020.11.4. nenws of 7:50 pm <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfTn6nhh9_8 watched on March 22nd 2022">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfTn6nhh9_8 watched on March 22nd 2022 </a> [3].Oral source informant for TOUOUI BI IRIE ERNEST Professor at Félix Houphouët- Boigny University. <a href="https://www.fratmat.info/article/86132/63/connaissance-du-zahouli-un-moment-d-instruction-sur-le-masque-et-sa-prestation-a-travers-des-cles-d-appreciation. retrieved on March 23rd 2022)> https://www.fratmat.info/article/86132/63/connaissance-du-zahouli-un-moment-d-instruction-sur-le-masque-et-sa-prestation-a-travers-des-cles-d-appreciation. retrieved on March 23rd 2022) [4]. <a href="https://heritage.unesco.or.kr/%EC%9E%90%EC%9A%B8%EB%A6%AC-%EC%BD%94%ED%8A%B8%EB%94%94%EB%B6%80%EC%95%84%EB%A5%B4-%EA%B5%AC%EB%A1%9C-%EA%B3%B5%EB%8F%99%EC%B2%B4%EC%9D%98-%EB%8C%80%EC%A4%91%EC%9D%8C%EC%95%85%EA%B3%BC-%EC%B6%A4/ retrived 2022.3.25."> https://heritage.unesco.or.kr/%EC%9E%90%EC%9A%B8%EB%A6%AC-%EC%BD%94%ED%8A%B8%EB%94%94%EB%B6%80%EC%95%84%EB%A5%B4-%EA%B5%AC%EB%A1%9C-%EA%B3%B5%EB%8F%99%EC%B2%B4%EC%9D%98-%EB%8C%80%EC%A4%91%EC%9D%8C%EC%95%85%EA%B3%BC-%EC%B6%A4/ retrived 2022.3.25.</a> [5]. <a href="https://cuitandokter.com/ by otosection (most impossible dance in the world). retrived 2022.3.25."> https://cuitandokter.com/ by otosection (most impossible dance in the world). retrived 2022.3.25.</a> [6]. <a href="fr.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaouli, (our translation form french) retrieved 2022.03.21.">fr.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaouli, (our translation form french) retrieved 2022.03.21.</a> [7]. <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/watch-m-i-a-s-matahdatah-video-featuring-new-124014565431.html retrieved 2022.3.23."> https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/watch-m-i-a-s-matahdatah-video-featuring-new-124014565431.html retrieved 2022.3.23.</a> [8]. 맹선미 기자. 네이처 ‘RICA RICA’ 특별 퍼포맨스 영상… 아프리카 댄스와 자울리춤 컬래버. 비즈엔터 <a href="http://enter.etoday.co.kr/view/news_view.php?varAtcId=219356 retrieved 2022.3.25."> http://enter.etoday.co.kr/view/news_view.php?varAtcId=219356 retrieved 2022.3.25.</a> [9]. <a href="https://www.ohio.edu/news/archive/stories_17-18_03_world-dance-music-festival-2018.cfm retrieved 2022.3.24"> https://www.ohio.edu/news/archive/stories_17-18_03_world-dance-music-festival-2018.cfm retrieved 2022.3.24</a> [10]. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQXIDmb99uY retrieved 2022.3.25."> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQXIDmb99uY retrieved 2022.3.25.</a> Recommended videos 1. Folklore gouro, Cote d'Ivoire, (Glozran1) 2. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M512glKnl64">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M512glKnl64 </a> [코트디브아르 아프리카 이야기] 페스티벌 마사 Festival MASA 'Zaouli' 3. NATURE(네이처) X AMENE - RICA RICA Behind <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my77ACUKZWg">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my77ACUKZWg </a>

Resources for Scholars in Danger (Ukraine)

The American Folklore Society (AFS) has been working with member Iryna Voloshyna to assist colleagues in Ukraine who request cloud storage for backups of field research materials. We presently have over 50 individuals in Ukraine connected to a secure folder within a dedicated storage drive for this work. We've been working this week to expand our capacity for storage and security needs by working with a group of partners on this effort. If you have colleagues in Ukraine who need our support, they can reach out to us on this page: https://americanfolkloresociety.org/afs-condemns-the-war-in-ukraine-and-stands-with-all-who-oppose-this-violence/.On the page listed above are ways individuals can get involved, including donating money to relief orgs and working with host institutions to house refugees. Scholars at Risk is actively seeking host organizations for scholar placement. https://www.scholarsatrisk.org/get-involved-institutions/Some of our partners in our fieldwork backup storage work are at the Ukrainian A

ONLINE EVENT: Apply to the Fund of the 2003 Convention for the safeguarding of the ICH / ÉVÉNEMENT EN LIGNE : Faire une demande au Fonds de la Convention de 2003 pour la sauvegarde du PCI

The Living Heritage Entity presents the online event ‘Apply to the Fund of the 2003 Convention for the safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage’ which will take place in March 2022.  Three information sessions are organized to present the International Assistance mechanism of the 2003 Convention, the modalities and the process of application. In addition, the Toolkit for requesting International Assistance from the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage will be presented. This guideline introduces key concepts of the Convention, the criteria for receiving funding and how to plan and monitor projects.To participate, please register for one of the following sessions:·       22 March 2022 from 9:00 to 11:00 (Paris time): Presentation of international assistance for the Asia and Pacific region. Interpretation will be available in French and English. Link to register: https://unesco-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUpde6oqDgjE92Xb9pumsRLX-wb9reH4DHK·       24 March 2022 from

The Fellows of the American Folklore Society webinar, “Interrogating the Normal: Folkloristic Engagements with Disability,”

Folklore and Disability Webinar - March 15th The Fellows of the American Folklore Society will present a webinar, “Interrogating the Normal: Folkloristic Engagements with Disability,” on March 25, 2022, 12:00–2:00 pm EDT. This free webinar is the first in a series of three webinars on the topic of “Interrogating the Normal” and is part of a continuation of the Folklore Talks webinars presented by the AFS Fellows.Folklore opens new vistas for understanding what counts as normal. Studies of disability by folklorists are especially provocative for their critiques of ableism, challenging concepts of cultural competence.Phyllis May-Machunda (Professor Emerita of American Multicultural Studies at Minnesota State University Moorhead) will discuss her experiences as a parent of a child with a disability/illness through the lens of a folklorist and will consider intersections among folklore and disability.Nora Groce (the Cheshire Chair at University College London (UCL)) will consider folklore and disability as import

2022 JIAPICH Application Open for Download

Dear ICH Community, The secretariat of Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (JIAPICH) welcomes the international ICH community to join the 4th annual Jeonju ICH Awards.  The awards are open to Living Human Treasures (practitioners), groups, communities, administrators, researchers, NGOs and those who have made substantial contributions for promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage. 2022 JIAPICH Plaque(s) & $30,000 USD will be prized to the JIAPICH Finalist(s). The 2022 Jeonju Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage application is open for download at the jiapaich.org website starting February 1.  Important Dates:February 1, 2022: Open to download 2022 JIAPICH applicationMarch 1, 2022: Start of the application submissionMay 31, 2022: Submission due date for the applicationAugust 1, 2022: The 2022 JIAPICH Finalists AnnouncedSeptember (dates TBD): The 2022 JIAPICH Awards Ceremony / Zoom ICH Festival Please visit: www.jiapich.org for more information. ---------------------

Publication of the Evaluation of UNESCO’s Action in the framework of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage

This second evaluation focussing on the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (hereafter the 2003 Convention) marks the first follow-up exercise to the cycle of Internal Oversight Service evaluations of UNESCO’s six culture conventions. The main purpose of this 2021 evaluation was to generate findings, lessons learned, and recommendations regarding the relevance and effectiveness of UNESCO’s action in the framework of the 2003 Convention.As the second youngest UNESCO Culture Convention, the 2003 Convention has been one of the most successful, not only because it has reached nearly universal ratification only fifteen years after entering into force, but especially because it has succeeded in raising awareness of the distinct nature and importance of intangible cultural heritage. Stakeholders attribute this achievement largely to the Convention’s Representative List as well as to UNESCO’s vast capacity building programme.At the same time, the 2003 Convention has been a victim of its own success. As demand for UNESCO support grows, the Secretariat is unable to adequately respond to all requests and has had to give precedence to statutory work over important priorities that include strengthening capacity building and policy guidance as well as managing and communicating on the considerable amounts of knowledge generated around the Convention. Strategic decisions on priorities, particularly on the need to focus on programme support versus statutory requirements and on use of its limited resources will need to be made in the near future. Evaluation of UNESCO’s action in the framework of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Link: <a href="https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000380015?2=null&queryId=2c4a5731-c4a2-4ff4-bfe3-884155eb8fee">https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000380015?2=null&queryId=2c4a5731-c4a2-4ff4-bfe3-884155eb8fee</a>

CICS Interview Series

The Center for Intangible Culture Studies in Korea's YouTube channel provides contents that are both educational and inspiring to those in the field of heritage studies. The CICS Interview Series was started in 2021 with the idea around recording ICH experts around the world that can be informative to those in research, academia, and with interest in the field of ICH. The latest interviewee is Professor Laurier Turgeon of Lavar University in Quebec, Canada, who is also the president of the steering committee of the 2022 ICH NGO Forum. Check out the interview through YouTube link below! CICS Interview Series: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHx4_DBXCKo&t=1574s">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHx4_DBXCKo&t=1574s</a>

The Composition of the new Steering Committee for 2021-2022

Executive positions of the Steering Committee for 2021-2022(from top left to bottow right in the photo):Mr. Martín Andrade- Pérez, Mr. Laurier Turgeon, Mr. Sekou Berte, Mr. Mohammed Mohamed Lemine Beidieu,  Ms. Janet Blake,  Mr. Robert Baron, and Ms. Tamara Nikolic Deric (on the separate photo). Laurier Turgeon, - President Janet Blake – Vice President Robert Baron – Secretary Martín Andrade- Pérez - Treasurer.  Steering Committee 2020 - 2021 Western Europe and North America: Mr. Laurier Turgeon - Folklore Studies Association of Canada (Canada) - President Eastern Europe: Ms. Tamara Nikolic Deric – Association House of Batana (Croatia) Latin America and the Caribbean: Mr. Martín Andrade- Pérez- Erigaie Foundation (Colombia) - Treasurer Asia and the Pacific: Ms. Janet Blake – Persian Garden Institute for Living Heritage - (Islamic Republic of Iran) – Vice President Africa:  Mr. Sekou Berte - Mali Cultural Heritage Agency (Mali) -- Responsable for CommunicationsArab States:  Mr. Mohammed Mohamed Lemine Beidieu

The results of the third call for Arab States, Eastern Europe and Latin America

The voting for ICH NGO Forum Steering Committee Elections will be held online on December 14 2021 and December 15 until noon Paris time (GMT+1:00).A voting link will be sent to one designated email for each accredited NGO.Please click here to fill up the designated email id for your NGO  using an online form. Please complete this before December 13, 2021 08:00 PM Paris time (GMT+ 1:00) Only NGOs who submit email id through this form will get a voting link.The presentation of the candidates for the elections will be held Monday 13 December online at 17h30-19h30 Paris time (GMT+1:00)Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89211424568?pwd=bGI1NWlkSEIzcnBxWVBPeUw5Wm40dz09Meeting ID: 892 1142 4568Passcode: 584051The candidates elected will be announced on Wednesday 15 December during the General Assembly of the ICH NGO Forum, at 17h30-19h30 Paris time (GMT+1:00)Link: https://unesco-org.zoom.us/j/98667893587Passcode: 536809List of candidates and application files:Africa (Group V a):- M. Sekou Berte, Mali Cultural Heritage

2021 Jeonju ICH Awards

Watch the 2021 Jeonju ICH Awards: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aLNij99bBI&t=1320s">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aLNij99bBI&t=1320s</a> Watch the 2021 Jeonju ICH Zoom Festival:<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7lM8VCY4zU&t=289s">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7lM8VCY4zU&t=289s</a>

2003 Convention: 16.COM Information on registration and election / 16.COM Informations sur les enregistrements et elections

Following my previous message on 3 December last regarding the fully online meeting modality of the upcoming sixteenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (13–18 December 2021), I would like to provide further information on the following three aspects:1.          Registration for the 16.COM Information and exchange session (10 December 2021)2.          Registration for the 16.COM (13 to 18 December 2021)3.          Voting by secret ballotShould you have queries, please contact the Secretariat at ichmeetings@unesco.org.Yours sincerely,Tim CurtisSecretary, Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage1.          Registration for the 16.COM Information and exchange session (10 December 2021 - 2.00 to 3.00 p.m., Paris time)An Information and exchange session will be held through the Zoom platform on Friday, 10 December 2021 from 2.00 to 3.00 p.m (Paris time). The purpose of the meeting will be to introduce, in the presence of t

Survey on Article 21

Please visit the mentioned site below for the Survey on Article 21:--- English version below ----Chers représentants des ONG accréditées auprès de la Convention de 2003,Nous, membres du groupe de travail ad hoc sur l'article 21 de la section IV des statuts du Forum des ONG du PCI, aimerions vous présenter ci-dessous un bref questionnaire complété par des informations générales pour votre lecture.Lien vers le questionnaire en français : https://forms.gle/XnhPD6dpmHztqVXh8Merci beaucoup pour votre collaboration !---------------------------------------------Dear Representatives of the accredited NGOs to the 2003 Convention,We, members of the Ad hoc working group on Article 21 of Section IV of the ICH NGO Forum Bylaws, would like to present a short questionnaire supplemented by background information for your perusal below.Link to questionnaire in English: https://forms.gle/Pz6DNgqmZroWvHnN9Thank you very much for your collaboration.

Editorial Board Meeting #HeritageAlive Chaired by Eivind Falk (Norwegian Crafts Institute)

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89211424568?pwd=bGI1NWlkSEIzcnBxWVBPeUw5Wm40dz09  Meeting ID: 892 1142 4568 Passcode: 584051 (All times indicated are Paris time (GMT+1:00)  Tuesday 14 December   13h15-14h15 #HeritageAlive Meeting Chaired by Eivind Falk (Norwegian Crafts Institute)

PROGRAMME FOR THE ICH NGO FORUM (16COM 2021)

All meetings will be held online. Please find attached the final programme of the ICH NGO Forum activities during the week of the 12th to the 18th of December.PROGRAMME FOR THE ICH NGO FORUM (16COM 2021) The ICH NGO FORUM meetings during 16COM will all be held online.Participants may access the meetings online at their convenience throughout the week by clicking on this Zoom link:https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89211424568?pwd=bGI1NWlkSEIzcnBxWVBPeUw5Wm40dz09 Meeting ID: 892 1142 4568Passcode: 584051(All times indicated are Paris time (GMT+1:00) Saturday 4 December 13h30-18h00Online workshop to present an overview of the 2003 Convention, the role of NGOs, the ICH NGO Forum and the programme and participation at 16COM.The workshop is especially geared to respond to the needs and questions of the newly accredited NGOs, but we welcome all NGOs interested in keeping up with recent developments and wanting first-hand information to better prepare for 16COM.French language session: 13h30-15h00 (Paris time) (Led by Laurie

PROGRAMME FOR THE ICH NGO FORUM (16COM 2021)

Dear ICH NGO Forum members, We are writing to inform you that all of the ICH NGO Forum meetings will be held online. The Secretariat of the ICH Convention advised us yesterday of this decision. We are currently revising the programme of activities to adapt it to this new situation. Please be advised that we will maintain all of the planned activities (symposium on Sunday from 1:00 to 4:00 PM Paris time, Monday evening election speeches, AGA on Wednesday, and working group meetings during the week). The only difference is that the time slots may change slightly in order to adapt to the changes in the ICG meeting schedule, which should be sent to us tomorrow. We aim to send you the revised final programme of the ICH NGO Forum meetings as soon as possible, hopefully tomorrow, Friday 3 December. We thank you for your patience and understanding in these challenging times. The Steering CommitteeICH NGO Forum

[ASK-Y] Session 4: Why Can't We Understand Each Other?

November 22, 2021 — Following our previous session, "Why is the Earth Sick? | The New Disruptors: Climate and Environment," Asia Society Korea invites you to the fourth session of our Asia Society Korea Youth (ASK-Y) program on culture, entertainment, and media. Asia Society Korea Executive Director Yvonne Kim invites Bernie Cho, President of DFSB Kollective, Dr. Amareswar Galla, UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museums and Sustainable Heritage Development at Anant University, and Shinwha Hong, Researcher at the Center for Intangible Culture Studies (CICS), to discuss culture as a moderating lens for relating to society and the world, and our behavior as individuals and nation-states. Through the lived experiences of global emerging leaders and experts across the cultural heritage and the entertainment industry, we explore the importance of cultural awareness on both micro and macro scales. The ASK-Y session will spotlight the unique role of youth as bridge builders for cultural exchanges and the importance of deep

Call for Candidates for the Steering Committee Only for accredited NGOs

Call for Candidates for the Steering Committee Only for accredited NGOs (French version follows / La version française suit) Dear NGO members, The Electoral Board is pleased to launch the call for candidates for the ICH NGO Forum Steering Committee. The four newly elected members shall represent the regions of Eastern Europe, Africa, Arab States, Latin America and Caribbean. The Electoral Board calls interested accredited NGOs to submit their candidature in accordance with the electoral rules and guidelines attached. Applications shall be submitted no later than November 5, 2021 (Midnight, Eastern Daylight Time), to the members of the Electoral Board listed below, using the application form attached duly completed and including a one or two page curriculum vitae outlining ICH related experiences and one paragraph on Objective/Agenda/Statement of Purpose for applying for candidature. The election will take place online using online voting application on December 13 and December 14, 2021. The results will be an

2019 JIAPICH Finalist- Contact Base of India

Secretary: Ananya Bhattacharya (Ms) Country: India NGO Region: Asia & the Pacific Main Domain: Traditional art, craft skills / revitalize ICH as a shared resource for community based creative enterprise. Art for Life (AFL) Contacts Address: 188/89, Prince Anwar Shah Road, Kolkata – 700045, India E-mail: ananya@banglanatak.com Website: www.banglanatak.com Tel: +91 9830173382 * About Contact Base Contact Base is a not for profit working under the trading style of banglanatak dot com. The organization was set up by social entrepreneurs working for inclusive and pro-poor development. Owing to rapid changes in lifestyle, much of our intangible cultural heritage is getting lost owing to lack of audience. The skills in art and craft, traditional knowledge on nature are not recognized as employable skills in conventional developmental paradigm. It was realized that loss of opportunity to perform and practice was resulting in loss of skills and the tradition bearers were becoming daily wage earners, triggering a vicious cycle of social exclusion and marginalization. To address these challenges the organization started the Art for Life initiative in 2004 with a vision to synergize cultural and economic development. The objective was to revive and revitalize ICH as a shared resource for community based creative enterprise. Contact Base is accredited to the UNESCO 2003 ICH Committee (since 2010) and is in Special Consultative Status with UN ECOSOC (since 2013). It has partnership with UNWTO to promote responsible cultural tourism. It also has national partnership with UNESCO office at Delhi for replication of its Art for Life model for safeguarding ICH. Art for Life (AFL) is the flagship initiative of Contact Base which safeguards intangible cultural heritage by empowering the tradition bearers to develop micro economies based on traditional art and craft skills. Initiated in 2004, Art for Life has led to revitalization of 30+ art and craft traditions of eastern India and socio economically empowered 28000+ families of folk dancers, singers, theatre groups, storytellers, mat weavers and crafts persons. Safeguarding activities undertaken include inventorying, documentation, revitalizing the skill transmission process, capacity building for developing creative enterprise and supporting new innovations, heritage education, awareness generation through festivals and events to create new audience and facilitation of direct market linkage. Art for Life works at three levels, art, artist and village. The art form is safeguarded through documentation, strengthening of skill transmission and promotion. The artists are empowered to professionalise their skills, reach out to audiences through stronger networks and innovate for contemporary audience. Ecosystem is developed in villages of tradition bearers so that they become destinations for heritage education and tourism.

2020 JIAPICH Finalist- NGO Impacto of Mexico

NGO Impacto was created in order to reduce poverty and inequality in Mexico beginning with the state of Chiapas. The main focus is to increase incomes for people living in the communities of the Highlands of Chiapas. NGO Impacto work in economic sectors that are relevant to the local economy, as well as in priority areas like education, gender equity and social communication, in order to improve quality of life of the people living in these communities. Impacto creates the links between those who produce the goods and conscientious consumers, thus generating sustainable development in the state of Chiapas. The main objective of our Textile Program is to promote the integral development of the Mayan women artisans. To do this, we have a team specialized in different areas that facilitates human development, technical production and business development. IMPACTO is educating, creating awareness, and promoting the protection of intangible heritage of Mayan communities in Mexico. They are leading protocols that may help protect them, the Heritage, and they plan to reach the new governmental agencies to push for a change in law for the protection of collective rights starting 2019. Impacto is 2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage Finalist.

2020 JIAPICH Finalist- Mr. Hieu Duc Vu, Director of Muong Cultural Space Museum of Vietnam

The Muong people is one of among 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam living in the mountains with a population of over one million people. With Mr. Vu's interest in the Muong culture, he founded the first private in Vietnam called Museum of Muong Cultural Space in 2007 in Hoa Binh province. The process of developing museum halls and exhibitions, and deploying the activities, Mr. Vu collaborated with representatives of the Muong practitioners to revitalize their intangible cultural elements and support their practices and performances. i) Mr. Vu created and developed this museum in close collaboration with the Muong people. He thus communicated with diverse agents such as Muong community people, experts, artists, NGOs, local and central government authorities. The funding resources for the creation and development of the museum come from his personal resources gained from the sales of his artistic works. ii) Mr. Vu’s principal objective in his activities of the museum has been to ensure the viability of the traditional cultures of Muong people. He thus has undertaken the activities related to identification, revitalization, transmission and education, promotion of ICH elements of Muong peoples. In order to allow him to undertake these activities, he has been very active in fund raising. iii) Thanks to the tireless efforts of Mr. Vu, many elements of ICH of Muong people, such as traditional housing, traditional performing arts, traditional cultural practices and traditional handicrafts have become sustainable. Mr. Hieu Duc Vu is 2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage Finalist.

2020 JIAPICH Finalist- ASAMA of Burkina Faso

Brief about ASAMA ASAMA is a non-profit association with a pan-African vocation. ASAMA was originally created in 1995 by a group of students convinced and concerned about the future of masks threatened by the numerous vices and excesses of modern society (neglect, abandonment, etc.) and wishing to support the societies of traditional masks in order to safeguard this heritage in danger. It was legally recognized as a non-profit organization by the Government of Burkina Faso in 1996. Its primary mandate is ① to promote research and assist in the safeguarding, promotion and preservation of African mask traditions, ② to urge and facilitate the cooperation between governments, national and international organizations and individuals interested in the preservation of traditional masks and mask performances, and ③ to drive governments to develop preservation policies of their mask traditions and fight against the looting of the cultural resources. ASAMA is led by two councils which are the ‘Board of the Fund for the safeguarding of masks’ and the ‘Council of the Institution’ ASAMA is accredited to the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for ICH since 2012 and has been elected as a member of the Evaluation Body for 2019-2022. ASAMA of Burkina Faso is 2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage Finalist

Announcement of the 2021 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage

Announcement of the 2021 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage We express our sincere gratitude to all applicants for the 2021 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage. We recognize and deeply appreciate what you and your organizations have achieved with respect to the safeguarding and revitalization of ICH. The selection process was very challenging as all applicants demonstrated good practices for the safeguarding ICH with courage and lofty spirit. Only three applicants (individuals and organizations) were selected as finalists from 44 applicants from 29 countries on six continents. Jeonju City announces the following three finalist candidates for public verification as the final process for the 2021 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage. The finalist candidates are as follows: - Mr. Dil Kumar Barahai: Naya of Barahi Da Guthi (Individual: Nepal: Asia-Pacific Region) - El Fèlze (Organization: Italy: Europe-N

Digital ICH Observatory

The Digital ICH Observatory aims to produce: organise and analyse information about e-Inventories of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). A network to share knowledge and practices about ICH that is on the web. ICH meetings: Global reflection on the ICH listing mechanism July 8-10: 2021 Digital Meetings: Leading the Digital Decade June 1-2: 2021 Digital Heritage Conference: CIDOC 2021: tradition and digital technology September 6-10: 2021 ICH and Memory Call: Call 2021/ MEMORIAMEDIA Review is indexed in ERIH PLUS - the European Reference Index for the Humanities and Social Sciences. Click on the link to find out more: https://mailchi.mp/3e937d570673/digital-ich-observatory-newsletter-13743231

Singapore Hawker Culture: A Webinar Series Hawker Culture and Social Spaces in Singapore

Hawker Culture reflects a living heritage that resonates with people from all walks of life in Singapore. In celebration of the successful inscription of Hawker Culture onto the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage: the National Heritage Board will be organizing a webinar series on Hawker Culture. This second and final session of the Webinar series explores the relationships between Hawker culture and Social Spaces in Singapore: and how they can play a role in promoting community identity and fostering inter-cultural understanding and appreciation in Singapore's context. Please click on the poster to join the Zoom conference through QR code.

JIAPICH Finalist Colloquium

Dear ICH community: On behlaf of Jeonju City: we are inviting the ICH community to join us for the Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (JIAPICH) Finalist Colloquium. For the the continued growth of the JIAPICH: the Jeonju City invited previous finalists to engage in dialogue with ICH experts and bearers. The JIAPICH Colloquium is scheduled to be held on May 13th: 11 PM Korean Time (GMT+9). For more information please contact cics.center@gmail.com Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88595280717 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9lAfs9ABS5c08BeoUWb34w Best regards: 2021 JIAPICH Secretariat

INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE for Sustainable Management of HISTORIC TOWNS in South Asia: Theory to Practice

ICOMOS India is orgaising an e-SYMPOSIUM on INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE for Sustainable Management of HISTORIC TOWNS in South Asia: Theory to Practice. Spaced across 5 events from May-July2021, experts and emerging professionals from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will exchange knowledge and practices. For more details, you may see the video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr3tIY76JQA">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr3tIY76JQA.</a> Please register in advance for this webinar series/event: <a href="https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUkcuusqTwvE9GcAUZWGeuE-zrSFgVvGbCz">https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUkcuusqTwvE9GcAUZWGeuE-zrSFgVvGbCz</a>

National Level Seven Hills dance festival

NAMASTHE ;- OUR CULTURAL ORGANISATION SRI SAI NATYANJALI FINE ARTS DEVELOPENNT ASSOCIATION ORGANISED INDIAN ALL TRADITIONAL DANCE: CULTURAL PROGRAMMES LIKE kUCHIPUDI: BHARATANATYAM :MANIPURI: KATHAKKALI: KATHAK:ODISSI: FOLK ETC: NOW WE PLANNINMG NATIONAL LEVEL SEVEN HILLS DANCE FESTIVAL FAMOUS TEMPLE OF LORD SRI VENKATESWARA SWAMY AT THIRUPATHI : CHITTOR DIST OF ANDHRAPRADESH: INDIA: DATES : 26-27 JUNE 2021 History & Legends Associated with the THIRUMALA Temple There are many legends associated with the origin of this age-old temple. The larger than life statue of the main deity is said to have formed on its own: making it one of the eight ‘Swayambhu Kshetras’ (self-manifested image) of Lord Vishnu. Many ancient texts: including the Rig Veda mention the existence and prominence of the temple. Written texts: which are dated back to the Mauryan and Gupta era: refer the temple as ‘Aadhi Varaha Kshetra’. In fact: many other texts and theories link the history of Tirupati Temple to Lord Varaha: one of the t

Art of crafting and playing Mbira/Sansi, the finger-plucking traditional musical instrument in Malawi and Zimbabwe

The Mbira/Sansi instrument are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal tines, played by holding the instrument in the hands and plucking the tines with the thumbs (at minimum), the right forefinger (most mbira), and sometimes the left forefinger. Musicologists classify it as a lamellaphone, part of the plucked idiophone family of musical instruments. The "Art of crafting and playing Mbira/Sansi, the finger-plucking traditional musical instrument in Malawi and Zimbabwe" was added to the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2020. The transmission has occurred through apprenticeship within the family circle. Currently, transmission also takes place through formal coaching, and Mbira/Sansi making and playing is taught in some schools. The songs contain important messages, with some guarding children against bad behavior while others condemn negative behavior in the community for example.

Khaen music of the Lao people

Khaen music of the Lao is played through a mouth organ whose pipes, often made out of hollowed out bamboo and put together to be blown to make sound. The mouthpiece where the air is blown by the player acts as a free reed creating audible vibrations that are perceived by the listener. The player also uses his or her fingers to guide the Nup holes that allow for different sounds to be derived. Khaen music is popular in all regions of Lao and is an integral part of village festivals and can be found played in traditional customary practices of the Lao people. Traditionally, Khaen of Lao is transmitted within families and local communities where the Khaen player learns about the musical instrument. To allow for the proliferation of Khaen, several local communities, associations and groups have various initiatives to promote it through formal and non-formal education. Khaen music of the Lao people was inscribed to the UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage and the Register of good safeguarding practices in 2017.

Announcement of the 3rd annual Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible cultural Heritage (JIAPICH)

Friends of the International ICH community: Greetings: the third annual Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (JIAPICH) has been elaborately prepared and the long-awaited awards ceremony will be held in September 2021. Application forms for both the individual and organization will be open to download at Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (jiapich.org) starting on February 1st: 2021. All applications are to be submitted from March 1st through April 30th: 2021. The prize pool is $30:000 USD and will be distributed among 1~5 teams. There are no costs to the application process. The previous year 2020 JIAPICH had gained positive feedback from our ICH community around the world. Thirty-nine applicants from 27 different countries applied for the awards. Out of the 39 applicants: there were 11 individual and 28 group applications. The 2020 JIAPICH ceremonies were held online: streamed through YouTube: CICS in Korea and the Jeonju City Homepage:

Ripples Festival

In the International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development: banglanatak dot com in association with British Council presents Ripples Festival - a celebration of intangible cultural heritage from January 15th - 17th: 2021. The festival aims to promote heritage education and cultural tourism.The festival also has an online component with webinars: live performances and demonstration of crafts from 4 pm to 5:30 pm (IST) and 10:30 am to 12 pm (GMT). The schedule is as follows: 15th January: 2021: Heritage and Festival – exploring the interlinkages of heritage: tourism and festival16th January: 2021: Heritage and Creative Economy - discussing the role of cultural industries in sustainable development17th January: 2021: Heritage and Resilience – reflecting on the rejuvenation of the creative sector in new normalFor registration visit the link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwsd-GopjgqE9TjIHEzvdu98z_W-7HRvm3e. The webinar will be streamed live in banglanatakdotcom facebook page.

Reggae groove kicks off 15th Intangible Heritage Committee session online

The warmth of reggae marked the opening on 14 December of the 15th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, chaired by H.E. Ms Olivia Grange, Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport of Jamaica. More than 800 online participants in nearly 140 countries are registered to attend six online sessions chaired from Jamaica with the support of UNESCO’s Secretariat in Paris. During the opening, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azouley stressed that “intangible heritage is indeed a powerful way of healing the wounds in our societies. This is true for tears in the social fabric; it is also true for the fracture between humanity and nature. (…). Intangible heritage is also a resource that can be used to rise above political disputes, acknowledging the ties between people.” Ms Azoulay ended her address “Because respecting heritage is not only about protecting it; it is also about making it known to future generations. This means ensuring that young people can appropriate heritage, take pride in it, and renew it.” In this spirit, UNESCO launched a new tool Dive into living heritage and sustainable development that points to the interconnectedness of the elements inscribed on the lists of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals set by the international community for 2030. Link: 15th session of the Intergovernmental Committee (14 December 2020 – 19 December 2020) <a href="https://ich.unesco.org/en/15com">https://ich.unesco.org/en/15com</a>

Ala-kiyiz and Shyrdak, art of Kyrgyz traditional felt carpets

Inscribed in 2012 (7.COM) on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding Traditional felt carpets are one of the foremost arts of the Kyrgyz people and an integral part of their cultural heritage. The Kyrgyz traditionally produce two types of felt carpets: Ala-kiyiz and Shyrdaks. Knowledge, skills, diversity, the semantics of ornamentation, and the ceremonies of creating carpets are all important cultural components, providing Kyrgyz people with a sense of identity and continuity. The making of Kyrgyz felt carpets is inseparably linked to the everyday life of nomads, who used felt carpets to warm and decorate their homes. Creation of felt carpets demands unity among the community and fosters the transmission of traditional knowledge – as a rule by older women who are normally concentrated in rural and mountainous areas, to younger women within the family. The Ala-kiyiz and Shyrdak traditional art is in danger of disappearing, however. The number of practitioners is diminishing, with most over forty years of age. The lack of governmental safeguarding, the disinterest of the younger generation, the dominance of inexpensive synthetic carpets, and the poor quality and low availability of raw materials are exacerbating the situation. As a result, Ala-kiyiz carpets have practically disappeared from Kyrgyz homes and Shyrdaks are under serious threat of being lost. Link: <a href="https://ich.unesco.org/en/USL/ala-kiyiz-and-shyrdak-art-of-kyrgyz-traditional-felt-carpets-00693">https://ich.unesco.org/en/USL/ala-kiyiz-and-shyrdak-art-of-kyrgyz-traditional-felt-carpets-00693</a>

Program of activities of the ICH NGO Forum connected to 15.COM on 2-19, December-Including Mini Symposium on ICH and Tourism on 13 December

Program of activities of the ICH NGO Forum connected to 15.COM(Welcome to participate in ICH NGO Forum’s program of activities connected to 15 COM.)* Find the file attached (Program ICH NGO Forum 15 COM)■ ICH & tourism during and after COVID-19 ■Making ICH tourism more sustainable and regenerative in post-pandemic situationsICH-NGO Forum ZOOM Webinar Sunday 13 December 1.30-3.00 pm This symposium will have interpretations service in English-French. During the Intergovernmental Committee Meeting in Bogota it was decided that the ICH-NGO Forum should organize a symposium on ICH & Tourism: a hotly debated topic during the sessions especially in connection with international nominations for the safeguarding lists: in which tourism is included as one of the safeguarding measures. In reports of the Evaluation Body: the danger of ‘over commercialization’ is often mentioned as one of the threats. All the same tourism – and especially sustainable tourism – is often mentioned as indispensable for developing countries:

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 3 November 2020 (13th meeting)

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 3 November 2020 (13th meeting) Current issues ◼ ICH NGO Conference co-organized by ICHCAP and ICH NGO Forum Sakr informed the committee about the ongoing preparation of the conference. Janet Blake accepted to serve as one of moderators. There is a problem to get in touch with an OECD representative from Latin America; Caicedo expects his response by tomorrow. A representative from Amagugu International Heritage Centre should send her full application; Nyathi will mediate concerning this request. The committee agreed that Nömgård would greet the participants at the beginning of the conference. She will also invite Tim Curtis to address the conference participants, and Sakr will provide her with background information. An updated version of the material of the conference has just been published by ICHCAP, and these days it will also be published on our website and through social media; Sakr will contact Desiderio in this regard. ◼ Next Newsletter of the Forum This morning, Nyathi has sent to the Steering Committee the very first draft of the Newsletter. The members agreed that this is a good starting point, but instead of taking over the complete documents (such as our report and intervention for 8.GA, our report for 15.COM, call for nominations for the SC, etc.), they should rather be summarized, emphasizing the rationale and main points, and providing links to original documents. Also, the parts relating to currently ongoing activities should be updated. Therefore, instead of taking over the call for nomination, the Newsletter should include the latest information on the election process (such as basic information about the candidates, if they will be known at the time of publication), and a report (instead of an announcement) about the conference co-organized with ICHCAP. Nyathi will continue to work on the Newsletter, and send the new version well in advance to the next meeting of the Steering Committee. ◼ Preparation of programme for 15.COM Nömgård informed the members that the Bureau of 15.COM has just decided to consult the members of the Committee if 15.COM should be postponed or held as scheduled but in fully online format. At this moment, unfortunately, it is not know when the decision will be made. Nevertheless, we have to continue our planning as if 15.COM will be held as scheduled, from 14 to 19 December 2020. a. The work of the Election Board Nikolov provided a report on his and Desiderio’s correspondence with the Election Board. All of them will meet online on 10 November to define all details regarding the technical realization of the election process. A part of it, as suggested by the members of the Steering Committee, should be to discuss the format of presentation of candidates. For instance, they may address the membership in a form of video presentations, with subtitles in other official language of the Convention. Nikolov should also inform the Election Board that 15.COM might be postponed. The members of the Steering Committee also touched upon a problem that the new Committee will be formed, and meet and work until 16.COM only online, possibly in some cases even without any previous face-to-face experience with other members of the Committee, what will surely represent a challenge. b. ICH NGO Forum General Assembly Nömgård proposed, and members of the Steering Committee agreed upon the following draft agenda, as well as and upon the division of labour on specific agenda items of the ICH NGO Forum General Assembly, scheduled for Wednesday, 16 December: 1. Adoption of the agenda 2. Report of the Steering Committee on its work from December 2019 to December 2020 – Caicedo will prepare the draft, relying on the minutes of our meetings; the report should be sent to the membership four week in advance to the Assembly, that is, by 18 November 2020; 3. Financial report of the Steering Committee – Choi will prepare the draft; the report should also be sent to the membership by 18 November; 4. Elections of new members of the ICH NGO Forum Steering Committee – In this cycle, the elections pertain to four members representing Africa, Asia and Pacific states, Western Europe and North America, and International NGOs. Announcement of election results will be made by the Election Board; 5. ICH NGO Forum Plan of activities for 2021 – The plan should incorporate the work of the Steering Committee, Working Groups, #HeritageAlive, regional groups, and main projects. Following our report for 15.COM and its draft decision, as well as our plan of activities that was approved last year, the members of the Steering Committee have agreed that a special emphasis should be given to: a) advisory functions of NGOs to the Committee on specific thematic issues, including their more active contribution to the statutory sessions (through the Forum’s report and/or its interventions on specific agenda items); b) elaboration of ways and means to strengthen the network of ICH NGOs in under-represented regions, and to overcome unbalanced geographical distribution of NGOs accredited to the Convention; c) development of capacity-building material intended specifically for NGOs, carried out in collaboration with the Secretariat of the Convention (and depending on available resources); d) more active involvement of the Forum in the second cycle of regionally based periodic reports and, more broadly speaking, in follow-up (reporting and monitoring) on inscribed elements; e) participation in the project “Culture Beyond Borders” guided by the Network of European Museum Organizations, NEMO (depending on whether the project will be accepted by the funding agendy). 6. Other business. Apart from the above agenda items, it is not clear whether the GA should approve the minutes (or perhaps a summary) of the General Meeting held in 2019 and if this should be one of agenda items. Nömgård will consult Hanna Schreiber regarding this matter. As for Art. 5 of the Bylaws, concerning the membership of accredited NGOs in the Forum, the members of the Steering Committee agreed that it may not need revision at this stage of the development of the Forum, even more so because the Secretariat has recently included within the accreditation and re-accreditation forms a question pertaining to NGOs’ membership in the Forum. It means that in not later than four years from now, the Forum will have a completely clear, unambiguous and affirmative answer concerning the membership of accredited NGOs in the Forum. Therefore the amendment to Art. 5 can be made in one of the following years. As for Art. 21 of the Bylaws, concerning the incompatibility of serving in the Steering Committee and concomitantly in the official delegation of a State Party, Ceribašić has proposed to suggest to the General Assembly to prolong a decision on exceptional basis – the decision “to suspend the application of art. 21 of the Bylaws” – until the General Assembly in 2021. Given the obstacles caused by the pandemic, this could be both the easiest and the most adequate solution. On the other hand, Caicedo proposed to prepare a reflection on pros and cons of Art. 21, which can help the General Assembly to come to the most appropriate decision. He will prepare a draft until the next meeting of the Steering Committee, while Nömgård will consult Schreiber whether the last year decision on exceptional basis should be a separate agenda item or it may be included under “other business”. c. ICH NGO Forum programme during 15.COM Nömgård was in contact with Albert van der Zeijden, who is expected to coordinate the programme of our mini-symposium on ICH and sustainable tourism during and after COVID-19, as well as with Jorijn Neyrinck concerning a capacity-building session for newly accredited NGOs, Leena Marsio concerning the wheel chart of sustainability, and Eivind Falk concerning the #HeritageAlive. All of them are willing to prepare the sessions in coordination with the Steering Committee, but actual schedule cannot be defined at the moment because the dates of 15.COM are not yet confirmed. Likewise, Nikolov contacted chairs of all working groups, asking if they would like to organize their online meetings during 15.COM. Ananya Bhattacharya, chair of the Working Group on Overall Results Framework, and Antoine Gauthier, chair of the Working Group on Ethics, responded positively, but same as in the former cases, the exact schedule cannot be defined at the moment. As for English-French interpretation service provided by the Conseil québécois du patrimoine vivant, Choi will check with Gauthier if it may be extended to include both the General Assembly and a mini-symposium on ICH and sustainable tourism. d. ICH NGO Forum report for 15.COM On 22 October, Nömgård and Ceribašić had a meeting with the Secretariat, namely with Tim Curtis, Fumiko Ohinata, Elena Constantinou and Leandro Peredo. Their useful remarks and comments were observed in the revised version of the report, which was drafted by Ceribašić and further on discussed, corrected and endorsed by the members of the ad hoc working group and the Steering Committee. This revised version was sent to the Secretariat on 28 October. The Secretariat is expected to read the document once again, especially examining the draft decision and all its nuances. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

The Intergovernmental Committee of the 2003 Convention to be held fully ONLINE, from 14 to 19 December 2020

The Intergovernmental Committee of the 2003 Convention to be held fully online: from 14 to 19 December 2020After broad consultations: the Bureau of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage has decided to continue with the organization of the 15th session of the Committee from 14 to 19 December. However: for the first time the session will take place online due to the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic and related travel restrictions.H.E. Ms Olivia Grange: Minister of Culture: Gender: Entertainment and Sport of Jamaica will conduct the debates during six days between 13:30 and 16:30 (Paris time). The session will keep to a restricted agenda that focuses on listing mechanisms (2020 inscriptions: number of files to be examined in the coming years: establishment of the Evaluation Body for the 2021 cycle): the examination of periodic reports of Urgent Safeguarding List elements: and the date and venue for the 16th session of the Committee. See the working documents inc

2020 ICH NGO Conference to be held on 12-13 November

Safeguarding ICH through resilienceICHCAP and the ICH NGO Forum will hold the online 2020 ICH NGO Conference from 12 to 13 November.Since 2016: the 1st Asia-Pacific NGO Conference held in Jeonju: Korea: has continued biennially. This year: participants will discuss themes involving ‘ICH and Resilience in Crisis’. The conference will facilitate the sharing of experiences by NGOs: B.C. (Before Corona) and A.C. (After Corona) and explore a future direction for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. Representatives of eleven organizations in the ICH-safeguarding field from ten countries will attend the conference: selected through an application process.A special lecture scheduled for the first day will introduce the topic of Resilience System Analysis: sharing implications of the OECD’s efforts to quantify the qualitative concept of resilience after disasters. Online sessions will also deal with the international discourse on the 2003 Convention in the era of Corona: as well as presentations and discussions

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 14 October 2020 (12th meeting)

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 14 October 2020 (12th meeting) Current issues ◼ ICH NGO Conference co-organized by ICHCAP and ICH NGO Forum Sakr reported about the ongoing preparation of the conference. Caicedo helped her to establish contact with an OECD representative who will be one of keynote speakers. Sakr suggested to the Steering Committee, and members accepted, to invite Matti Hakamäki to present the objectives of the Forum’s working group in-the-making on geographical imbalance of accredited NGOs, as well as to invite additional participants representing African perspectives on ICH and resilience in crisis, such as Nyathi. Nyathi accepted the invitation; he will prepare presentation about indigenous system of knowledge in reference to COVID-19, while Sakr will contact Hakamäki regarding his participation. ◼ Next Newsletter of the Forum Once again, the members of the Steering Committee confirmed for the next Newsletter to be prepared and published before 15.COM. It will include outcomes of 8.GA and the conference co-organized with ICHCAP, our report for 15.COM and other activities attached to 15.COM, as well as material related to our General Assembly during 15.COM, including our annual report, plan for the next year and information on the election of four new members of the Steering Committee. It was decided that the deadline for completing all contributions would be 18 November. Nyathi will immediately start to collect and edit the material, relying on minutes of the Steering Committee and other sources, and present the draft versions to the members of the Steering Committee as they are drafted. ◼ Preparation of programme for 15.COM a. The work of the Election Board On 8 October, the Election Board launched a call for candidates for the Steering Committee. Four vacant seats are for the members representing the regions of Africa, Asian and Pacific states, Western Europe and North America, and the international NGOs. The deadline for applications is 5 November, while the election will take place online using online voting application on 14 and 15 December. The results will be announced on 16 December at the General Assembly of the ICH NGO Forum. Nikolov informed the Steering Committee that Desiderio checked the functionality of the chosen application called Electiobuddy, and that the complete list of accredited NGOs that are eligible to vote (one vote for each accredited NGO) has been verified. Desiderio and Nikolov will continue to serve as a technical help to the Election Board. b. ICH NGO Forum General Assembly The Forum’s General Assembly is scheduled for Wednesday, 16 December. It will be held online, through Zoom. Exact time will be defined depending on the timetable of 15.COM, and taking into account different time zones. As always, participants will need to register in advance. However, since our Zoom subscription is limited to 100 participants, after fulfilling the quota, additional participants will have opportunity to join the Assembly through live streaming on our channel on YouTube. No less than four weeks prior to the General Assembly, the Steering Committee has to propose the agenda of the General Assembly, prepare and distribute through our website and by email the annual report on the Forum’s programmes, services and partnerships, annual financial report, and annual plan providing a framework for the Forum’s activities, presented both in English and French, while the General Assembly is in charge to examine and approve these two reports and the plan (cf. Articles 9, 13, 15 and 18 of the Bylaws). The Assembly will be fully bilingual, thanks to generous support for English-French interpretation service provided by the Conseil québécois du patrimoine vivant. The Steering Committee agreed that Nikolov will announce to Desiderio and coordinate with him a series of technical services to be fulfilled during November and up to 15.COM, including the creation of registration forms, the distribution of material related to GA, as well as the distribution of the Newsletter to our member organizations, technical services to the Election Board, and technical support to online conduct of GA and other meetings attached to 15.COM. Choi will coordinate the smooth functioning of English-French interpretation, whether in a form of simultaneous or consecutive interpretation. The division of labour concerning the drafting of our annual report, annual financial report and the annual plan will be set in due time. c. ICH NGO Forum programme during 15.COM The members of the Steering Committee have examined all previous plans and subsequent suggestions related to our programme during 15.COM. They have agreed that despite disadvantageous circumstances, it is still worth trying to organize an online mini-symposium on sustainable tourism after the crises, in line with our plan of activities approved by the General Meeting in December 2019. Nömgård will contact Albert van der Zeijden, the chair of our working group on research, who is expected to coordinate the programme of the symposium. It could be held as previously planned, on Sunday, 13 December, a day prior to the start of 15.COM. Besides, Nikolov will contact chairs of all working groups, asking if they would like to organize their online meetings open to the whole membership during a week prior to 15.COM, while Nömgård will contact Jorijn Neyrinck concerning the presentation of IMP project and a capacity-building session for newly-accredited NGOs, Leena Marsio concerning the wheel chart of sustainability, and Eivind Falk concerning the #HeritageAlive! d. ICH NGO Forum report for 15.COM The report was sent to the Secretariat on 30 September. As much as possible, it was created relying on the participatory approach – from an open call to all accredited NGOs to join ad hoc working group for the preparation of the report, to the actual work of the group in question (composed of members who joined the group and members of the Steering Committee), to the feedback of the whole membership on the first draft, and, finally, to the last cycle of consultations leading to the document sent to the Secretariat. Ceribašić played a crucial role in drafting the document and coordinating the whole process. A meeting with the Secretariat regarding the report is scheduled for 22 October. Nömgård, Caicedo and Ceribašić will represent the Forum due to their functions of the chair, vice-chair and secretary of the Steering Committee. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

Webinar on “Crafting Resilience: Craft Communities and their Resilience as Embedded in the Traditional Knowledge: A Critical Component of Intangible Cultural Heritage” organized by ICOMOS India and NSC-Intangible Cultural Heritage

Happy to share about the upcoming webinar “Crafting Resilience: Craft communities and their resilience as embedded in the traditional knowledge: A critical component of intangible cultural heritage” organized by ICOMOS India and NSC-Intangible Cultural Heritage as a part of ICOMOS International webinar series on 31st October’ 2020 from 11 am GMT to 1 pm GMT (4.30 to 6.30 IST). Four case studies from different parts of India with a historic perspective of crafts communities, their confrontation with disasters and the success stories of adaptations and movements of crafts revival across India will be shared Please register in advance at: <a href="https://us02web.zoom.us/.../tZYpf-qrpjkpG9Kt55DuM..."> https://us02web.zoom.us/.../tZYpf-qrpjkpG9Kt55DuM...</a> The webinar will also be streamed live in Facebook page of ICOMOS India <a href="https://www.facebook.com/icomosindia">https://www.facebook.com/icomosindia</a>

Revitalizing women’s chants of Taroudant, High Atlas of Morocco

In the High Atlas of Morocco, in the town of Taroudant, there is a practise known as Chikhate – singing groups consisting of women who travel from region to region performing chants at important social events and festivities. The chants of the Chikate are renowned for their beautiful harmonies, which are acompanied by a variety of instruments and perfomed to choreographed dances. Gradually, however, modern music and DJ shows have taken the place of Chikhate performances at weddings or social celebrations. To help safeguard their heritage, the remaining groups of performers have decided to revitalize the practise. In collaboration with the Moroccan Association Bhayer Dalya and with the support of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund, Chikate groups are working to raise awareness among younger generations of their tradition and are preparing an inventory of their chants and verses. Over the last three years, Bhayer Dalya has interviewed the women of Taroudant, who still practice these chants and is training young women to inventory and safeguard their living heritage. This participatory process works to strengthen the creation of federations of Chikate groups. In addition, the association has produced a documentary video explaining the history of the chants of the women of the High Atlas of Morocco in their own words. International assistance: Revitalization of the female chants of Taroudant (2017) <a href="https://ich.unesco.org/en/assistances/revitalization-of-the-female-chants-of-taroudant-01307"> https://ich.unesco.org/en/assistances/revitalization-of-the-female-chants-of-taroudant-01307</a>

2020 Maritime ICH Webinar Series to be Held on 29 and 30 October

ICHCAP (Director-General Gi Hyung Keum): in collaboration with the UNESCO Apia Office: will hold a two-day ICH Webinar Series on Maritime ICH on 29 and 30 October 2020. The theme of the web seminar is “Maritime Living Heritage: Building Sustainable Livelihood and Ecosystems in the Asia-Pacific Region”The webinar is part of the Expert Meeting for Building Network on Maritime ICH: which has been organized by ICHCAP since 2018. It will be held as a webinar due to COVID-19.The Goal 14 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals pertains to the preservation and sustainable use of marine: sea: and marine resources. Recently: there has been growing interest in the use of traditional knowledge from coastal communities to achieve this SDG. Therefore: through this webinar: the audience will be able to explore wisdom for sustainable development through safeguarding the traditional knowledge. In particular: this year is significant as the “UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development” will be launched from next yea

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 16 September 2020

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 16 September 2020 (11th meeting) Current Issues ◼ ICH NGO Conference co-organized by ICHCAP and ICH NGO Forum Sakr is continuously in contact with ICHCAP concerning the online conference “ICH and resilience in crisis: Implication in the Era of B.C. (Before Corona) and A.C. (After Corona)”. The organizers have selected presentations and participants for the conference, and ICHCAP is in contract with all of them. The selection of keynote speakers is in the process, following also the suggestions received from the Steering Committee in August. Besides, the ICHCAP asked the Forum if we can provide a congratulatory message for its 2020 World Forum for ICH in late September, and thus Nömgård sent our greeting in a form of a short video. ◼ Next Newsletter of the Forum The members of the Steering Committee confirmed for the next Newsletter to be prepared and published before 15.COM. ◼ Reflection on 8.GA and Forum’s discussion sessions related to it Caicedo provided an overview of the Forum’s two online sessions at which participants discussed programme of 8.GA. One was organized prior to 8.GA, on 1 September, and the other one after 8.GA, on 14 September in English and on 15 September in French. Those in English were facilitated by Caicedo, and the one in French by Choi. Apart from agenda items of 8.GA, in particular the reform of the listing mechanism, the role of NGOs in the Convention, and a new initiative to examine the accreditation of NGOs from non-States Parties, participants also discussed the functioning of the Forum, certain aspects of the online voting system, the sharing of best safeguarding practices, and the examples of good cooperation between NGOs and governments. This last topic, as some of the participants suggested, could be included in our programme for 15.COM. The French session was poorly attended, probably because French-speaking colleagues, majority of whom are from Africa, have weak Internet connection. Therefore it was shorter than initially planned. As for the Forum’s more direct and more visible involvement in the work of 8.GA, it was realized through our statement, presented by Nömgård on 8 September in a form of a video message, and through our intervention on agenda item 11, related to the reflection on the listing mechanisms, which was read to the Committee by Fumiko Ohinata from the Secretariat. ◼ Preparation of programme for 15.COM a. The work of the Election Board At the online session following 8.GA, Ananya Bhattacharya, one of the members of the Election Board, expressed her concern for the lack of coordination between the Election Board and the Steering Committee. It has appeared, however, that the major problem is in a lack of clarity concerning the authority of the Election Board, in contrast to only a supporting technical role that the Steering Committee may play. For the 2020 elections, it seems necessary to enable online voting, as well as to allow for the candidates to present their candidatures online, although the existing election rules do not provide for such options. Nevertheless, the Election Board has an authority to determine modalities of the elections, relying in that on Art. 23 of the Bylaws, which says that “[a]ll other policies and procedures regarding the election of the Steering Committee shall be determined by the Election Board.” The members of the Steering Committee agreed to urgently clarify this matter with the Election Board. As for the technical solution, they agreed to purchase a certified online voting software – instead of designing the voting platform within the Forum’s website – to additionally secure secret voting and avoid any possible doubt concerning their counting. The price of such independent certified online platforms is 13€ for a seat, that is, 52 € in total. Since the Steering Committee has no access to the Forum’s account, the needed amount should be secured through donation, most likely by the Nömgård’s NGO. b. ICH NGO Forum report for 15.COM On 16 September, Ceribašić has completed the draft of the report and circulated it to the members of ad hoc working group and members of the Steering Committee. In parallel with expected revisions of the draft within this group, Choi will make translation to French, so that both English and French versions can be sent to the membership on 20 or 21 September, asking for their feedback until 26 or 27 September. This will be followed by the last cycle of consultations and corrections by the working group and the Steering Committee. The report should be sent to UNESCO by 30 September. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes </a>

Online International Conference on the Craft of the Miller

In 2017: the craft of the miller was the Kingdom of the Netherlands’ first inscription on the Representative List of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. However: this craft is not unique to the Netherlands. By organising an international online conference: we aim to bring together wind- and watermill parties from all over the world to share knowledge and skills and develop an international network of millers and mill societies. Initially we intended to convene a conference in the Netherlands: but due to COVID-19 it could not take place. We decided not to wait until we can meet in person. Therefore we are organising an online meeting. You find the programme here: https://network.molens.nl/If you are unable to attend this conference but you would like to receive news about future activities: please send an e-mail to: craftofthemiller@molens.nl

Nearly US$500,000 granted to support safeguarding activities in Antigua and Bermuda, Burundi, Egypt, South Sudan and Uruguay

The Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund provides assistance to States Parties in their efforts to safeguard their living heritage. Last September, the Bureau of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage examined International Assistance requests under US$100,000. A total of US$479,994 was granted to implement safeguarding activities in Antigua and Bermuda, Burundi, Egypt, South Sudan and Uruguay: ◼ The project Strengthening capacities for the implementation of the 2003 Convention for the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage in Antigua and Barbuda aims to create the country’s first national inventory of living heritage, enhancing national technical capacities to harvest and interpret related data and improving upon the exchange of information between the public and private sectors as well as civil society. Two pilot safeguarding activities – focusing on the Game of Warri and Traditional Boatbuilding – will be undertaken to trial safeguarding measures and instruct future safeguarding activities. This project will be implemented jointly by the Ministry of Sports, Culture, National Festivals and the Arts and the UNESCO Cluster Office for the Caribbean in Kingston. ◼ The project Updating of the 2009 inventory of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) in Burundi with the participation of the communities consists of documenting the different elements of living heritage, establishing their degree of viability, and identifying their bearers and custodians. The implementers are expected to set up a sustainable framework in Burundi for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage and, as such, to contribute to the revision of the country’s cultural policy. It is also expected that living heritage will be integrated into school curricula. The project will be coordinated by the General Directorate of Culture and Arts, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research through the Burundi National Commission for UNESCO. ◼ The project entitled Inventory of intangible culture of craftsmanship in the core of Historic Cairo aims at preparing a community-based inventory of twenty types of crafts produced in the historic areas of Cairo, known as Historic Cairo, a World Heritage property under the 1972 Convention. An online inventory of traditional knowledge related to these crafts will be maintained and made accessible to the communities, and inventorying will be promoted as an important tool in the long-term safeguarding process. The Egyptian Society for Folk Traditions (ESFT) will implement the project. ◼ The project Development of an inventory of intangible cultural heritage in South Sudan foresees awareness-raising activities for the safeguarding of living heritage which may continue beyond the duration of the project. These include promoting youth and gender inclusion and involving various communities in the development of the inventory, to build capacities for safeguarding living heritage among future generations of different ethnolinguistic groups. The project will be led by the Ministry of Culture, in close collaboration with the UNESCO Office in Juba, the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Committee (NICHC) and the UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa. ◼ The project The Bandoneon: sound of Tango aims at safeguarding the bandoneon, a traditional instrument of Tango. Nowadays, however, there are only a handful of bandoneon players, most of whom are over 60 years of age, and only three luthiers dedicated to tuning and maintaining the bandoneon in Uruguay. It is also hoped that the increased visibility resulting from the project will make it easier to further promote practices related to the bandoneon and the safeguarding of Tango (a binational nomination between Argentina and Uruguay, inscribed on the Representative List in 2009). These grants represent the first instances of international assistance from the Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund to Antigua and Bermuda, Burundi, Egypt and South Sudan and the second for Uruguay. Link: <a href="https://ich.unesco.org/en/news/nearly-us500000-granted-to-support-safeguarding-activities-in-antigua-and-bermuda-burundi-egypt-south-sudan-and-uruguay-13279"> https://ich.unesco.org/en/news/nearly-us500000-granted-to-support-safeguarding-activities-in-antigua-and-bermuda-burundi-egypt-south-sudan-and-uruguay-13279</a>

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 2 September 2020

■ Preparation of statement and programme for 8.GA The first online discussion session dedicated to 8.GA was held on 1 September via Zoom. Around twenty ICH NGOs took an opportunity to discuss the agenda and documents for 8.GA from the perspective of NGOs, as well as the Forum’s statement for 8.GA. On the basis of the outcomes of the session, the members of the Steering Committee finalized the statement. Since none of the members of the Steering Committee will attend the GA in person, our statement will be presented in a form of a video message, which will be broadcasted on 8 September after the report of the Secretariat on its activities. Besides, the Forum wants to intervene on agenda item 11, related to the reflection on the listing mechanisms of the Convention. The intervention has been finalized, but at the moment it is not yet known if the GA will allow its presentation. Another session of the Forum pertaining to 8.GA will be held via Zoom on 14 September in English and on 15 September in French to discuss the deliberations and decisions of 8.GA. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

ICH NGO Forum's documents for the 8th General Assembly of UNESCO's Convention

ICH NGO Forum's documents for the 8th General Assembly of UNESCO's Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage ◼ Statement : <a href="http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/ICH-NGO-Forum-statement-8-GA-2020-fin.pdf"> http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/ICH-NGO-Forum-statement-8-GA-2020-fin.pdf</a> ◼ Intervention : <a href="http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/ICH-NGO-Forum-intervention-8GA-11-fin.pdf"> http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/ICH-NGO-Forum-intervention-8GA-11-fin.pdf</a> ◼ Item 11 of the 8.GA Agenda - Update on the reflection on the listing mechanism of the Convention : <a href="http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Reform-of-the-listing-mechanism_short-report_ICH-NGO-Forum.pdf"> http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Reform-of-the-listing-mechanism_short-report_ICH-NGO-Forum.pdf</a> ◼ Invitation to the ICH NGO Forum's online meetings on 14th and 15th September 2020 : <a href="http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Invitation-to-ICH-NGO-Forums-online-meetings.pdf"> http://www.ichngoforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Invitation-to-ICH-NGO-Forums-online-meetings.pdf</a>

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 5 August 2020

■ ICH NGO Conference co-organized by ICHCAP and ICH NGO Forum Sakr is continuously in contact with ICHCAP concerning the online conference “ICH and resilience in crisis: Implication in the Era of B.C. (Before Corona) and A.C. (After Corona)”. The call for papers has been published, and is open until the mid August. The co-organizers currently discuss the selection of keynote speakers, and how to additionally motivate NGOs to submit their proposals. Members of the Steering Committee suggested few additional experts who could be considered to serve as keynote speakers, especially concerning the theme of resilience system analysis. As for the participation of ICH NGOs, it is important to motivate those that have been continuously involved in the activities of the Forum, but also to be as encouraging as possible to newcomers. ■ Next Newsletter of the Forum The new issue of the Newsletter, dedicated to responses of ICH NGOs to the pandemic, will be published these days. It is quite extensive, probably the most extensive Newsletter in the history of the Forum, with editorial summaries and authorial papers on the impact of COVID-19, as well as very extensive section of announcements, and an elaborated proposal concerning the establishment of a new working group that would deal with the problem of regional imbalance of accredited NGOs. Members of the Steering Committee have agreed for the next Newsletter to be published in the mid November, a week or so after the conference on ICH and resilience, while before the start of the Forum’s programme attached to 15.COM. The central part will include reports from 8.GA, the conference on ICH and resilience and the IMP project, and also provide an overview of the Forum’s activities during 15.COM. In any case, it is planned to be less extensive than the issue that is coming out these days. Nyathi will again coordinate its preparation. ■ Preparation of programme for 8.GA The next Newsletter was initially planned to be published in June, focusing on 3 responses of NGOs to the pandemic. As only a few NGOs responded to our call published in the last Newsletter, it was decided that by the mid June Butholezwe Kgosi Nyathi will contact individuals from each of six regions of the world, asking for their contributions to the Newsletter. In addition, Naila Ceribašić will prepare contribution on musical responses of ICH communities to the pandemic, and Jorge Caicedo on responses of communities devoted to traditional games and sports. Besides, the Newsletter will include a report on IMP project, which will be prepared by Kia Tsakiridis, as well as information on ongoing work related to the preparation of the Forum’s activities at 8.GA and 15.COM, and the joint conference with ICHCAP. ■ Preparation of programme for 8.GA It is confirmed that 8.GA will be held from 8 to 10 September in Paris. None of the member of the Steering Committee will attend it in person. However, we hope that quite visible online presence of the Forum will be feasible. As agreed upon at the previous meeting, the Forum’s programme for 8.GA will consist of two online discussion sessions. One session will be held a few days in advance of 8.GA to discuss agenda and documents for 8.GA from the perspective of ICH NGOs, as well as the Forum’s statement at 8.GA. Another session will be held towards the end of 8.GA to discuss its deliberations and decisions. Caicedo will prepare the first draft of the material which will serve as a basis for the first session, including the draft of our statement at 8.GA. He will also facilitate the session. Nömgård will contact the Secretariat concerning the Forum’s statement. ■ Preparation of programme for 15.COM (1) Establishment of the Election Board The Election Board is still in the process of formation. In a few days from now, it is expected to be completed, consisting of members from the US, Mexico and India. Caicedo, Choi and Sakr are involved in the correspondence with them, and Nömgård 3 is in charge to coordinate the work in order for the Election Board to be formed as soon as possible. (2) ICH NGO Forum report for 15.COM As reported by Ceribašić, among the three thematic sub-groups that had been formed (A. on the history, organization, principles, roles, objectives of the NGOs accredited to the Convention and the ICH NGO Forum; B. on the reform of the listing mechanism; and C. on ICH in emergencies, including COVID-19), the one on ICH in emergencies, facilitated by Matti Hakamäki, has advanced the most in the preparation of an online discussion session, which is intended to enable the broadest possible participation of ICH NGOs in the drafting of the report. The session will be held towards the end of August, and it is expected from two other sub-groups (facilitated by Ceribašić and, respectively, by Hanna Schreiber) to follow suit. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage Online Ceremony Week 1: Activities of 2019 JIAPICH Finalists

Dear ICH Community:The 2020 JIAPICH (Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage) Online Ceremony will be held on Sept. 18th: 2020 at 20:30 KST (GMT+9:00). For the next four weeks we will be sending to all of our friends and the ICH community: promoting for the 2020 JIAPICH Online Ceremony. Please find the invitation from the Mayor of Jeonju and link to our week 1 video of our past winners. Week 1(Aug 14th). Presenting the activities of 2019 JIAPICH Finalists: Contact Base of India: Heritage Foundations of Newfoundland Canada: and Ahmed Skounti of Morocco: https://youtu.be/hHhnI6QzwlEPlease share this invitation to all of our ICH community and friends! Thank you.Best regards:Secretariat of the 2020 JIAPICH-----------------------Center for Intangible Culture Studies (CICS)Homepage: <a href ="http://www.jiapich.org">http://www.jiapich.org: http://www.ichngo.net Address:285 Kwonsamdeuk-ro: Dukjin-gu: Jeonju city: Jeonbuk: Republic of KoreaTel: +82-63-277-4098Fax: +82-63-277-4097

Traditional Art in Contemporary Times

British Council India and Contact Base (www.banglanatak.com) are organising an international webinar on "Traditional Art in Contemporary Times". Experts and practitioners from across the globe will look at how traditional art is evolving in contemporary times and also explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on living heritage worldwide. Speakers are Patricia Navas Röthlisberger who is in-charge of the Cultural Heritage for Inclusive Growth (CH4IG) programme at British Council Colombia: Dr. Harriet Deacon an expert with experience of consulting with UNESCO on implementation of the 2003 Convention on Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 16 countries: and artist Lou-ann Neel from the Kwakwaka'wakw community of Canada. Panel discussants include Suresh Jayaram: an art historian: curator and Founder of 1 Shanthiroad and National Awardee Patachitra artist- Anwar Chitrakar. Nandita Palchoudhury a social entrepreneur curating and consulting internationally in the field of Indian folk art: craft and per

ICH Webinar Series: the fourth session to be held on 12 August 2020

Co-organised by the International Information and Networking Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region under the auspices of UNESCO (ICHCAP) and UNESCO Office in Bangkok: the ICH Webinar Series features experts in the ICH field and is open to the public.The ICH Webinar Series Session 4 is now open for registration. If you want to receive a webinar alert: please register through this link.To be held on 12 August 2020 at 4 PM to 5:30 PM (Korean Standard Time): the fourth session will focus on curriculum development with an emphasis on how ICH is introduced: incorporated: and enriched in university-level settings.Inter-regional ICH curriculum development experiences will be discussed by Ms. Emily Drani (Executive Director: Cross-Cultural Foundation of Uganda): Dr. Frances C. Koya Vaka’uta (Professor: the University of the South Pacific): and Dr. Marc Jacobs (Professor: University of Antwerp). For more information: you are invited to read this article on the session.For free and continuou

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 1 July 2020

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 1 July 2020 ■ Work of ICH NGO Forum under Coronavirus epidemic Following the previously adopted plan (see minutes of the 7th meeting) and the current situation in Caicedo’s family, the members adopted a revised plan to broaden the number of online discussion sessions on ICH in emergencies and under COVID-19, planned in relation to the preparation of Forum’s report for 15.COM (see 6.b below), from one to several. In coordination with Nömgård, Ceribašić will present this revised plan to Matti Hakamäki, who is in charge of facilitating the work of the group dealing with emergencies and COVID-19. When the circumstances allow, Caicedo will join the group and further develop the initial plan. ■ ICH NGO Conference co-organized by ICHCAP and ICH NGO Forum Since the last meeting of the SC, the topic of the conference has been defined, and call for papers created and discussed between the ICHCAP and the Forum, represented by Sakr. The title of the conference is “ICH and resilience in crisis: Implication in the Era of B.C. (Before Corona) and A.C. (After Corona)”. It will be held online on 12–13 November 2020, while the call for papers will be published these days. ■ Next Newsletter of the Forum The new issue of the Newsletter, dedicated to responses of ICH NGOs to the pandemic, is in the process of preparation. Up to now, Nyathi prepared an overview and singled out specific transversal topics and issues that characterize responses of NGOs to UNESCO’s request to share experiences on this same topic (which are available on UNESCO’s web platform). Also, Ceribašić prepared contribution on music as a “good domain” under the pandemic. As these two parts do not seem to be sufficient, and on the other hand due to lack of responses to our own call to NGOs to share their experiences, the Committee decided that all members (including Caicedo, if possible) will prepare their individual contributions, delineating their own experiences and/or reflections, with either geographical or thematic focus (e.g., Nyathi on African, Nömgård on Scandinavian, and Choi on Korean NGOs, Nikolov on festivals, Sakr on war- vs. pandemic–provoked state of emergency). Photographs or other illustrations should also be provided. Besides, the Newsletter will include a report on IMP project 3 (except if the author would prefer to publish it in the next volume, planned for November), two calls (regarding the conference “ICH and resilience in crisis”, and regarding the formation of a working group on geographical imbalance), and the update on the next GA and COM, including the information on Forum’s planned activities during these events and ongoing preparation for them. The publication of the Newsletter is expected during the third week of July. ■ Preparation of programme for 8.GA According to the newest information that Nömgård received from UNESCO, 8.GA will be held in September. The overall number of participants will be limited to around 300, including probably (but not surely) a few seats reserved for accredited NGOs. There will be no side events, but UNESCO is considering online side events as an alternative. Taking this information into account, the Committee discussed how to proceed with our plans for 8.GA. Only Caicedo and Choi would be willing to travel in Paris, if circumstances allow. In any case, a new plan is to organize two online discussion sessions functioning as the Forum’s side events: a session held a few days in advance of 8.GA to discuss agenda and documents for 8.GA from the perspective of ICH NGOs, the result of which will be also our statement at 8.GA, and a session held towards the end of 8.GA to discuss its deliberations and decisions. Nömgård will inquire whether these two sessions can be included into official (UNESCO’s) list of side events during 8.GA. As for the planned presentation of the wheel of sustainability and its application among NGOs, Nömgård will consult colleagues from Finland concerning a possibility to arrange it as an online event, too. ■ Preparation of programme for 15.COM According to the newest information, 15.COM will be held in Paris, most likely from 14 to 19 December. Due to all circumstances, the Committee decided for its prior annual on-site meeting to be limited to only one day (instead of two days, as it was the case in 2019). Consequently, the previously planned programme, encompassing capacity-building and a symposium, should also be squeezed, and modalities will be discussed at the next meeting of the Committee. ■ Establishment of the Election Board The Committee received only one application for the seat in the Election Board. Nömgård will send a confirmation letter to the applicant. As the minimal number of members of the Board is three, Caicedo, Choi and Nyathi will contact prospective candidates from their regions, asking them to join the Board, and Sakr will take care to prevent delay of the process. Another issue, related to the elections, is that it could easily happen that on-site representation of accredited NGOs will be rather low. Therefore, the option of online voting should be examined. It will be discussed in more detail at the next meeting, and Nikolov will in the meantime inquire with Desiderio the technical requirements for a shift from in-person to online voting. ■ ICH NGO Forum report for 15.COM Nine representatives of ICH NGOs responded to the call for the formation of a sub-committee for the Forum’s report at 15.COM: four from Europe and North America (Anoine Gauthier, Matti Hakamäki, Jorijn Neyrinck, José Martínez Tormo), two from Asia and the Pacific (Qurbonidin Alamshoev, Lance Syme), and one from Eastern Europe (Hanna Schreiber), Africa (Ani Casimir) and international NGOs (Robert Baron). As there were no volunteers from Latin America and Arab States, these regions will be represented by the members of the Steering Committee (Caicedo and Sakr). The sub-committee had its first online meeting, at which it decided to form three thematic groups: A. on the history, organization, principles, roles, objectives of the NGOs accredited to the Convention and the ICH NGO Forum; B. on the reform of the listing mechanism; and C. on ICH in emergencies, including COVID-19. These three themes will make the main parts of the Forum’s report for 15.COM. The work of each thematic group is decided to be as participatory as possible, in terms of a relatively small group preparing the very first draft notes or key points for discussion, followed by the discussion sessions organized online and open to all NGOs. Facilitators are Ceribašić for group A, Schreiber for group B, and Hakamäki for group C. Each group will finish its cycle of deliberations, consisting of preparation for the discussion sessions, the three sessions itself, and consolidation of notes from the sessions, by the end of July. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

City of Jeonju Welcomes the World to 2020 JIAPICH Online Ceremony!

Greetings from the Secretariat of 2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage (2020 JIAPICH). The 2020 JIAPICH Grand Prize is on its second annual year to discover exemplary cases of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) safeguarding activities throughout the world and to establish social solidarity and identity through ICH. It is our hope to develop ICH international communities.The inaugural JIAPICH ceremony was held in 2019 and saw 48 applications from 36 countries around the world. The 2020 JIAPICH accepted 39 applications from 27 countries. The geographical distribution of candidates is spread evenly across the 5 oceans and 6 major continents: and has earned a strong response from ICH actors around the world. The global ICH community is going through an arduous period in time during the pandemic crisis. It is getting worse for those practicing: safeguarding: and promoting ICH. It is thus meaningful that the citizens of Jeonju were able to raise funds at this time to help orga

Amid COVID 19, UNESCO Peru defines new ways to inventory living heritage with communities in Ayacucho, Peru

Project: Community-based inventorying of intangible heritage in urban areas (1 January 2018 – 1 December 2021) The call for participation in the pilot project ‘Community-based inventorying of intangible cultural heritage in the urban context of Ayacucho, Peru’ attracted hundreds of applicants. Of these, 56 selected public officials, archaeologists, anthropologists, communicators, teachers, bearers, practitioners and cultural managers came together in January 2020 for an initial training workshop with the objective to set up the methodological framework for the inventorying and to plan the process. However, when the COVID-19 pandemic reached Peru in March 2020, a general confinement was declared, and all field work had to be put on hold. To sustain the interest and momentum gained during the preparatory phase, UNESCO proposed to continue the project during confinement through the use of both digital and analogue technologies, including virtual interviews with bearers and academic researchers. Three online meetings were organized between April and June to present the advancements of the inventorying process. These provided a great opportunity to collect lessons learnt, formulate recommendations and discuss new paths for collaboration. The final virtual workshop on 11 July 2020 was honored by the presence of Ms Mozo Mercado from the Intangible Heritage Directorate of the Ministry of Culture of Peru, and Mr Gutiérrez Gutiérrez, the Mayor of the city of Huamanga. (https://ich.unesco.org/en/news/amid-covid-19-unesco-peru-defines-new-ways-to-inventory-living-heritage-with-communities-in-ayacucho-13270) The video of the workshop is available(in Spanish): <a href="https://www.facebook.com/oficinaunescolima/videos/944348179371253/">https://www.facebook.com/oficinaunescolima/videos/944348179371253/</a>

Online Stage

The “ONLINE STAGE” platform on the EAFF's website provides an easy way to promote folklore music and dance video performances: which in just a few steps will be visible on the website of the European Association of Folklore Festivals - EAFF.The aim of the initiative is to present records of high artistic value to keep alive the traditions of the nations.The unique virtual stage will provide you a stage to present yourself: despite the current global situation: delighting fans of folklore art. You can send your video to the "online stage" with just one click.The "ONLINE STAGE" section is part of the eponymous new section of the EAFF's website: which also provides access to the overview-documentary festival films: to the editions of the TV show "World Folklore Art" and to the monthly TV shows of the TV Championship by EurofolkTV .The new section also takes you to the opportunity to become viewers and listeners of EAFF's main media partners - Eurofolk's online television and online radio. Enjoy the emotions with

ICH Webinar Series Session III on July 30

Slated for 30 July 2020 at 20:00 to 21:30 (Korean Standard Time): the third session of the ICH Webinar Series will be held. Co-organized by ICHCAP and the UNESCO Bangkok Office: participants and speakers hope to have a deeper engagement with ideas of building cooperation and networking initiatives among higher education institutions for ICH safeguarding from founded regional networks in Africa: Latin America: Europe: and Asia-Pacific. This session is a continuation of our efforts to have a better understanding of the integration between intangible cultural heritage and higher education: which visibly faces more challenges at the present time as the COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated measures directly affecting the operations of educational institutions all over the world such as school closure: instruction through online means: and disruption of research field work and other related activities.Link: https://www.unesco-ichcap.org/ich-webinar-series-session-iii-to-focus-on-regional-networks-for-the-teaching-of-

X World Championship of Folklore "World folk 2020" ONLINE

The team of the European Association of Folklore Festivals - EAFF: (ICH) partner of UNESCO welcomes all the performers in the field of the folklore arts!We are pleased to announce that the jubilee X edition of the World Championship of Folklore "World folk" 2020 will be held in two formats - traditionally: in a real environment and virtually: on the Internet. The online version of the Championship is a result of the pandemic situation around the world and in response to the imposed measures to limit the spread of COVID-19. In this regard: EAFF offers a new platform for performance and creative contacts for all folk groups: which do not have the opportunity to travel and attend the event live! Join the online edition of the X World Championship of Folklore "World Folk" 2020 and become part of the upcoming virtual contest!With this new form of communication: let us overcome isolation and stay together in this challenge: because folklore has always been: is and will be shared knowledge! Of course: online partici

Congratulations to 2020 JIAPICH Finalists!

The City of Jeoju is hosting our second annual Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage Online Ceremony. Recorded Online Ceremony will be held on 'CICS in Korea' and official 'Jeonju' city Youtube live stream on September 18th 20:30 Korean Time. Exact dates and times will be posted again as they are subjected to change. Please join us! 2020 JIAPICH Finalists: ASAMA-The Association for the Protection of Masks in West Afria (Burkina Faso): Hieu Duc Vu- Director of Muong Cultural Space Museum (Vietnam): Impacto- Protectors of ICH in Highlands Region of Chipas (Mexico) Congratulations Finalists!

Kaustinen Folk Music Festival finds the ways to do it online

Thousands of cultural and heritage events throughout the world have been cancelled due to covid-19 pandemic. Kaustinen Folk Music Festival: the major Finnish folk music and dance event and one of the majors in Northern Europe: also had to tell this sad message to its dedicated friends. In order to support practising and sharing living heritage under current conditions and to keep up the festival community: consisting of 4000–5000 professional and amateur performers and 40000–50000 visitors annually: a virtual online festival was quickly created. The core of the VirtualKaustinen 2020 online event: 13.–19.7.2020: is the general invitation to all willing groups and individuals to record video performances: upload them to Youtube and share the link to the festival organization. Several hundred videos are expected: and the festival publishes daily a selection of dozens of links. The programme also consists of daily streamed concerts and workshops: interviews and a webcast radio by The Finnish Folk Music Institute

Virtual Launch of Volume no. 15 of the International Journal of Intangible Heritage

Celebrate the launch of the 15th volume of the International Journal of Intangible Heritage and the 15-year anniversary of its founding – in a two-part webinar series commencing on 15 July 2020.COVID-19 restrictions mean that while this year’s Journal could not be launched at the ICOM Annual Meeting as is traditional: this virtual launch in the form of a webinar series: will enable the Journal to involve many more people in an event that will bring together authors and book reviewers: practitioners and professionals: individuals and institutions: all of whom have been instrumental in the production of the IJIH over its 15 years of existence.Participants in the two webinars: all authors in Vol.15: will address the two main themes emerging in this year’s Journal: Museums and Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH): perspectives: policy making and practice; and Identity and Meaning: Traditional knowledge and Traditional craftsmanship.These themes are examined in articles and book reviews that interrogate a wide range

Call for Papers: ICH and Resilience in Crisis

ICHCAP: in collaboration with ICH NGO Forum: is pleased to invite NGOs to participate in the online 2020 ICH NGO Conference: ICH and Resilience in Crisis to be held on 12 and 13 November 2020.Since 2014: ICHCAP has been organizing the conference biennially. The conference gives premium focus on the work of NGOs in the ICH field globally.While conditions of instability caused by COVID-19 pandemic could extraordinarily constrain human interactions: both co-organizers decided to continue cooperative relationships among ICH NGOs in such a critical time by holding an online conference. Therefore: this year: as a timely issue: the conference aims to thoroughly understand the broadness and depth of ICH NGOs roles and challenges: particularly in the field of education.The objectives of the 2020 ICH NGO Conference are to better understand the interrelationship between ICH and education within the lens of sustainable development and to empower ICH NGOs around the world by discovering good practices and sharing useful e

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 3 June 2020

■ Work of ICH NGO Forum under Coronavirus epidemic As a follow-up regarding the UNESCO’s platform on living heritage experiences in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jorge Gustavo Caicedo presented to the Steering Committee the draft call to all accredited NGOs to participate in a video presentation with Q&A on how the pandemic has impacted their activities, what are the measures that they are implementing to confront the situation, and what is the expectation of NGOs on the forthcoming future. All presentations are planned to be held in English, French or Spanish (in one of these languages for a single event) on the Zoom communication platform, and broadcast live to ichngo.net, ichngoforum.org, YouTube and Facebook. The proposal was endorsed by the members of the Steering Committee. The first such “conversation” or “debate”, as these events will be called, will be held towards the end of June or the beginning of July. Jorge Gustavo Caicedo will facilitate those in English and Spanish, and Donghwan Choi those in French. For the start, Caicedo will provide his Zoom key, while further on, if the events will take hold, the Forum will purchase its own license for the Zoom. At the moment, the first task is to complete the call, which will be done by Caicedo in a few days, then to sent it to all accredited NGOs, and then to form the actual online events which, depending on the responses, will stem from regional or thematic interconnections. ■ ICH NGO Conference co-organized by ICHCAP and ICH NGO Forum The Steering Committee has received from ICHCAP the first draft of the Conference concept note containing the outline, background, objectives, provisional programme, and the list of responsibilities for each of the two coorganizers, ICHCAP and ICH NGO Forum. It was decided that Reme Sakr and Meg Nömgård will be our contact persons for this joint project, while Naila Ceribašić will provide help if/when necessary. These days Sakr and Nömgård will analyze the concept note in detail, elaborate our position on each of the mentioned aspects, and clarify with ICHCAP some points (such as the proposal that Forum will be responsible to“ manage online platform during the Conference”). As for the main topic, the Steering Committee is of the opinion that it should be ICH and education, while the pandemic can be one of important sub-topics. In contrast, it seems that ICHCAP is in favour of placing the pandemic as the main topic, and education as one of sub-topics. ■ Next Newsletter of the Forum The next Newsletter was initially planned to be published in June, focusing on 3 responses of NGOs to the pandemic. As only a few NGOs responded to our call published in the last Newsletter, it was decided that by the mid June Butholezwe Kgosi Nyathi will contact individuals from each of six regions of the world, asking for their contributions to the Newsletter. In addition, Naila Ceribašić will prepare contribution on musical responses of ICH communities to the pandemic, and Jorge Caicedo on responses of communities devoted to traditional games and sports. Besides, the Newsletter will include a report on IMP project, which will be prepared by Kia Tsakiridis, as well as information on ongoing work related to the preparation of the Forum’s activities at 8.GA and 15.COM, and the joint conference with ICHCAP. ■ Preparation of programme for 8.GA These days, Meg Nömgård was in contact with Tim Curtis regarding the date and format of 8.GA. At the moment, there is no new information. It is expected to be announced in a few weeks. ■ Preparation of programme for 15.COM (1) Establishment of the Election Board The call regarding the establishment of the 2020 Election Board was prepared by Reme Sakr, and due to help of Gabriele Desiderio and Kaloyan Nikolov it was sent to all accredited NGOs after the last meeting of the Steering Committee. Up to now, we did not receive any application. It was decided for a reminder to be sent on 8 June, two days prior to the deadline. (2) ICH NGO Forum report for 15.COM On 22 May Naila Ceribašić drafted a letter to be sent to accredited NGOs concerning the formation of a sub-committee for the Forum’s report at the 15.COM. In its amended form (concerning the clarification about the planned way of work of the sub-committee), it was endorsed by the Steering Committee. These days, Gabriele Desiderio and Kaloyan Nikolov will send it to the membership. ■ Follow-up on each member responsibilities Naila Ceribašić suggested reviewing the division of labour between the members of the Steering Committee, which was agreed upon at our first meeting, held in Bogotá in December 2019. It has appeared that some continuous aspects of the work of the Committee still deserve more attention, namely the enhancement of regional networks (all members of the SC, but especially those from under-represented regions of Eastern Europe, Latin America, Africa and Arab States), and the improvement of contact with the chairs of the Working Groups (responsibility of Kaloyan Nikolov). As for the Forum’s main projects that were designed in Bogotá last year, the Committee has confirmed that the preparation of programmes attached to 15.COM is expected to start very soon, namely the capacity-building (responsibility of Naila Ceribašić), the symposium (responsibility of Reme Sakr in collaboration with programme coordinator Albert van den Zeijden), and the “Report on the state of safeguarding ICH in Latin America and the Caribbean, and the role of ICH NGOs in safeguarding processes” (responsibility of Jorge Gustavo Caicedo in collaboration with CRESPIAL). ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

Connecting to the Roots

Experience the varied and diverse culture of Bengal through out "Connecting to the Roots" program. This is an unique opportunity to connect with your roots through performances and short films on different art forms of Bengal. This week we will be presenting to you- Chau: Banbibir Pala: Jhumur: Natua: Darjeeling Folk Dance and Raibense. Time - 5.00 p.m. IST Link - https://www.facebook.com/banglanatakdotcom/

ICH Webinar Series co-organized by ICHCAP and UNESCO Office in Bangkok

Co-organised by the International Information and Networking Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region under the auspices of UNESCO (ICHCAP) and UNESCO Office in Bangkok: the ICH Webinar Series features experts in the ICH field and is open to the public.The first session of this Webinar Series will discuss the impacts of the pandemic on ICH in the Asia and the Pacific region and the roles ICH might take to address the situation of crisis.Session 1: Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage and the COVID-19 in the Asia-Pacific Region (18 June 2020)Time: 18 June 2020: 17:00-19:00 (Korea Standard Time): 15:00-17:00(Bangkok Time)Pre-registration: Registration is closed.We will also stream the live webinar to ICHCAP’s Youtube and Facebook Channels.▶YouTube Live (English) https://youtu.be/AZVkHf74ejs▶YouTube Live (Korean) https://youtu.be/YA2_YFaUudY▶Facebook Live (English) https://www.facebook.com/ICHCAP/Session 2: Teaching and learning heritage-related disciplines during COVID-19 Pand

Eighth Session of the General Assembly(8.GA) Postponed to 8 to 10 September 2020

The eighth session of the General Assembly of the States Parties to the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (previously foreseen from 25 to 27 August) has been rescheduled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic to 8 to 10 September 2020 (UNESCO Headquarters, Paris). The modality of the General Assembly may be subject to further change, given the unprecedented and evolving situation. Over the three days, 178 States Parties will discuss a number of issues that are important for the safeguarding of living heritage around the world. All working documents for the session will be published by 7 August 2020 on this webpage. Link: <a href="https://ich.unesco.org/en/8ga">https://ich.unesco.org/en/8ga</a>

Announcement of the 2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage!

We express our sincere gratitude to all applicants for the 2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage. We recognize and deeply appreciate what you and your organizations have achieved with respect to the safeguarding and revitalization of ICH. The selection process was very challenging as all applicants demonstrated good practices for the safeguarding ICH with courage and lofty spirit. Only three applicants (individuals and organizations) were selected as finalists from thirty-nine applicants from 27 countries on six continents.Jeonju City announces the following three finalist candidates for public verification as the final process for the 2020 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage. The finalist candidates are as follows: - Vu Duc Hieu (Individual: Vietnam: Asia-Pacific Region) - Impacto (Organization: Mexico: Latin America)- Asama (Organization: Burkina Faso: Africa) The public verification process allows for verification of whether the fina

Follow-Up Activities of the Steering Committee (SC), 6 May 2020

■ Work of ICH NGO Forum under Coronavirus Epidemic After the publication of a general call to NGOs to share their experiences in safeguarding ICH under the epidemic COVID-19 in the last ICH NGO Forum-Newsletter in April, 2020, the Steering Committee has discussed on the second call which would focus on foreseeing the immediate future impact of the pandemic, how it may change the practice of ICH elements, what new challenges are expected in safeguarding, and what would be a path back into “normal”. After the discussion, the members of the Steering Committee agreed to elaborate the complete call before the next meeting of the Steering Committee. ■ Proposal from ICHCAP regarding co-organization of an online ICH NGO Conference ICHCAP has hosted the Asia-Pacific ICH NGO conference every two years since 2016 and the third Asia-Pacific ICH NGO Conference was originally scheduled to be held in Jeonju, South Korea, in November 2020, with the initial theme of ICH and education. But due to the pandemic COVID-19, ICHCAP proposed to the ICH NGO Forum to co-organize the online ICH NGO Conference inviting all the ICH NGOs around the world and broadening the topic to a range of challenges brought by the spread of COVID-19. The Steering Committee accepted the proposal with pleasure and is now under discussion for the details of the online ICH NGO Conference with ICHCAP. ■ Preparation of program for 8.GA Following the conclusion at the previous meeting, the Steering Committee has prepared the application for the two side events of 8.GA that will be co-organized by the Forum: a session dedicated to the outcomes of the IMP project (in collaboration with the project), and a session on the wheel chart of sustainability and ICH (in collaboration with Finland). The application will be sent immediately to UNESCO Secretariat, and as soon as the dates of 8.GA. is confirmed, the preparation of the Forum’s information desk will be finalized. ■ Preparation of program for 15.COM (1) Establishment of the Election Board for 2020 The Steering Committee is to prepare the call for the 2020 ICH NGO Forum Election Board, which was sent to all the ICH NGOs accredited to UNESCO in May. (2) ICH NGO Forum report for 15.COM The Steering Committee will draft an invitation letter to join a working group in the preparation of the Report for 15.COM. and send it to all accredited ICH NGOs. The call for all the accredited ICH NGOs to join the ad-hoc sub-committee for the ICH NGO Forum report at 15.COM was launched on June 9, 2020. As previously agreed, once the working group is established Naila Ceribašić will coordinate its activities on behalf of the Steering Committee. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

Volunteers for ad hoc sub-committee for the ICH NGO Forum report at 15.COM

Volunteers for ad hoc sub-committee for the ICH NGO Forum report at 15. COM (See below for the french version) Dear colleagues, we hope that this email finds you well and safe from the spread of Covid-19. As you know, at 14. COM the Intergovernmental Committee decided to include our report as a separate agenda item at its next session. It will be first such report in the history of the Forum, and it requires our due attention. Several members of the Steering Committee had an online meeting with UNESCO Secretariat, where we discussed formal requirement for the report. It is expected to be no longer than 5 pages; it may use as a model the reports of ad hoc working groups; the greatest attention should be given to the draft decision as the binding part of the agenda item, while overall contents of the report is up to the Forum to decide. The deadline for completing the English version of the report is the end of September. The Secretariat will translate it into French, and both versions needs to be available at the UNESCO website by 2 November (i.e., a month in advance to 15. COM). Further on, the Steering Committee discussed the contents of the report, and have identified the following parts as the most important: (i) report on the Forum’s activities prior and during 14. COM and on activities prepared for 15.COM, and their contextualization in relation to the role of NGOs in safeguarding ICH in general; (ii) Forum’s views and suggestions pertaining to three important ongoing topics in the work of the Intergovernmental Committee, namely (a) the reform of the listing mechanism, (b) the role of NGOs and possible reform of the accreditation system, and (c) ICH in emergencies; (iii) resilience of communities and their ICH against Coronavirus epidemic (this last topic representing a special, currently burning example of ICH in emergencies in general terms). In order to secure the broadest possible participation of ICH NGOs in the preparation of the report, we have decided to launch an invitation to all accredited NGOs to join ad hoc working subcommittee that will be directly and actively involved in the needed analyses to be conducted and the drafting of the report. It is expected that the work of the subcommittee will be organized into several groups that will be in charge of the above-mentioned parts of the report; members of each group will communicate regularly through email correspondence and online Skype meetings. Those of you who would like to join in, please contact Naila Ceribasic (ichngoforum@gmail.com), a secretary of the Steering Committee who will coordinate the work of the subcommittee, no later than 15 June 2020. With best wishes, Steering Committee of the ICH NGO Forum Volontaires pour le sous-comité ad hoc pour le Rapport du Forum des ONG du PCI à 15. COM Chers collègues, Nous espérons que ce courriel vous trouve bien et à l’abri de la propagation de Covid-19. Comme vous le savez, à 14. COM, le Comité intergouvernemental a décidé d’inscrire un point séparé de l’ordre du jour sur le Rapport du Forum des ONG pour sa prochaine session (15.COM). Il s’agira du premier rapport de ce type dans l’histoire du Forum et il va requérir notre plus grande attention. Plusieurs membres du Comité directeur ont tenu une réunion en ligne avec le Secrétariat de l’UNESCO, au cours de laquelle nous avons discuté des exigences formelles du Rapport. Il ne devrait pas dépasser 5 pages; il pourrait s’inspirer des rapports des groupes de travail ad hoc; la plus grande attention devrait être accordée au projet de décision en tant que partie contraignante du point de l’ordre du jour, tandis que le contenu général du Rapport se met à la discrétion du Forum. La date limite pour rédiger le Rapport en anglais est fin septembre. Le Secrétariat le fera traduira en français, et les deux versions doivent être disponibles sur le site Web de l’UNESCO au plus tard le 2 novembre (c’est-à-dire un mois à l’avance pour 15. COM). Par la suite, le Comité directeur a examiné le contenu du Rapport et a identifié les parties suivantes comme les plus importantes: (i) rapport sur les activités du Forum avant et pendant 14. COM et sur les activités prévues pour 15.COM, et leur contextualisation en ce qui concerne le rôle des ONG dans la sauvegarde du PCI en général; (ii) Points de vue et suggestions du Forum concernant trois sujets importants en cours d’examen dans les travaux du Comité intergouvernemental, à savoir (a) la réforme des mécanismes d’inscription sur les Listes de la Convention, (b) le rôle des ONG et la réforme éventuelle du système d’accréditation, et (c) PCI dans les situations d’urgence; (iii) la résilience des communautés et de leur PCI contre l’épidémie de coronavirus (ce dernier sujet représente un exemple particulier, actuellement brûlant du PCI dans les situations d’urgence en termes généraux). Afin d’assurer la participation le plus large possible des ONG du PCI à la préparation du Rapport, nous avons le plaisir de vous inviter cordialement à toutes les ONG accréditées à se joindre au sous-comité de travail ad hoc qui sera directement et activement impliqué dans les analyses nécessaires à mener et la rédaction du Rapport. Il est prévu que les travaux du sous-comité soient organisés en plusieurs groupes qui seront chargés des parties susmentionnées du Rapport ; les membres de chaque groupe communiqueront régulièrement par courriel et par des réunions Skype en ligne. Si vous voulez s’y joindre, veuillez contacter Naila Ceribasic, secrétaire du Comité directeur qui coordonnera les travaux du sous-comité, par courriel à l’adresse ichngoforum@gmail.com au plus tard le 15 juin 2020. Avec nos meilleurs vœux, Comité directeur du Forum des ONG du PCI

New Paradigms in Rural Cultural Industries

Creative industries like craft collectives: village tourism: cultural festivals which support the tradition bearers and practitioners are threatened with challenges of decline in demand owing to factors like decline in tourist flows: less disposable income of consumers and restrictions in cultural and social gatherings. On June 18: 2020: UNESCO New Delhi in collaboration with banglanatak dot com is organizing its next webinar on ‘New Paradigms in Rural Cultural Industries’. The objectives of the webinar are to:• Raise awareness about the impact of COVID-19 on cultural and creative sector based on heritage skills in art and crafts including cultural tourism• Identify needs and challenges to be addressed through development of policies: programs and financial mechanisms aimed at empowering artists• Sharing voices of ICH Communities and experiences from different countries. The webinar will be from 4 pm to 5:30 pm. PanelistsMs. Junhi Han: Programme Specialist and Chief of Culture Sector: UNESCO New Delhi will op

Building Resilient Communities Practising ICH

On April 15:2020: UNESCO launched a global movement ResiliArt to mobilize solidarity among artists and cultural professionals. Social media campaign and online debates are being organized to shed light on the impact of the pandemic on cultural value chain and creative economy: support the artists during and following the crisis. UNESCO New Delhi launched ResiliArt South Asia on May 21: 2020 with a webinar on “Arts and Culture during Covid-19 crisis”.South Asia is rich in intangible cultural heritage. The folk artists and crafts persons are facing challenges with cancellation of cultural programs: festivals and exhibitions: disruptions in supply chain and restrictions in mobility and social gathering. On June 10: 2020: UNESCO New Delhi in collaboration with banglanatak dot com is organizing a webinar on ‘Building Resilient Communities Practising Intangible Cultural Heritage’.Welcome Note: Eric Falt: Director and UNESCO Representative to Bhutan: India: Maldives and Sri Lanka will welcome the panelists and share

Making of Rattan Products

Rattan is a family of climbing palms found in tropical regions, and is used for a variety purposes, including the making of furniture and handicrafts, and as building materials. The name “rattan” refers to the stem of the climbing palm, and is believed to have originated from the Malay word “rotan”, meaning “to pare”. Rattan is also sometimes known as “cane”. In Singapore, the making of rattan products is closely tied with its economic history. Historically known as a centre for entrepot trade of rattan, the rattan industry in Singapore reached its peak in the 1960s and 1970s, when there was a rapid growth in the processing of rattan raw materials and making of rattan products, as driven by global trade and domestic development. Known for high-quality hand-made rattan products and technology in rattan processing, Singapore was also a centre for regional rattan research in the 1980s. Though the industry dwindled from the 1990s due to the global competition and economic and social factors, Singapore remains a key player in the global trade in rattan raw materials. Today, there are a number of traditional rattan makers in Singapore who continues to hand-make rattan products, as a craft which has been practised in Singapore since its early days to present. Read more: <a href="https://www.roots.sg/learn/resources/ich/traditional-craftsmanship/making-of-rattan-products">https://www.roots.sg/learn/resources/ich/traditional-craftsmanship/making-of-rattan-products</a>

Periodic Performance of Pilbong Farmer's Music of Imsil Held Without Spectators

Periodic Performance of Pilbong Farmer's Music of Imsil Held Without Spectators on May 30: 2020Due to the Covid-19 pandemic: many events were cancelled but some still continued to go without spectators. The periodic performance of Pilbong Farmer's Music of Imsil was held on May 30(Sat.): 2020 without spectators. This farmer's music has been performed to get evil spirits away and to wish for the safeness for their community. It was a pity that the community members were not able to get involved. The performers performed wishing that the coronavirus crisis would quickly come to an end. Pilbong Farmer's Music is No.11-5 of National Intangible Cultural Property of Republic of Korea. It is mainly performed in the west area of Jeolla North Province.

Online training for periodic reporting launched in Latin America and the Caribbean

National focal points for periodic reporting from 33 countries and associated member States of UNESCO across Latin America and the Caribbean took part last Tuesday in the launch of the new online training course for the reformed periodic reporting process, which is being rolled out in the Latin America and Caribbean region for the first time this year. UNESCO developed the course in collaboration with CRESPIAL with the aim to build capacities for the preparation of the country reports and to strengthen the national monitoring processes of the 2003 Convention. It will also provide an occasion for peer learning, networking and strategic discussion among participating focal points and UNESCO colleagues. The course, which has been adapted to an online format in response to the COVID-19 crisis, presents a new modality for delivering training under the global capacity-building strategy, and will take place over a period of six weeks from 19 May to 23 June. Link: <a href=" https://ich.unesco.org/en/news/online-training-for-periodic-reporting-launched-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean-13264"> https://ich.unesco.org/en/news/online-training-for-periodic-reporting-launched-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean-13264</a>

Follow-Up Activities of Steering Committee(SC)

■ Publication of the Newsletter The ICHNGO Forum Newsletter was distributed on 10 April, 2020. Link: <a href="http://ipw1.mjt.lu/nl2/ipw1/mhwyz.html?m=AMUAAG4ynZcAAcp9SuoAAAAYkL0AAAAUPK8AAG2QAAhZhABekH6VcK_F42C1S8W_cvNYtqNL4AAH8AE&b=ce917d60&e=796b3e97&x=dcVxVxUKwyeqK1pPsQLBfCpu_MhYZwEb6wit78bUopM"> http://ipw1.mjt.lu/nl2/ipw1/mhwyz.html?m=AMUAAG4ynZcAAcp9SuoAAAAYkL0AAAAUPK8AAG2QAAhZhABekH6VcK_F42C1S8W_cvNYtqNL4AAH8AE&b=ce917d60&e=796b3e97&x=dcVxVxUKwyeqK1pPsQLBfCpu_MhYZwEb6wit78bUopM</a> The SC will issue the next Newsletter at the end of June or the beginning of July, sharing experiences and good practices of ICH in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. ■ Preparation of Program for 8.GA The 8th session of the General Assembly of the States Parties to the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage has been rescheduled to 25 to 27 August, 2020 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It has appeared that at the moment nobody can be completely sure about the date, format, and agenda of 8.GA yet from the talks with the UNESCO Secretariat of the Convention held on 6 April. It may happen that it will be shortened, that no side events will be organized and/or that it will be postponed again. Nevertheless, the SC continue to prepare for the side events program for 8.GA as originally planned as follows : • A session dedicated to the outcomes of the IMP project • A session on the wheel chart of sustainability and ICH. • But panel presentation and in-depth discussion on the role of NGOs in safeguarding ICH in Latin America and the Caribbean is not certain. • ICHCAP will arrange a meeting between the SC and Category 2 centers during 8.GA. ■ Preparation of program for 15.COM The SC and the UNESCO Secretariat of the Convention discussed the format and contents of the Report of ICH NGO Forum for 15.COM. The Report will be comprised of the following parts: i) report on the Forum's activities prior and during 14.COM and on activities prepared for 15.COM, and their contextualization in relation to the role of NGOs in safeguarding ICH in general; ii) Forum's views and suggestions pertaining to three important ongoing topics in the work of the Intergovernmental Committee, namely a) the reform of the listing mechanism, b) the role of NGOs and possible reform of the accreditation system, and c) ICH in emergencies; and iii) resilience of communities and their ICH against Coronavirus pandemic For more active involvement of ICH NGOs in the preparation of the report, the SC decided to send an invitation to all accredited NGOs to join a working group. The issue of approval of membership in the NGO Forum was brought up at the SC, and will be discussed at the General Assembly of ICH NGO Forum to be held during 15.COM. ■ Establishment of the Election Board Since the Election Board was not nominated at the General Meeting held in Bogota last year, the SC will launch a call for expression of interest among accredited NGOs to serve in the 2020 Election Board. ------------------------------------ Minutes of the SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting. See more details at the SC's Monthly Minutes. Link: <a href ="http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes">http://ichngo.net/SC/Minutes</a>

UNESCO launches platform on living heritage and the COVID-19 pandemic

IMPACT ON LIVING HERITAGE Experiences shared so far through the online survey have shown the scale of disruption across the world, with many significant festive events and rituals cancelled or postponed. Some communities can no longer access the cultural and natural spaces and places of memory necessary for expressing their intangible cultural heritage, while others are restricted from coming together to share and enjoy many aspects of their intangible cultural heritage, so important to them. This has not only caused disruptions in the social and cultural lives of many, but has also resulted in loss of income for many bearers and practitioners of intangible cultural heritage. Those working in the performing arts and traditional crafts, who largely operate in the informal sector, have been particularly hard hit. Although it is still early to assess the economic costs, artisans the world over have responded to the survey noting loss of livelihoods as they face challenges in supplying orders and accessing raw materials. ADAPTING TO CRISIS Intangible cultural heritage, however, is dynamic in nature and has the capacity to adapt and evolve. Survey results demonstrate that communities have sought ways to continue practicing their intangible cultural heritage, despite quarantine and confinement measures. Many Holy Week celebrations for example, from Colombia to Venezuela and Croatia to Italy, still went ahead this year, albeit in adapted form. Online initiatives and platforms have sprung up, providing new ways to disseminate and transmit knowledge about intangible cultural heritage. In Georgia, traditional feasts continue to take place online, with tables of traditional food and drinks arranged in front of computer screens and toasts performed virtually. Social networks are playing a prominent role in helping people stay connected while being physically apart. For folk singers in Rajasthan, India, who must often travel to perform, live performances are organized through Facebook, providing a sense of solidarity with other artists and hope to continue. More time spent in the home has heightened opportunities for teaching about intangible cultural heritage within the family. From Jamaica to Lebanon, many traditional cultural practices, such as culinary traditions and crafts, are being revisited under lockdown. Parents are cooking traditional meals with young members of the family, using recipes passed down from older generations and sharing the results online. TOOLS FOR RESILIENCE While the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the fragility of living heritage in emergencies, such situations can also provide reinvigorating or creative contexts for intangible cultural heritage, prompting the re-emergence or renewal of interest in abandoned elements or even the emergence of new ones. Many elements of intangible cultural heritage are being transformed in the context of the pandemic to support and reinforce public health measures. Artists in Peru and China, for example, are creating face masks using traditional design and techniques. Amazigh communities in the Moroccan Atlas Mountains share poetic verses related to COVID-19. Traditional string puppet performances in Sri Lanka tell stories of confinement and social distancing, while in Senegal, the mythical figure of Kankurang, traditionally the guarantor of order and justice, parades the streets from 8pm until dawn, enforcing village curfew. SHARE YOUR STORY Explore these stories and more on UNESCO’s web platform on living heritage and the COVID-19 pandemic. Living heritage continues to be important for all of us during crisis, in providing a sense of connection and continuity and reinforcing the social bonds between us. How have you been engaging with your living heritage in response to the pandemic? And what role can living heritage play in such difficult times? Share your story through our online survey and tell us your experience of living heritage during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Follow-Up Activities of Steering Committee(SC)

■ Preparation of program for 8.GA (1) 8.GA has been rescheduled from 9-11 June to 25-27 August, 2020. (2) Arranging ICH NGO Forum Desk for 8th General Assembly. (Guiding NGOs to present their materials such as leaflets, brochures, perhaps also posters, etc./ letters to be sent to all accredited NGOs) (3) Organizing a panel presentation and in-depth discussion on one or two success stories of good, viable, and innovative safeguarding practices.(The outcomes of the ICH and Museums (IMP) project to be presented) ■ Preparation of program for 15.COM (1) The theme of the Symposium is “ICH and Tourism.” (2) The joint session on the “Wheel Chart of Sustainability and ICH” co-organized by Finland (Sharing chart’s application in the work of ICH NGOs and their role in safeguarding) (3) The report of accredited NGOs will be introduced as a separate agenda. The reform of the listing mechanism, regional reporting, application of the overall results framework, treatment of correspondence from the public, etc. will be discussed. ■ The Network of European Museum Organization (NEMO) invited the Forum to join the international advisory board of the project proposal within the Horizon 2020 called “Culture Beyond Borders,” which intends to design a comprehensive strategy for cultural heritage and museums. Minutes of SC's monthly virtual meeting are uploaded a month later after the confirmation in the next meeting.

Living heritage experiences in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic

While we are currently going through extraordinary conditions of lockdown on a global scale due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we are also seeing the ways in which the impact of this crisis goes beyond our physical health. Festivals and cultural events are being cancelled or postponed, and cultural practices and rituals are being restricted, causing disruptions in the lives of many people. At the same time, we are seeing how living heritage can be a source of resilience in such difficult circumstances, as people continue to draw inspiration, joy and solidarity from practising their living heritage. With this in mind, UNESCO is inviting its partners to share their experiences on the role of living heritage during the pandemic and how its safeguarding has been affected in the immediate term. We hope that these stories will help enhance our learning about safeguarding living heritage in the context of COVID-19 and inspire communities to learn from each other and exchange experiences. Please send us your experience through our online form (English|French|Spanish). You may wish to include information directly collected by your organization or other stories that you are aware of related to living heritage during the coronavirus pandemic. We also encourage you to circulate this call with your networks and communities who may be interested. For any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us directly: ich.com@unesco.org.

Reports of the ICH NGO Forum at the Pre & 14th Session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of ICH to be held in Bogota from 7 to 14 December 2019.

You can find the attached reports of the ICH NGO Forum activities at Pre-14.COM and 14.COM held in Bogota, Colombia from 7 to 14 December 2019.

Workshop on ICH management in Pernik, Bulgaria

The Regional Centre Sofia organizes two-days workshops on 'ICH management' in different cities in Bulgaria in the frames of the project named “Safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage through enhancing civil society’s participation on the process of formulating: implementing and monitoring of policies and legislation”.After the first workshop in Ruse and the following in Koprivshtitsa: Burgas and Vratsa: the last planned workshop will be held in the city of Pernik on March 5-6: 2020.More information: available in Bulgarian* Link: http://www.unesco-centerbg.org

Mongolian Traditional Practices of Worshipping the Sacred Sites

Deeply rooted in the respect for their environment, Mongolians have been practicing the worshipping of sacred sites. Since the ancient times, Mongolia’s nomadic lifestyle has contributed to the ritual of worshipping sacred sites. The nomadic pastoralism and nomadic cultures have thrived in the vast lands of Mongolia. Humans living in harmony with nature is one of the features of nomadic culture; worshipping practices of sacred natural sites. It was discouraged to leave ashes or any kind of waste. The shamanic beliefs of Mongolians practices worshipping mountains. The peaks of these venerated mountain serves as an offering place where passersby worship for their endeavors. The procedural ceremony starts by monk chants and the villagers communing together to venerate the sacred sites. The importance of these events are for the solidarity and harmony of the community and groups. Mongolian traditional practices of worshipping sacred sites have been inscribed to the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

GANDHI SMRITHI 2020

Folkland with the support of Dorf Ketal and collaboration with INTACH Kasargod Chapter and Payyanur Paursamithi organized different programs on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi’s 72nd Death Anniversary.

Nordic-Baltic ICH Network established, Kaustinen ICH seminar 2019 video available online

The Nordic and Baltic network on Intangible Cultural Heritage was established 13.7.2019 at the Kaustinen Intangible Cultural Heritage Seminar 2019. The organization of the network will be discussed in a satellite meeting associated with the first Nordic ICH conference Living heritage in the Nordic countries. International seminar on the UNESCO 2003 Convention, 31.10–1.11.2019 in Hanaholmen Cultural Centre, Espoo, Finland. See more information on the network and watch the Kaustinen seminar video( <a href="http://www.kansanmusiikki-instituutti.fi/toiminta/nordic-baltic-ich-network/"> http://www.kansanmusiikki-instituutti.fi/toiminta/nordic-baltic-ich-network/</a>/).

The 15th session of Intangible Cultural Heritage will be held in Jamaica from 30 November to 5 December 2020.

The Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage ended its 14th session which took place in Bogota: Colombia from 9 to 14 December 2019: under the Chair Maria Claudia Lopez Sorzano. The Committee adopted guidelines for the safeguarding of ICH in emergency situtions such as conflict and disaster(both natural and human-induced).The guidelines build on the research and experience acquired by UNESCO in recent years: including among Syrian refugees: internally displaced population in the Democratic Republic of Congo and disaster risk reduction strategies in the Pacificnds. During the last day of the session: the Committee decided its 15th session will be held in Kingston under the Chair of Jamaica's Minister of Culture: Gender: Entertainment and Sport: from 30 November to 5 December 2020. The Committee also inscribed five elements on the List of ICH in Need of Urgent Safeguarding and 35 on the Representative List of ICH of Humanity.

2020 Jeonju International Awards now accept applications

Registration has begun for the 2nd annual Jeonju International Awards Ceremony. Please Download the application here: http://jiapich.org/Candidates for the AwardsAwards are open to Living Human Treasure(practitioners): groups and communities: administrators: researchers: NGOs and those who have mad substantial contributions for promoting ICHSubmission of application : March 30th: 2020Announcement of Awardee(s): June 2020 (TBD)Award Ceremony : September 2020 (TBD)Website: Secretariat of JIAPICH: www.cics.center/jiapichCity of Jeonju : www.jeonju.go.krUNESCO NGO information website: www.ichngo.net Email: cics.center@gmail.com

Opening Ceremony of the 14th session of the Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage

Colombia's President Ivan Duque Marquez and UNESCO's Director-General Audrey Azoulay were among more than 1:000 participants sho attended the opening on 9 December of the 14th session of the Committee for rhe Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage taking place in the Colombian capital under the chair of Maria Claudia Lopez Sorzano: until 14 December 2019. Performers from the Car ival of Barranquilla: inscribed on UNESCO's Representive List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2008 escorted delegates to the auditorium where opening ceremony took place: before the Corbandas symphony orchestra performed a program of cumbia: fandago and merengue carranguero music. In her speech: Ms. Audrey Azoulay said that since its entry into force in 2006: the Convention for the Intangible Cultural Heritage "has been made stronger through its dissemination of an ambitious vision of heritage: the idea of living legacy that integrates practices: experiences: techniques and human knowledge nurtured over

ICH NGO Forum Pre-14.COM Activities

On Saturday:7 December 2019: Capacity-building workshops were held at the Black Tower Hotel in Bogota: Colombia: under generous support of the Government of Sweden who also hosted a luncheon.On Sunday: 8 December: the Forum held a Symposium on <ICH in Urban Contexts> in cooperation with the National Heritage Board of Singapore at the Agora Convention Center. Another Symposium on <Reform of the Listing Mechanism - How NGOs can contribute to addressing old and new challenges?> was held also.In the afternoon of 8 December: the Forum had a meeting to discuss the draft Bylaws of ICH NGO Forum prepared by the working group and the Steering Committee.

The 14th Session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage to be held in Bogota, Colombia from 9 to 14 December 2019.

You can access to the live webcast of the 14th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage to be held in Bogota: Colombia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njDKwhjBTfE&feature=emb_logo

Angklung: Indonesian Bamboo Musical Instrument

Angklung is a musical instrument made of Bamboo tubes and frame attached to one another by rattan cords. The tubes are carved to resonate pitch when struck and are tuned to octaves. The base of the frame is held in one hand, while the other hand shakes the instrument. Each Angklung players are responsible for one pitch making the collection of Angklung players to come together for an ensemble that produces the appropriate melodies. Angklung is closely related to traditional customs, arts, and cultural identity of Indonesia. Until recently, the Angklung was mainly played among children at schools. This changed in the last century when the Angklung has been reintroduced in local festivals as well as social gatherings. Angklung was inscribed in 2010 to the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Baul Fakir Mela in New Delhi on 9th-10th November, 2019

Nearly 200 Baul-Fakiri songs, Bengali Qawaali and Dhamail songs were sung by a whopping community of 60 Baul-Fakir musicians from Bengal before around 1500 people, if not more, at the Meghdoot Open Air Theater Auditorium of Sangeet Natak Academy, New Delhi, over a span of 13 hours across 2 days. Around 70% of the audience, meaning, more than 1000 of the audience were from the diaspora Bengali community of New Delhi. Again, the fact that more than 500 among the attendees were from the non-Bengali communities residing in and around Delhi was, in itself, no mean feat!

Pre-14.COM and 14.COM programme, 7-13 December 2019

ICH NGO Forum: Pre-14.COM and 14.COM programme Bogotá: 7-13 December 2019The programme of the activities of the ICH NGO Forum before and during the fourteenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (14.COM).Please confirm your participation by filling out the form which you can find on http://www.ichngoforum.org/pre-14-com-14-com-programme-bogota-7-13-december-2019/#/ as soon as possible: and no later than 30 November 2019.Saturday: 7 December: Capacity-building workshopBlack Tower Premium Hotel (Av esperanza 43a 21)(Lunch and coffee/tea breaks hosted by the Kingdom of Sweden)9:30-10 Plenary session: Introduction to the workshop 10-11:30 Group work Group A-C: newly accredited NGOs and newcomers to COM: Introducing the Convention: its key terms: and the role of NGOs in its implementation on national: regional and international levels Group A: English-speaking group: facilitator Naila CeribašićGroup B: French-speaking group: facilitator Jorijn Neyri

The Art of Brazilian Capoeira Circle

Capoeira Circle is a common sighting in Brazil as it is quite popular to have Capoeiristas gather around in circles performing, competing, and sharing their art of movement. Capoeira has African origins since the early 16th century from enslaved Africans in Brazil. Although Capoeira has since become one of the biggest cultural exports of Brazil, Capoeiristas have historically been persecuted and had their art of movement shunned for some time. The acrobatic movements of Capoeira Circles is just part of the art form, as it requires the artists of Capoeira Circles to sing, chant, clap, and play instruments. When the Capoeira Circle is formed two opposing players engage each other in what looks to be a dance of reacting to each other’s movements. These acrobatic movements are difficult and require many years of training to master. The Capoeira master is someone who oversees the whole circle and controls the tempo with timing and rhythm. The Capoeira Circle is a training ground for the students to observe and learn skills mainly through imitation. On 2014 Capoeira Circle was inscribed to the UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. You can watch "Capoeira Circle" on youtube: <a href=" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhgot9H7vZw&feature=youtu.be"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhgot9H7vZw&feature=youtu.be/</a> References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Beer Culture in Belgium

Belgium and beer is synonymous as the culture holds high demand for it. Until the 1960s children eating lunch at school had the choice of beer (called table beer low in alcohol) as their drink. Consumption and demand for beer is a tradition and the range of different kinds of beer in Belgium is constantly growing. Although statistically Belgium has fewer breweries than that of some states in the US, Belgium has more diversity when it comes to beer styles and their brewing processes. There are some 1500 types of beer, all using different fermentation methods. Many local Belgian beers are brewed in micro-breweries. These beers having their own brands reach many locals who consume the beer with any kind of social gatherings or events. Master brewers will often teach courses in universities and other venues in order to help transmit their skills to aspiring brewers and amateurs alike. Beer culture in Belgium was inscribed in 2016 to the representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

The oldest sport in Ireland: Hurling

The oldest sports in Ireland is Hurling. It predates Christianity as there are records of it being played in 1200 BCE. This ancient game is some what unknown to the rest of the world. Hurling is a team sport that involves 15 players on each side, chase and try to score on the opponents’ goal with a ball known as Sliotar (leather covered cork centered ball). Much like sports that have two halves consisting of 25-35minute time frame, the team with the most goals win the match. Hurling resembles field hockey, lacrosse and soccer how it is played out. The sport promotes good health, wellbeing, and team spirit. Today Hurling is preserved and transmitted through coaching and games in schools and clubs. Hurling was inscribed in 2018 to the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. References: ICH UNESCO, WIKIPEDIA

DANCE AWARD SEASON 2020: Where you are the protagonist!

The Dance Grand Prix present the International Competitions and invite your dance school/group to compete and performing at the most prestigious "Art Cities Theatres" in Europe."Barcelona Dance Award" in Spain from 9 to 13 April 2020 during Easter Spring Time.and"Dance Grand Prix Venice-Florence" in Italy from 22 to 26 June 2020 during Summer Time.To find out how to qualify: mail the office: so Directors should act right away for next Year!Unfortunately: in this year: space has been limited and many groups have failed to register: and we hope do not have this kind of problems: for your dance group: next 2020 editions!If you need: just in a few days you will receive (free on charges for you!) some advertising materials from us:the brochures and posters of the Dance Grand Prix 2020 Season: reply to this e.mail for request of info.our info email: eurodancebarcelona@gmail.comFull Name: ___________________________________________School/Company Name: ________________________________Email Address: __________________

Rebetiko: Urban Greek music

Rebetiko or can be described as the urban popular song of the Greeks, originating some time from the late 19th century to the 1950s. Rebetiko is associated with the Urban lower and working class population of Greece whom created songs and sounds from their daily life. Often the lyrics were describing the lower standards that the impoverished faced along with their struggles that the mainstream population were able to make connections. The earliest origins of Rebetiko is from mainly coastal cities in today’s Asia Minor with large Greek communities during the Ottoman era. Rebetiko emphasizes the importance of living musical tradition with a strong symbolic, ideological and artistic character. The Transmission occurs orally through live performances. Bouzouki is the one of the main instruments of Rebetiko, which looks a lot like the guitar but has three strings. Rebetiko is closely related to the nightlife entertainment of Greek taverns and Hookah shops. In 2017 Rebetiko was added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists. You can watch "Rebetiko" on youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHewYT_hfXg&feature=youtu.be"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHewYT_hfXg&feature=youtu.be/</a> References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Traditional Mauritian Sega: The Talented Mauritian Music

Although the exact origins of the Mauritian Sega is up for debate, what is not questioned is the pure talent and vibrant performing art that is the Mauritian Sega. The self-expressive songs are often in Creole, using traditional instruments such as the Ravann, Triangle, and the Maravann. As Mauritian society is a multicultural one, the Mauritian Sega helps to alleviate the different cultures and classes to come together for one unified performance. The Sega songs are slow to start usually, with the tempo gradually increasing the singer often sings in Creole or their own language and people dance in short steps moving their hip and hand to the beat. The main practitioners are singers, dancers who transmit their skills through teaching and imitation. Traditional Mauritian Sega was inscribed to the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2014. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

The King Hung Temple Festival of Phu Tho Vietnam

On the 8th to the 11th day of the third lunar month of the year, The King Hung temple festivals of Pho Tho attracts millions of people to the Nghia Linh mountains. The people commemorate their ancestors and pray for good weather, abundant harvests, good luck, and good health. The festival takes place over several days, the 10th day of the month considered the most important. The procession starts at the foot of the mountain and stops at every small temple before reaching the High Temple. The people offer prayers and incense to their ancestors. The festival features many folk games, rice cooking competitions, lion dance, human chess, and various other cultural activities. Many who visit the festivals can enjoy various unique art performances some of which were recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia, Inside Vietnam Travel(<a href="www.toursinvietnam.com>www.toursinvietnam.com</a>)

ICH NGO Forum : the Activities during the 14th Intergovernmental Committee

The Steering Committee of The ICH NGO Forum INVITE You to participate in ICH NGO Forum activates in Bogota - Colombia: 7 – 14th December 2019 at ICH Intergovernmental Committee Meetings each year: this year to be held in Bogota - Colombia: 9-14th December at 14.COM.Invitation:Dear colleagues:as NGOs accredited to the 2003 Convention: you have received invitation to participate at 14.COM: which will be held in Bogota from 9 to 14 December 2019. We hope that you will be able to attend. Please take note that expenses incurred by participants are generally borne by your organizations. However: participation costs for representatives from accredited NGOs from developing countries: depending on the availability of resources: may be covered by the Fund for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. More information on that is available in the invitation letter that you have received.When planning your trip to Bogota: please pay particular attention to ICH NGO Forum pre-14.COM events: scheduled for 7-8 Dec

Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage

The Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage aims to recognize good safeguarding practices of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) and to encourage the proliferation of values of ICH such as social cohesion, cooperation, and cultural diversity for the future development of the global community. The awards are given to individuals, groups, institutions, NGOs, and those who have made substantial contributions to promoting ICH. Jeonju City is happy to made an opportunity to praise their commitments and indomitable spirit for the safeguarding of ICH. Taking the first step in 2019, Jeonju International Awards for Promoting ICH hopes to become sustainable with prestige gaining a great deal of attention from the world. A) Significance The Jeonju International Awards for Promoting ICH are international awards established by Jeonju, a city of traditional culture. The local government, Jeonju City, took the initiative to transmit, safeguard, and promote ICH around the world. Jeonju is a cultural city with a lot of ICH compared to other cities, and the identity of the city is sought from creativity based on old tradition and culture. The spirit of safeguarding ICH initiated by UNESCO comes from the same context. Jeonju City sets another milestone in the field of ICH safeguarding by enacting the 'Jeonju International Awards for Promoting ICH.' The awards are for the praise of those who have devoted themselves to the universal values of humanity transcending nation, ethnic, religion, or gender. Jeonju, a provincial city, wishes further for the awards to play a role for the harmony of the global community, the development of human culture, and the sustainable development for the future. Jeonju believes that its intangible cultural heritage left by forefathers can be a valuable asset in the 4th industrial revolution era. Instead of regarding it as merely old and obsolete, Jeonju is trying to launch the intangible cultural heritage into digital heritage and move on to a smart city. Jeonju has been at the forefront of the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage in the age of advanced science and technology and opening a new era. Opening this year for the first time, the awards had gained great positive feedback from around the world. Forty-eight applicants from thirty-six different countries applied for the awards, which was encouraging. In the future, Jeonju will continue to honor those who have contributed to the safeguarding and transmission of ICH through this awards. We hope that the awards become the lighthouse of hope for all ICH holders, groups, and individuals who are striving to safeguard ICH. B) Awardees 1. Contact Base, India Contact Base is working domestically and internationally to safeguard the traditional art of India. Due to rapid changes in lifestyle of India, the skills in art and craft, traditional knowledge on nature are not recognized as employable skills in conventional developmental paradigm. To empower the tradition bearers to develop micro economies based on traditional art and craft skills, Contact Base is helping them with the initiative 'Art for Life.' Contact Base is accredited to the UNESCO 2003 ICH Committee (since 2010) and is in Special Consultative Status with UN ECOSOC (since 2013). It has partnership with UNWTO to promote responsible cultural tourism. Initiated in 2004, Art for Life has led to revitalization of 30+ art and craft traditions of eastern India and socio economically empowered 28000+ families of folk dancers, singers, theatre groups, storytellers, mat weavers and crafts persons. Contact Base is also working for collecting inventories and transmitting tradition. Contact Base has won the Bihar Innovation Forum II award (World Bank supported) for Art for Life model as a good practice in non-farm sector (2014) and UNWomen Mastercard Award for Best Community Outreach Project (2011). 2. Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador (HFNL), Canada Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. It’s a province with a rich intangible cultural heritage, with both indigenous populations, and a settler population of predominantly English/Irish ancestry. HFNL developed a variety of training programs and community-based workshops to introduce the concept of ICH and to provide practical training. Since then, HFNL has organized several festivals, coupled with work to inventory and promote ICH. In 2014, HFNL was accredited as an non-governmental organization by UNESCO (ITH/12/4.GA/6). The ICH Office at HFNL has achieved through policies that support initiatives to celebrate, record, disseminate and promote ICH and help to build bridges between diverse cultural groups within and outside Newfoundland and Labrador. One of its broad initiatives is the ICH Inventory, a repository of collected ethnographic material, including audio interviews, oral histories, video interviews, events and practices recordings, photographs, ephemera, and print materials, such as maps, drawings, architectural floor plans of vernacular buildings. HFLN has won the Manning Award for St. John’s [HERE]SAY Project in recognition of excellence in the Public Presentation of Historic Places (2011). The ICH Office nominated Mummering to the Provincial Historic Commemorations Program (2011). It was nominated Traditional Games of Newfoundland and Labrador to the Provincial Historic Commemorations Program (2015). It has received an Honourable Mention for Canada’s Governor General’s History Award for Excellence in Community Programming (2018). 3. Ahmed Skounti, Morocco Mr. Ahmed Skounti is a professor in Anthropology at the National Institute of Archaeology and Heritage Sciences (INSAP, Rabat, Morocco). He contributed to the drafting and adoption of the 2003 ICH Convention during the intergovernmental meetings in 2002 and 2003. He actively participated to the drafting of the Operational Directives of the Convention since 2006. He is a facilitator of the 2003 Convention since 2011. He is currently contributing to the UNESCO capacity-building programme in many countries, mainly in North Africa, Subsaharan Africa and the Middle East. He assists some of the States Parties in this region with designing policies in the field of the intangible cultural heritage (Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia). He is contributing a lot to the development and sustainability of ICH on the regional level and on the international level.

Outdoor Events at the Jeonju International Awards

Exhibition & Hands-on Experience of ICH -Patachitra exhibition -Hapjukseon (Fan making) -Jihwa (paper Flower) -Jeonju Yiyangju (Folk Liquor) -Hanji paper photo exhibition -Jeonju future cultural heritage exhibition

The First Jeonju International Awards

Congratulations to the winners! Winners are Contact Base from India, Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador of Canada and Professor Ahmed Skounti of Morocco.

The Carnival of Basel: Three best days in the year of Switzerland

The Carnival of Basel is the biggest carnival in Switzerland and has been listed as one of the top fifty local festivities of Europe. Taking place on Monday after Ash Wednesday at precisely 4:00 am, Carnival of Basel otherwise known as Basler Fasnacht turns the city upside down for 72 hours. The locals call it “Three best days” in the year. All the lights in the city center are turned off and over 200 painted lanterns fill the streets along with hundreds of drummers and piccolo players marching together showing cohesiveness. This is known as Morgestraich that fill the streets. Participants in the parading is required to remain in incognito, parades are often disguised behind political, celebrity, satirical figures. This brings social cohesion through social criticism, making this unique carnival inclusive and overall great for the social dynamic of the city. The Carnival of Basel in Switzerland has been inscribed to the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2017. You can watch "The Carnival of Basel" on youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqGbugKe7Rw&feature=youtu.be"> httpshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqGbugKe7Rw&feature=youtu.be/</a> References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia, Basel Culture Unlimited(www.basel.com)

Kumbh Mela: India’s pilgrimage to the holy waters

Kumbh Mela of India is considered the largest peaceful gathering in the world. In 2013 during the two months period of Kumbh Mela, an estimated 120 million people visited their holy waters, including 30 million people moving in a single day. Kumbh Mela can be defined as a mass Hindu pilgrimage of faith to one of four of these holy water sites: Allahaba, Haridwar, Nashik district, and Ujjain. The Kumbh Mela is held every 12 years, and around 3 years difference between the Haridwar and Nashik gathering. The origins of the festival is unknown, but according to Hindus, Lord Vishnu spilled drops of Amrita (drink of immortality) in the four places identified as the present day sites of the Kumbh Mela. The Kumbh Mela plays a vital role of spirituality and the beliefs of Hindus in India. The day includes all Hindus regardless of caste, creed, or gender to gather in the holy waters. The 12 year gap is calculated by astronomy, astrology, spirituality, and the tradition of Indian pilgrimage. Knowledge and skills related to the traditions are transmitted mostly through Akhadas and Ashrams who do it through religious manuscripts as well as orally. Kumbh Mela was inscribed to the list of UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritages in 2017. References: ICH UNESCO, WIKIPEDIA

On-Site training workshops with community members: Jalal-Abad province

On 6-8 September : 2019 Aigine CRC is conducting on-site training workshop for sacred site guardians: pilgrims: traditional practitioners and members of working group of Jalal-Abad province.The main objectives of the workshop is to familiarize the participants with the UNESCO 2003 Convention on Safeguarding ICH: to develop sacred site and pilgrimage practice safeguarding measures: as well as to conduct cross validation of the sacred sites and rituals of Jalal-Abad province.The training workshop is held in the framework of the project "Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures'.

National level Nandi dance festival

Event Venue ;- spy Reddy Kalavedika:Townhall Nandyal:kurnool- dist: Andhrapradesh : India- 518501 : cell; 09908725084 : Email ;- srisainatyanjali@gmail.comwe are doing on cultural programes: Kuchipudi: Bharatnatyam: Andhranatya: Kathak: Kathakkali: Mohiniattam: Manipuri: Perininatyam : Odissi : yakshaganam:Janapadham : Folk and Tribal dance :all Indian Traditional dance Etc

Knucklebone shooting: embodiment of folk Mongolian national folk game

The technique of Knucklebone shooting demands high accuracy as well as precision and might seem somewhat similar to bowling, with the object of the game being to knock down more of the ankle bones than your opponent. During the shooting tournaments shooters communicate with each other not with words, but in a specific manner of singing of traditional "Knucklebone Shooting" melodies. Each tournament last for 2-3 hours depending on the scale and type of the competition. It demands high tolerance and endurance from competitors as they sit and rise up to 50-60 times as they compete, as well as maximum precision of sight and accuracy of fingertips performance. It is also a magnificent tradition that, in respect of their seniority, some elder players of 60-90 years of age are allowed to use their "Chavkh" or "Shooting bow". Team members are tied by unbreakable internal bonds and follow clear ethical rules of mutual respect and dignity. No conflicts and contentions can be tolerated within or between the teams as certain moral codes of lawful honors are strictly obeyed. References: ICH UNESCO, Khan Expedition (<a href="https://www.khanexpedition.com/en/post/knucklebone-shooting.html">https://www.khanexpedition.com/en/post/knucklebone-shooting.html</a>)

2019 Jeonju International Awards Ceremony will be held in South Korea on September 27,2019

Event: 2019 Jeonju International Awards Ceremony for Promoting Intangible Cultural HeritageDate/Time: Friday: September 27th 2019/ 10:00- 16:10 Location: Jeonju Hanbyuk Performance Theater: Jeonju: South Korea *A registration will be done on the same day; all visitors are welcomed to attend the event and other programs. The first Jeonju International Awards has been elaborately prepared and the long-awaited awards ceremony will be held on September 27th in Jeonju: South Korea. The awards ceremony is also rich in programs. Opening this year for the first time: the awards had gained great positive feedback from around the world. Forty-eight applicants from 36 different countries applied for the awards. However: only three applicants (individuals and organizations) were selected as finalist. The selection process was challenging as all applicants demonstrated good practices for the safeguarding of ICH with their courage and lofty spirit. In the future: Jeonju will continue to honor those who have contrib

Kolo: Serbian circle dance

Kolo is a Serbian circle dance that involves the dancers holding each other’s hands or each other’s waist, forming a chain of dancers that revolve in circle. Kolo has different but similar forms throughout Southeastern Europe and phonetically ~oro or ~olo maintains in calling this art of circular dance. Kolo is mainly performed at weddings, religious ceremonies, and any other social gatherings. The participants are both male and female, although there are parts to the dance where it requires one gender to take over as the main role. Traditional attire of Kolo involoves the men having to wear caps, loose blouse tucked into their pants that balloon around their thighs and eventually tightening from the knee down to the ankles. The women have to wear king white embroidered dresses with velvet aprons tied at their waist. The sustainability and transmission process of Kolo is both protected and processed on a national and regional level as it is not only a symbol of national identity but also has regional and local touches to its art form. The masters and bearers transmit Kolo through dancing with participants who engage in Kolo as their national dance. Kolo is both taught in schools and in specialized music schools and has a deep root in the minds of all Serbians. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

The Big songs of Fergana Valley in Uzbekistan: Katta Ashula

The Fergana Valley of Uzbekistan is a diverse place, just as the songs of Katta Ashula reflects. Folk singers from Uzbeksitan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan have mastered the Katta Ashula. Two to five singers hold the performance in turns without music. The singers use small plates or trays to make sound hence being call Likobi Ashula (plate song). Katta Ashula requires special training, a strong voice and the ability to improvise. It is usually performed on special occasions such as wedding parties, new year parties, and other holidays. Katta Ashula is transmitted orally from master to pupil. This oral transfer of Katta Ashula has been the main method of preserving the music as well as its spiritual values. As Katta Ashula reflects the inner feelings, hopes, loves, and attitudes of the natives it is imperative that this spirit is transferred from one master to one pupil. Katta Ashula was inscribed in 2009 to the representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. You can watch "Katta Ashula" on youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyZ3FKq54iE&feature=youtu.be"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyZ3FKq54iE&feature=youtu.be/</a> References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Madur and Patachitra at Hungary Heritage House

2 traditional handicraft artists from rural West Bengal (Patachitra and Madur weaving) have reached Budapest on 13th Aug. Hungarian Heritage House is hosting a Patachitra exhibition starting 15 August onwards. On 17th onwards the Handicraft artists will be at Festival of Folk Arts at Buda Castle. Request all friends to please visit both the exhibition to be at held at Hungary Heritage House House ground floor Exhibition Hall and then the festival of Folk Art at Buda Castle. Aug 15 is India's Independence Day (73rd year of Independence) and we are happy that Indian Ambassador in Budapest will inaugurate the exhibition at 5 pm on 15 Aug.

Flamenco of Spain: Andalusia Region State of Mind in motion

Andalusia of Spain is a hotbed for multicultural assets as it borders the Iberian Peninsula. Cross cultural interchanges between the native Andalusians, Romani, Castilians, Moors, and Sephardi Jews have made this region rich in unique art. Flamenco is one of them. This complex set of motions able to express joy, fear, triumph, and sadness is quite an unique set of motions. The performers differ in style and techniques depending on the sex; as males use more of their steps aggressively and profoundly in motion, as females use much more sensual movements often suggesting their vulnerability with more grace in their movements. Toque or the art of guitar playing is the choice of music accompanying the Flamenco, as well as the castanets along with hand clapping and foot stamping. Flamenco has become a staple in community fairs, religious festivals, as well as in private groups in a more casual setting. Flamenco is inscribed to the 2010 list of representing Intangible Cultural Heritage. The transmission process is very much alive as this artform has a wider audience and academies around the globe, long surpassing the Flamenco schools and clubs of Spain.

YAKSHAGANASHTAKAM

YAKSHAGANASHTAKAM- A workshop to revive Yakshaganana tradition of Nileshwaram: a place in Kasaragod district of Kerala in south India: that instilled the Malayalee audience for a long time. The eight-day long training workshop and performance based on the mythological story of Manikanda Vijayam (Mahishimoksham) by the performing artists of Chinmaya Yakshagana Kalanilayam of Kakkat and students of nearby schools.

2019 Asia-Pacific Youth ICH Storytelling Contest for Young Practitioners and General Youth

ICHCAP is holding Asia-Pacific Youth ICH Storytelling Contest for young practitioners and general youth and the deadline for entry submission for the contest is October 15: 2019. Please visit the link below to enter your submission. http://www.ichcap.org/mc/application.php/UNESCO prioritized youth as the main driver of innovation and change for sustainable development and emphasized youth participation. Especially: since intangible cultural heritage relies on community transmission: the role and participation of young people leading future generations is very important.Contentso A story on how future generations are transmitting specific ICH elements in the Asia-Pacific regiono A story that conveys the importance of safeguarding and sustaining Asia-Pacific ICH and its transmission by future generationso A story on practicing: safeguarding: and transmitting ICH with community-based youth participation in the Asia-Pacific regionEntry Qualifications: o Youth in the Asia-Pacific region (Born 1983-2001)Submissi

Chogan: Horse Riding Sport and Cultural Ambassador of Iran

Chogan has its roots from ancient nomads of Iran dating back to 1st century BC. Chogan has since spread throughout the world and is played in over 100 countries. Chogan of Iran is considered a national treasure as well as a sport. Spectators of Chogan bring their whole families to the occasion often cheering, dancing, and listening to the narrator of Chogan, The sport it self is rather simple, two opposing teams go on horsebacks and try to hit the ball from their mounted horses into the opponent’s goal post with wooden sticks. The spectacles surrounding the sport enjoy music, handicrafts, and narration. This unique nature of Chogan combining all the cultural identity of Iran in the midst of a horseback sport happening for the crowd is fascinating. Chogan has historically been part of a noble activity but in recent years, it has become more of a national sport that everyone can take part. The transmission process of Chogan happens within families of in workshops. The government of Iran has also been in support of Chogan techniques and rituals being safeguarded. The world knows of this sport as Polo but Chogan is much more than just a sport. It was inscribed to the UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list in 2017. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Green Ivory - An Exhibition on Shola Craft of Bengal

The project ‘Revival of Shola Craft Tradition of Bengal’ implemented by banglanatak dot com supported by The Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany Kolkata; is an attempt to revitalize the traditional art of Shola of Bengal. Shola (Aeschynomene aspera) is a milky white, delicate spongy plant found in the marshlands of Bengal. The pith of the reeds of the plant is used to make items of decoration. This exhibition Green Ivory is an attempt to showcase the variations that the craft offers and create a platform for discussing how the craft can be taken forward. The varieties of unexplored ritualistic, decorative and contemporary products of Shola will be showcased during the exhibition.

Chidaoba: Art of Georgian Jacket Wrestling

As a Georgian proverb says: even a dog won’t bite a man who has fallen down. The wrestlers of Chidaoba learns about vulnerability and respect towards the fallen opponent. It is an old sport of Georgia as many in the country knows Chidaoba through social gatherings and festivals. Chidaoba is always accompanied by music, which is just as important as the distinctive jacket worn by the participants called “Chokha”. The participants can range from young kids all the way up to older folks who all participate in the hopes of defeating their opponent who are often similar in size and weight. Chidaoba is a form of martial arts but has lately become into an entertainment spectacle that is so often accompanied by crowds that gather for the festivities. The rules are simple, take down the opponent on their shoulders without over turning them. A single match lasts 5 minutes and if the clear winner is uncertain, judges decide on the winner on points they made throughout the match, usually giving the more aggressive participant the win. This beautiful form of martial arts that brings communities together was inscribed to the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2018. Reference: ICH UNESCO

Green Ivory

The project Revival of Shola Craft Tradition of Bengal by banglanatak dot com supported by The Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany Kolkata; is an attempt to revitalize the symbolic abstraction of emotion using Shola. Shola is a milky white, delicate spongy plant mostly found in marshy lands of West Bengal, India. Exhibition Green Ivory is a part of the above mentioned project which will be held between 17 July and 19 July, 2019 at Bengal Art Gallery, International Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), Kolkata in India. The varieties of unexplored ritualistic, decorative and contemporary products of Shola will be showcased by the rural artists of West Bengal, India.

Green Ivory

The project Revival of Shola Craft Tradition of Bengal by banglanatak dot com supported by The Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany Kolkata; is an attempt to revitalize the symbolic abstraction of emotion using Shola. Shola is a milky white: delicate spongy plant mostly found in marshy lands of West Bengal: India. Exhibition Green Ivory is a part of the above mentioned project which will be held between 17 July and 19 July: 2019 at Bengal Art Gallery: International Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR): Kolkata in India. The varieties of unexplored ritualistic: decorative and contemporary products of Shola will be showcased by the rural artists of West Bengal: India.Green Ivory will provide the students with the opportunity of communicating and learning from Shola artists. Workshop schedule are as follows:July 17: 2:30pm - 4:30pmJuly 18: 11:30am - 1:30pm and 2:30pm - 4:30pmJuly 19: 11:30am - 1:30pm and 2:30pm - 4:30pm

Kurenti: Door to Door custom of Slovenia

From Candlemas to Ash Wednesday Kurenti practices of going from house to house to perform dances and form circles around the owners happen. The practice helps strengthen interpersonal bonds and is key to the regional identity of the communities concerned as it is believed that the noisy bell-ringing and brandishing of their wooden sticks chase everything evil away and bring happiness to those they visit. The Kurenti costume consists of sheep skins, girded with chains that hold huge cow bells, leg warmers and a headgear with horns or feathers, a pointed nose and a bright red tongue. It is the most distinctive among some 150 traditional costumes preserved in Slovenia. Kurenti was inscribed to UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2017. Kurenti has been in transmission through regional communities, schools, workshops, and Federation of Kurenti Associations which oversees all of the processes. Kurenti knowledge and skills are most commonly transmitted within the family, but youngsters also learn from elderly members of the groups they are part of and schools and museums play an important role by organizing activities, workshops and contests. References: ICH UNESCO, STA(<a href="www.slovenias.SI">www.slovenias.SI</a>)

Comedic Actors on the ropes: Jultagi

Jultagi is a Korean form of rope walking that consists of dancing, songs, and comedic dialogues by the rope walkers. What distinguishes this form of rope walking from others is that they do not just perform for the acrobatic nature of it, but rather the Jultagi performers make witty and comedic gestures as well as satire of world events as they do acrobatic moves. Although the exact dates of origin for this art form is unknown, Jultagi has been mentioned in historical documents as well as becoming one of pillars of traditional crowd gathering spectacle of Korea. Dating back to the 2nd century of Silla period in Korea, Jultagi has been associated with other crowd gathering spectacles, often times accompanying performers who would entertain the crowd with witty satire and masked in different forms of animals or folk heroes to garner the attention of the crowd. The transmission process of Jultagi is centered on Jultagi safeguarding association in Gyeonggi province, where masters and apprentices hone their skills for their next audience members. The acts of Jultagi has over forty distinctive moves that is performed in the order of easy to hard movements. The performer of Jultagi often makes the crowd watch their progression of these movements, and makes the crowd nervous as if the performer needs the assurance from that crowd in performing these difficult acrobatic moves. This is done in part to entertain the crowd as if the performer is a novice of Jultagi making the spectacle more dramatic as he is clearly not a novice in acrobatic moves and is merely pretending to be so for comedic purposes. In 2011 UNESCO found Jultagi to be one of the representatives of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of the world. You can watch "Jultagi" on youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFUPYyNEOpU&feature=youtu.be">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFUPYyNEOpU&feature=youtu.be </a> References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Kaustinen Intangible Cultural Heritage Seminar 2019 and Folk Music Festival (7/8/19-7/14/19)

Kaustinen Intangible Cultural Heritage Seminar 2019The impact of Unesco nominations on community-based safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage – experiences and practices.Date: July 13th: 2019 Location: Folk Art Centre: Museosali: Jyväskyläntie 3: Kaustinen: FinlandThe seminar’s aim is to elaborate the role and impact of Unesco’s lists of intangible cultural heritage in safeguarding cultural heritage. What effect have nominations brought to practitioners in different Baltic and Nordic countries? What ways are there to promote good safeguarding practices? What role might NGOs take in the process? What kinds of threats or downsides are there in following the safeguarding framework of the convention?In the seminar we’ll hear presentations reflecting different ICH elements from Norway: Sweden: Estonia: Latvia and Finland. Seminar is free of charge and held in English.Registration until 10th of July: anne.virkkala-harju@kaustinen.fi (Limited number of seats!)Kaustinen Folk Music Festival 2019The seminar is a

GOTHRAPOLIMA 2019

Gothrapolima the tribal arts workshop was conducted by Folkland and Dorf Ketal in collaboration with Gothrapperuma vellanthatta on 21st and 22nd June 2019. Gothrapolima - 2019 aims to introduce the tribal art forms and their influences to the new generation. Mulamchenda: Mangalamkali: Eruthukali: Alamikkali are the main folk arts on training workshops. Around 100 artists participated in the festival to showcase the above-mentioned art forms.

ON-SITE TRAINING WORKSHOPS WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS: OSH PROVINCE

On 13-15 June: 2019 Aigine CRC is conducting on-site training workshop for sacred site guardians: pilgrims: traditional practitioners: students of State University and members of working group of Osh province. The main objectives of the workshop is to familiarize the participants with the UNESCO 2003 Convention on Safeguarding ICH: to develop sacred site and pilgrimage practice safeguarding measures: as well as to conduct cross validation of the sacred sites and rituals of Osh province. The training workshop is held in the framework of the project "Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures'.

Coming of age for Japanese youth, Raiho-Shin

Raiho-Shin is a tradition for Japanese households in Tohoku, Hokuriku, Kyushu, and Okinawa regions. The Raiho-Shin is deities from the outer world, often the local people dressed in costumes that look scary and intimidating, especially to children. As the western world have Santa Clause that requires the children to be good throughout the year to receive presents, Raiho-Shin deities requires them to be good from their frightening visits on ward. The children are given mocha cakes on their backs for good luck while the adults prepare food for the deities visiting their household. Raiho-Shin has different traditions from regions to regions because they have differing social and historical contexts. The diversity of the Raiho-Shin rituals have made the traditions unique to the local practitioners and those that participate grow a sense of identity and affliction towards their environment from it. The practitioners of Raiho-Shin have transmitted their knowledge from each generation to the next with pride. It was inscribed to the Representative list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2018. Reference: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

THIRUVARANGU

Thiruvathirakali a unique dance form performed in Kerala on the auspicious day of Thiruvathira by a group of women. As per Hindu mythology: this dance is what bought Kamadeva back to life when he had been burnt to ashes by Lord Shiva’s fury. The graceful movements of the dance are both enchanting and elegant. For strengthen the unity and power of women's we have organized the program. Over 100 women’s undergone one-month training organized by Folkland and performed on stage.

GOTHROTHSAVAM Tribal Fest - 2019

Gothrolsavam was organized for Mangalamkali (a tribal dance form) fest at Thayyanur: Kasaragod the northern tribal area in Kerala. Mangalamkali is an old traditional tribal dance form in Northern part of Kerala performed especially by “mavilas” and “Malavettuvas” community. The ritual dance form was performed occasionally at marriage functions of their community as a part of the entertainment. Certain unique and specific musical instruments called “thudi” which is made up of the timber of jack tree and the skin of goat were used by the performers.

THE 5th WORLD EPICS FESTIVAL 26-30 June 2019 Bishkek-Talas, Kyrgyz Republic

Preservation and development of distinctive and rare art is one of top priorities of the modern cultural society: whose aim is to preserve and increase cultural values of the humanity: strengthen national identity through expansion of international spiritual and cultural cooperation: creation of a platform for shaping sustainable environment: actualization and translation of epic heritage in the modern world. Narration is the most ancient genre of oral folk arts in many countries. This unique type of art has brought to our days the traditions of mythology: modes of transmission from one generation to another of national spiritual and moral values of peoples of the world. Rare texts of stories contain genetic: socio-ethical: spiritual traditions of development of nations. Each nation considerately preserves its roots: traditions and history. Getting these things across the next generation is a duty of every civilized state. Thereon the World Epics Festival was founded by the Government of the Kyrgyz Republi

Love Ballad of Malaysia: Dondang Sayang

The traditional Malaysian folk music Dondang Sayang is a collaboration of both the worlds, as Dondang Sayang is influenced by traditional Portuguese folk music. The typical Dondang Sayang consists of violinists, rebana players, and gong or tetawak players. The violinist usually play the primary parts of the Dondang Sayang as they provide counter melody to the vocal melody. The slow playing music is often about love or advice about love and kindness one should have for others. Inscribed in 2018 to the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of UNESCO, Dondang Sayang is highly praised within Malaysia. Originally performed at the Royal Palace for ceremonial events, it has since carried over to local communities all through out Malaysia. Two singers of the opposite sex who perform in quatrains often perform this love ballad. The Dondang Sayang is open to everyone in the community regardless of age, sex, or gender as it conveys the message of being kind and loving each other. The Dondang Sayang art form is being improved through organizations and training of the youth by practicing singing and performance skills. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Al Azi: Poetry of Arab Pride

Al Azi is a traditional poetry recital performed by a group of individuals without rhythmical or musical instruments. The Poems were first recited in battlefields after victory often citing the courage and generosity that exemplify the greatness of the poem’s subject. It consists of a full-rhymed poem based on traditional poetry and the lines of poetry are sometimes interposed with sayings and proverbs. Bearers and practitioners include the poet, performer, chorus and audience. The practice strengthens bonds and is connected with knowledge and practices related to nature. Al Azi was performed regularly by communities until the mid-1900s, when performances began to dwindle gradually. Due to development, thousands of inhabitants moved from the desert to urban areas, and the economic boom from 1970 to 1990 led to citizens abandoning employment in traditional sectors and the culture and arts associated with such activities. Al Azi was inscribed to the Intangible Cultural Heritage of United Arab Emirates in need of urgent safeguarding in 2017. Despite these challenges, Al Azi has withstood extinction. The practice enjoyed a revival several years ago when it was introduced into national events, with a highly successful theatrical production, and media coverage has helped revive Al Azi, encouraging more poets to compose Al Azi poems. You can watch "Al Azi, art of performing praise, pride and fortitude poetry" on youtube: <a href=" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmZfiI5-yEk"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmZfiI5-yEk/</a> References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

On-Site training workshops with community members

On 6-8 June: 2019 Aigine CRC is conducting on-site training workshop for sacred site guardians: pilgrims: traditional practitioners and members of working group of Chui province.The main objectives of the workshop is to familiarize the participants with the UNESCO 2003 Convention on Safeguarding ICH: to develop sacred site and pilgrimage practice safeguarding measures: as well as to conduct cross validation of the sacred sites and rituals of Chui province.The training workshop is held in the framework of the project "Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures'.

The Lithuanian folk dance revival by the Lithuanian Ethnic Culture Society

Ethnic dance of Lithuanian folk dances were widely popular among the general population before World War II. Due do the suppression of traditional heritage during the Soviet occupation of Lithuania, the folk dancing took a down turn in popularity. Many decades later the folk dance tradition is back thanks in large part due to the Traditional Dance club established in Vilnius in 2002 by the Lithuanian Ethnic Culture Society, The clubs are run mainly to spread and promote the almost lost social function of folk dancing. The suppression during the Soviet occupation has not deterred the main spirit of the performance, as it has now spread all over Lithuania and other European countries as well. What started out in small clubs in cafes, small restaurants, and halls have moved into much larger venues and have become a festival surrounding the folk dance itself. The Clubs are open to everyone and participants are able to learn dances from various Lithuanian ethnic regions and musicians perform live music with accordion, bandoneon, violin. Now the traditional dance clubs run summer camps often performed outside while the participants reside in tents. These venues have many practitioners and performers come from all over Lithuania and throughout Europe as well. The main two factors that come to mind regarding the Lithuanian folk dance clubs are that it encourages a network of dance clubs to collaborate and the diversity of expression while at these events. The gathering of folk musicians, and those that want to see the folk dance revived has made this cultural activity a unique place of learning and participating in cultural activity. To See the reference, original story and more, please visit Nordic Safeguarding Practices Website below: <a href="https://www.nordicsafeguardingpractices.org/good-practice/reviving-folk-dance-in-lithuania/">https://www.nordicsafeguardingpractices.org/good-practice/reviving-folk-dance-in-lithuania/</a>

Baile Chino, the dance and dreams of Chile

Baile Chino is Chile’s own heritage that consists of five differing styles each unique to the origin of the dance’s location. The dance consists mainly of a group of 12 to 30 people who are arranged in a hierarchical manner, mainly organized by men leaving the upper figure at the top, which is generally a man with a good career and older age. The whole brotherhood is organized to be in two rows, those who dance while playing their pivilcas, and who are accompanied by a tamborcillo. The dance performs series of jumps, jumping on one foot and then to the other. The dance begins in crouching and along with it the interpretation of the melodies, which represents a great physical effort for all the participants. The orgin of Baile Chino dates back to the pre-Colombian period of Chile, sometime between 900s and 1400s, the dance evolved with aspects from the indigenous culture and Hispanic contributions. The Baile Chino is distinguished by their costumes, musical instruments, accompanied by the unique steps and rhythms of their dance. The old puvillca that produces a single note is followed by jump steps from crunching positions. This beautiful artform is transmitted through family members and neighbors by imitation, observation, and transmitted to the next generation. The Baile Chino ritual functions as a model for social integration, sense of identity, and the local community to come together for solidarity. Baile Chino was inscribed in 2014 to the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia

Announcement of the 2019 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage

We express our sincere gratitude to all applicants for the 2019 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage. We recognize and deeply appreciate what you and your organizations have achieved with respect to the safeguarding and revitalization of ICH. The selection process was very challenging as all applicants demonstrated good practices for the safeguarding ICH with courage and lofty spirit. Only three applicants (individuals and organizations) were selected as finalists from forty-eight applicants from 36 countries on six continents. Jeonju City announces the following three finalist candidates for public verification as the final process for the 2019 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage. The finalist candidates can be found on the following link: <a href="http://www.cics.center/jiapich_Announcement/">http://www.cics.center/jiapich_Announcement/</a>

KILUKKAMPETTY (Children’s Summer Camp)

Kilukampetty a four day long children’s camp on ICH was conducted by Folkland on the bank of Kavvayi backwaters at Edayilakkadu in Kasaragod District of Kerala State of India. This was the seventh year that the Folkland has been conducting the camp for School Children. Porattu Kali (Rural drama) Folksongs: Math game: identifying the indigenous herbs: Kite flying: Kathakali music: fishermen folklore: Padayani: etc. were included in this year’s program.

"Current problems in the study of intangible cultural heritage and the implementation of the Convention 2003. Contributions of BAS scientists"

In 2019: the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) has a jubilee - 150 years since its creation. In this occasion: in the period 17-19 October 2019: BAS: together with the Regional Center for Preservation of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Southeastern Europe under the aegis of UNESCO: organized an international scientific forum on the topic: "Current problems in the study of intangible cultural heritage and the implementation of the Convention 2003. Contributions of BAS scientists". Deadline for submission of applications for participation (author: institution: position: subject: summary with up to 800 signs) is June 15th: 2019. Application must be sent to ban_ich_rc@abv.bg The forum will be held in SOFIA: BAS: CENTRAL GOVERNANCE: GREAT HALL There will be also accompanying events as concerts: exhibition: etc. Transport and accommodation expenses are participants' obligation. Application form is in www.eaff.eu

2nd Jeonju-ChiangMai International Conference on Traditional Culture

This international conference is organized in order to exchange the knowledge of intangible cultural heritage between Jeonbuk National University of Jeonju and Chiang Mai University. The first conference was held in the city of Chiang Mai on August, 2018 hosted by the Chiang Mai Creative City of Crafts and Folk Arts (CCMCCFA), the UNESCO Creative City of Chiang Mai.

Living Cultural Heritage - Safeguarding, Practices, Information Technologies LCH-2019

Living Cultural Heritage -Safeguarding: Practices: Information Technologies LCH-201926 - 29 August 2019: Nessebar: Bulgaria www.eaff.eu Conference will be held in the frames of the IX World Championship of Folklore "World Folk 2019" organized by the European Association of Folklore Festivals - EAFF. The forum is aimed to the theme for preservation: presentation and digitization of the cultural heritage and has interdisciplinary nature. The leading purpose is the broad-spectrum interpretation of the concept of living cultural heritage. On the one hand - as a phenomenon of the living cultural practices and in general - as a scientifically systematized digital content of various tangible and intangible values from museums: archives: community centers etc. Sharing the Bulgarian and foreign experience in specialized and interdisciplinary scientific research: the exchange of modern information technology solutions as well: will be useful in achieving meaningful and technologically renewed living knowledg

Khon, the art of Thai masked choreographed movements

Khon is a masked dance of Thailand that combines the art of music, storytelling, dance, and handcraftsmanship of Thailand. Khon was inscribed into UNESCO’s ICH of Thailand in 2018. The overall choreograph along with the narrations depict the story of Rama, the incarnation of the God Vishnu. Although the exact dates of the origin of Khon is not known, it is widely accepted as having been performed since the Ayutthaya Kingdom period of 15th century. The main principle characters are humans, ogres, and the monkeys. The monkey characters play a major role in the Khon performance as the epic tales of Ramakien derived from the hindu epic Ramayana. Thai animism has given the ogre and monkey characters a spiritual significance, as they become part of the Thai identity through their movements. Khon used to only be performed by the royal family and men were only allowed to play the role of the hero. However in recent years Khon is enjoyed by all spectators from different social backgrounds and women are depicted in all the roles. Khon traditionally have been transmitted through the royal courts as well as dance master’s households. In recent times, the transmissions process occur mostly in educational institutions and efforts have been made to establish the transmissions process to the youth through performance clubs. References: ICH UNESCO/Wikipedia

2nd Jeonju • Chiang Mai International Conference on Traditional Culture

○ Date: May 27th: 2019 (Monday)○ Time: 10am -6pm○ Theme: Exchange of intangible cultural heritage activities and Establishment of Crafts Network○ Host: The Research Center for Intangible Heritage and Information of CBNU: The Center for Intangible Culture StudiesOrganization : The Research Center for Intangible Heritage and Information of CBNU: The Center for Intangible Culture Studies: The Korea Traditional Culture Center○ Participants : Around 50 people (Professors: ICH activists: and students)This international conference is organized in order to exchange the knowledge of intangible cultural heritage between Jeonbuk National University of Jeonju and Chiang Mai University. The first conference was held in the city of Chiang Mai on August: 2018 hosted by the Chiang Mai Creative City of Crafts and Folk Arts (CCMCCFA): the UNESCO Creative City of Chiang Mai. They aim to exchange cases from two different cities for the safeguarding of ICH: ICH transmission: ICH revitalization: and SDGs of ICH. It will be a goo

Ethnic Japanese-Korean’s Arirang (From traditional folk music to the music of the largest minority group in Japan )

Center of cultural heritage studies at Jeonbuk National University and the center leaders in industry-university cooperation (Linc+) are co-hosting the event: Ethnic Japanese-Korean's Arirang. Date/time: 05.16.2018(Thursday) / 9AM-11AMLocation: Jinsudang Kain Hall at Jeonbuk National University: Jeollabukdo:South Korea Participants: Undergraduate and graduate students at Jeonbuk National University(College of liberal arts: college of engineering: intangible cultural heritage studies): researchers at Center of intangible cultural studies and others1. significance -Understanding the relationship between ethnic Japanese-Korean traditional music and social perimeter of the performance -Understanding the culture of the largest ethnic minority group in Japan-Through the music of ethnic Japanese Korean one can examine the problems regarding various anthropological identity: identity politics: multiculturalism: and cultural changes among ethnic Japanese-Korean2. Main Contents-Documentary <Arirang going over the hill:

Kaustinen Intangible Cultural Heritage Seminar 2019

Kaustinen Intangible Cultural Heritage Seminar 2019The impact of Unesco nominations on community-based safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage – experiences and practices.SAT 13.7. / Folk Art Centre: Museosali: Jyväskyläntie 3: Kaustinen: FinlandThe seminar’s aim is to elaborate the role and impact of Unesco’s lists of intangible cultural heritage in safeguarding cultural heritage. What effect have nominations brought to practitioners in different Baltic and Nordic countries? What ways are there to promote good safeguarding practices? What role might NGOs take in the process? What kinds of threats or downsides are there in following the safeguarding framework of the convention?In the seminar we’ll hear presentations reflecting different ICH elements from Norway: Sweden: Estonia: Latvia and Finland. Seminar is free of charge and held in English.Registration until 15th of June: anne.virkkala-harju@kaustinen.fiPROGRAM:11.30 Welcome to the seminar – Kaustinen fiddle playingMatti Hakamäki / Finnish Folk Music

KANYARVATTAM - 2019

- KANYARKALI - Kanyarkali is a special kind of folk dance ritual performance in village temples in Chittur region and Alathur region in Palakkad district of Kerala State of India. The event is basically a part of village’s “Vishu” celebrations and usually succeeds the Village Fair or Vela and is performed during April and May every year. The Kanyarkali are fast-moving: militant dances attuned to rhythmic devotional folk songs by the help of traditional instruments (Drums and cymbals). Kanyarkali is said to be originated from the pursuit of martial arts when the region was under threat of attack from nearby Konganadu. Kannyarkali arose when dance and comedy were added to the martial training sessions. The dances may in form of “Vattakali” (a circular movement in praise of Goddess) or folk theatre style. Kanyarkali is a performance that incorporates the essence of dance: drama: music: song: and martial skills. This art form is always performed by men at temples. Women are sometimes represented by cross-dressing

The Nan Pa’ch ceremony of Guatemala

“La Paach” is a word derived from pre-Hispanic origins of Guatemala. It is currently listed among the Urgent Safeguarding list since 2013. The four main essential components to the Nan Pa’ch ceremony of Guatemala are the following: The lords of the Pagon, The Parlimentos or God mothers, Assembly of elders, and the dance of the Paach. The ceremony is a corn-veneration ritual held in San Pedro Sacatepéquez, San Marcos in Guatemala for the purpose of good harvest. The ritual highlights the close connections that the people of San Pedros have with nature. The gatherers and participants pray in the Mam language as well as the ceremonial corncobs. The participants are mainly older farmers, both men and women who are pillars of their community. The Paach ceremony strengthens the identity of the community of San Pedro and its knowledge and respect for nature and its conservation. The transmission process is both oral and practical, with a group leader instructing new members at workshops and children accompanying their grandparents during the ceremony. In recent years, the Paach ceremony has decreased in frequency, with some young people seeing it as irrelevant, while economic insecurity has caused some bearers to withdraw from the practice. Furthermore, the advanced age of the elders, combined with diminished transmission, might result in the disappearance of this cultural expression. References: ICH Unesco, Wikipedia

Expert meeting on intangible cultural heritage in emergencies

DATE: 05/21/2019- 05/22/2019Location: UNESCO Headquarters: Paris (France)At the request of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage: UNESCO is organizing an expert meeting in UNESCO Headquarters: Paris: on 21 - 22 May 2019: with the generous support of the People’s Republic of China. The aim of the meeting is to discuss methodological guidance for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage in emergencies.In this context: experts will address notably the two following dimensions: how is intangible cultural heritage itself disrupted and threatened under such circumstances and what can be done for its safeguarding; and: on the other hand: how can intangible cultural heritage be promoted: safeguarded or supported: as a critical means for rebuilding social cohesion: fostering reconciliation and/or facilitating recovery for communities confronted with situations of emergencies. The results of the meeting will be presented to the Director-General of UNESCO and su

National inventory: places, rituals, practices

Aigine Curltural Research Center (Kyrgyzstan) continues the inventory of sacred sites and related practices under the project " Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures." At this stage, desk researches are conducted on the basis of the organization’s previous field materials. The purpose of this researches is to compile national lists of sacred places, practices and rituals performed on places of pilgrimage. In the course of the desk researches, the lists of sacred sites are clarified and the rituals of each region are described. Interviews are also held with spiritual practitioners. Interviews are held in the format of real and online meetings, telephone conversations. The stage of desk research precedes the work with regional teams. On 20 February 2019, Aigine CRC conducted a preliminary workshop in the framework of the project. The main goal of the workshop was to discuss ways and patterns of inventorying rituals and practices related to sacred site pilgrimage. During the workshop, participants became acquainted with UNESCO ICH and the relevant provisions of 2003 Convention, as well as experience of other counties on inventorying ICH. The sacred site guardians and activists, members of the interested community groups, journalists and MA students of the Anthropology department took part in the workshop. The project " Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures" started in December 2018 and is supported by the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Foundation (France).

Traditional Turkish Çini-making Craftsmanship

Turkish Çini are glazed tile and ceramic household items made from pulped clay are called Çini. This Çini-making craftsmanship dates back to the 12th century with its unique production methods such as ‘Minai’, Luster’, ’Polishing’, and ‘Underglaze’. Çini craftsmans can be described as having high ethical manners, knowledge of traditions, and the techniques in making Çini. The Turkish Çini-making has important cultural function in Turkey, as many of these ceramics are often baked in households. The next generation of Turkey can learn from the aesthetics of Çini, which are based on primarily the elements from the surrounding, such as geometric shapes, plants, and animal figures. The masters of Çini-making Craftsmanship must transmit their knowledge of supplying the raw materials, preparation and production of Çini-making, as well as general knowledge or significance of their art pieces. Çinis is a cultural process of making household items for the people of Turkey, it should be considered a national treasure. You can watch "Traditional Turkish Çini-making Craftsmanship" on youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsXC6a6kSPo ">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsXC6a6kSPo </a> References ICH Unesco, Wikipedia, Alamy

Vallenatos Music of the Greater Magdalena

Traditional Vallenatos Music of the Greater Magdalena region has been listed among the urgently needing safeguarding from the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2015. The traditional music of Vallenato has the origins from Spanish, African, and Amerindian roots making this truly one of a kind art form a standout of Caribbean tradition. The typical instruments involved with Vallenatos music are the Accordion, Caja, Gucharaca, Bass, and Guitar. The origins of Vallenatos music are from famers of the region who had West African traditions of Griots(music of story teller). They traveled with their cattle in search of pastures and often song their style of griots music along with their indigenous Gaita flutes. They communicated through their music and it became a form of entertainment for the farmers traveling as it transmitted their current state. As the music for evolved with the introduction of European instruments such as the Piano and Accordion. Vallenatos music of Colombia still had its tunes, as many of the Accordions are tuned differently from their European origin to better suit their region. It also became more popular form of gathering and entertainment among the general population and no longer seen as just for the farmers. You can watch "Traditional Vallenato music of the Greater Magdalena region" on youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCsPy_adLb4">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCsPy_adLb4/</a> Reference: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia, Baquianos(<a href="www.guiasybaquianos.com">www.guiasybaquianos.com</a>)

The Chhau dance: The symbolism in bodily motions of our surroundings

Chhau dance: The symbolism in bodily motions of our surroundings The Chhau dance is every bit of mesmerizing feat, as the dancers depict nature, acrobatics, martial arts, and their folklore surroundings. The Chhau dance annually practiced in three regions; the Purulia Chhau in Purulia district of West Bengal, the Mayurbhanj Chhaun in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha, and Seraikela Kharsawan district of Jharkhand. Masks are used in the Seraikela and Purulia Chhau dances but are not used in the Mayubhanj Chhau of Odisha. The Chhau dance of India was inscribed as one of the Intangible cultural heritages of the world by UNESCO in 2010. Many performers of the Chhau dance have special techniques and repertoires in their choreography, and transmits their dancing traditions orally. Many Chhau dances occurs during sun festivals, to honor and ritualize harvesting season. The Chhau dance draws in all the lifestyles during its festivities, resulting in the community and those surrounding it to come closer together. The Chhau dance of India brings the community together through their performance. The dancers choreographed fighting motions accompanied by imitating the motions of different animals and other local surroundings, captivating audiences. In order for the Chhau dance to keep flourishing in the region, it would need to have its transmission process go as smoothly as possible. With the progress in technology, one must use these tools of maintaining and keeping records of the Chhau dance of India. Although effectively transmitted throughout history, Chhau dancers must keep dancing to the correct forms of their art. References: Unesco, Wikipedia, Images from Wikiwand(<a href="www.wikiwand.com">www.wikiwand.com</a>)

Chinese Shadow Puppetry

Chinese Shadow Puppetry: The earliest forms of animation Chinese shadow puppetry has been known in china as one of the formal traditions that have entertained and displayed the social and dramatic history though puppetry. It was known to have cured a grieving emperor of losing one of his favorite concubine. The performers were able to sooth the pain of the emperor by having the faces of the deceased concubine played out in the form of puppetry. As the case, Chinese shadow puppetry can move hearts and mind of those that watches them. Thus, making them the best medium in exhibiting cultural ceremonies, religious rituals, funerals, weddings, and any other forms of entertainment. A talented puppeteers can make their art form run, dance, fight, laugh, sleep, and even die. The Chinese shadow puppetry is articulated through cut out figures, which are held against a source of light and a translucent screen in-between or against them. Just as a musical instrument needs to be played, these shadow puppets need to be manipulated in exactly the right motions to convey their messages. The master of Chinese shadow puppetry often needs to specialize in techniques such as improvisational singing, simultaneous manipulation of multiple puppets, and the ability to play other musical instruments. The masters of Chinese shadow Puppetry transmits their knowledge of this art form orally and on paper. Relevant skills are handed down, and their traditional values come along with it. The Chinese Shadow Puppetry promotes traditional values, entertainment, social and local customs to the youth. You can see Chinese puppetry using the link below: Youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C6m3aKjzLk">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C6m3aKjzLk/</a> References: ICH Unesco website, Wikipedia, YouTube, Xinhuanet(<a href="www.xinhuanet.com">www.xinhuanet.com</a>),timeout (<a href="www.timeout.com">www.timeout.com</a>)

The application for the World Martial Arts Union Membership is now open!

We cordially invite you to apply for the World Martial Arts Union membership. WoMAU organizes a variety of activities to enhance the visibility of the Traditional Martial Arts as the culture.Any traditional martial arts organizations meet the requirements for the WoMAU Membership are welcomed to join us by submitting the application via email or post by 31st May 2019 at the latest. The submitted application will be reviewed by the Membership Screening Committee before the final admission at the Annual General Meeting. You may refer to the requirements for the Membership from the WoMAU Statutes.http://womau.org/bbs/board.php?bo_table=e_b1x9&pageNum=1&subNum=9Ever since its birth in 2002: WoMAU has been continuously organizing the Annual General Meeting: the World Martial Arts Festival(currently biannual): and the Seminar at Chungju: Korea. Around 20 traditional martial arts performance teams from the Member Organizations across the world visit and demonstrate for each Festival.WoMAU will provide you with excel

Good practice from Finland: On Crafting – Discussion cards

The crafting discussion cards of Taito Group Finland promote interesting discussions about the art of crafting in the local community. Since 2016, Taito Group in Finland held these crafting meetings and made the initiative for the card series by hobbyists and professional crafters. The common bond amongst the group is about craft, and to talk about crafting as it cross section into its local culture. They published the On Crafting discussion cards in early 2018. The meetings along with the help of the crafting discussion cards make it a very useful meeting. The culture of crafting is discussed along with traditional ways and the modern changes that are coming to crafts. Not only do they make process but also help develop for open dialogue being able to improve their beloved traditions.“they enable comprehensive consideration and verbalising of the significance of handicrafts and crafting culture” which is the main purpose of On Crafting discussion cards. The discussion cards will give a new perception to crafting. The themes of the cards will teach traditions of handicraft, as well as propose for the better future of crafting and make new creations of art. The discussions along with the help of the cards can provide the opportunity to determine the cultural heritage of crafting and people will look for important handicraft cultural traits based on theses discussions. The card series were designed for the groups of people come together to crafts for many situations to inspire for craft studies. The card series has specifically been designed a group of people to come together and share their beliefs, experiences with craft or craftsmanship. Handicraft clubs or local crafting events, are all examples of these meeting taking place for inspirations needed for crafting studies. The cards feature five themes: handicraft traditions, handicraft skills, communal crafting, wellbeing crafting and advocacy through crafting. These card themes are perspectives to the crafting culture. Each theme has 16 cards, and each card has a thought or a statement related to the theme as well as questions about it. The pack of cards contains ten Explore and Test cards, two for each theme. The contents of these cards inspire to explore and test things, come up with new ideas and implement the themes in practice. The pack of cards features 90 cards in total: 80 theme cards and 10 Explore and Test cards. The package also contains an instructional leaflet that explains the themes of the cards and their backgrounds as well as gives tips for using the cards. "Discussions and thoughts can be built around the themes of the cards, as one can choose the most important themes and expand the discussion based on the ideas and questions that are brought up. The participants’ experiences of crafting and their craft products are easy to link to the card themes. It is important that the method of using the cards will be adapted to the group and that the themes are handled on the group’s own terms. The discussion cards can also be used alone, as inspiration for thoughts, experiments and making". To See the reference, original story and more, please visit Nordic Safeguarding Practices Website below: <a href="https://www.nordicsafeguardingpractices.org/good-practice/on-crafting-discussion-cards/">https://www.nordicsafeguardingpractices.org/good-practice/on-crafting-discussion-cards/</a>

A National Inventorying Workshop

On March 17: 2019: Aigine CRC has started an inventorying workshop in Bishkek. Group members from all 7 provinces came with the goal to learn about the concept of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) reflected in the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and to discuss and work out local ways/ approaches to make inventories of sacred sites and related rituals and practices. An inventorying workshop will finish on March 18 and the regional groups will start their field activities in the provinces.The workshop is being conducted in the frame of the project "Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures": supported by the ICH Fund of UNESCO.

Study on status and value of Seodang culture and study of utilization plan

Korean Seodang has been a self-created educational space since the Three Kingdoms era and has been linked to Korean history and tradition. As such, there are Korean history, culture, and traditions in the Seodang and Seodang culture. However, as the present day, the Seodang and its culture are disappearing. The purpose of this study is to understand the status of Seodang culture and to enhance intangible cultural asset values of Seodang culture. In order to investigate the current situation of Seodang cultural tradition as a research method, various examples were collected and compared in regards with the environment, career and operation of each Seodang. I interviewed the Hoonjang(masters or teachers), adult students and schoolchild students in the field survey. The Seodang had many difficulties in operation. We could classify the operations of Seodang under the village seo-dang, the boarding seodang, the academic seodang, and the camp-style seodang. In Gochang, they operate a traditional Seodang that has 21 students from 7 to 17 years old. The children of the Seodang are educated in this Seodang without receiving public school education. On the other hand, other traditional Seodangs keeps the name of Seodang only after school as it teaches Hanja study(Chinese characters) and Korean traditional etiquette after regular public schooling. Since 10 years ago, the number of schoolchildren has been dropping, so most of them are closed. The boarding school is also run by short-term boarding students. The age of the average Hoonjang are in their 50s and 60s. The oldest is 90 years old, and there are relatively young Hoonjangs in their forties. The majority of the Hoonjangs are not old enough to be retired, so it is likely that the current Hoonjangs will contribute to its position of teacher or master in the modern Seodang society in the next 10-20 years. To understand the modern significance and the value of the Seodang, it is imperative to divide the viewpoints of the people related to the inner workings of Seodang (Hoonjangs, family and friends of the Hoonjang, students and their parents) and the viewpoints of outsiders (researchers, advisors and other academic researchers). Positive aspects from the viewpoint of the inner working people of Seodang include the cultivation of personality, manners, classical knowledge, concentration, insight improvement, and leadership. The downside to Seodangs can be the lack of various learning methods and overall disconnection of public education due to Seodang education being in rather isolation. From the viewpoint of outsiders, it is necessary to examine the effects of these Seodang teaching methods to the modern education beyond the cultivation of Chinese writing and classical knowledge, personality education as well as proper Korean etiquette. In terms of Seodang being part of the Korean culture, the inherit value as an intangible cultural property is sufficient. The Seodang is in danger of extinction because its traditional structure of transmitting is greatly weakened. It is natural that we should protect it before the present private elementary school of the traditional era devour all the content, leaving philosophy of the old in the past. In addition, the value of intangible cultural properties should be recognized in that the virtues of traditional culture as well as being preserved. *Seodang: traditional private school in Korea **Hoonjang: a teacher at Seodang

Asian Championship of Folklore - Asia Folk 2019

Location: Ulan Bator - Ulaanbaatar (Wikipedia): MongoliaOrganizersCulture and Arts Authority: the Government implementing agency of MongoliaWorld Association of Folklore Festivals - WAFF: European Association of Folklore Festivals - EAFF:ArtLar Cilturе NGO: World Folklore Academy With support: National Commission of UNESCO of Mongolia With financial and logistical support:Culture and Arts Authority: the Government implementing agency of MongoliaMinistry of Education: Culture: Science and Sport of Mongolia The marks of the participants appeared in the competition program of the Asian Championship of Folklore - 2019 are valid for ranking in the World ranking list of folklore.Basic InformationAsian Championship of Folklore - Asia Folk 2019 - will be held for the first time.Organizers hope this event high in importance to become one of the most important cultural events in Asia.Invited are folklore groups from all over Asia - Afghanistan: Australia: Azerbaijan: Bahrain: Bangladesh: Bhutan: British Indian: Ocean T

Baul songs of Bangladesh: Oral tradition of Bengalis mysticism

Baul had strictly been passed down in oral form as of the late 19th century. Their members consist mostly of Vaishnava Hindus and Sufi Muslims. The tradition was not written down until recent because many practicing Baul meant to leave literally nothing behind, including their practices of speaking of esoteric Bengali mysticism. The Bauls often live without family and wonder to practices of new approaches to divinity. From the outside, this can mean breaking the threshold of traditional religious ceremonies and beliefs. Since 2005, the Baul tradition of Bangladesh is listed as one of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by Unesco. The Baul songs represents the mind and body of the practitioner. Often times Baul musicians will have a single string instrument called Ektara on one hand and Bengalis style drum Duggi on the other enchanting about the human spirituality and the divine. Some have regarded Baul practitioners of having divine spirits, and others have interpreted them to be crude or blasphemous. However, the world needs Baul to interpret their own ceremonies for themselves as they stand as the only oral tradition of Bengalis mysticism. The community often rallies around them and hears their message about Bengali life. References: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia, Arachive.is web (<a href="https://archive.is/20120729054639/">https://archive.is/20120729054639/</a> <a href="http://www.emahomagazine.com/2011/07/bauls-of-bengal-liberation-seekers/">http://www.emahomagazine.com/2011/07/bauls-of-bengal-liberation-seekers/</a>)

Colombia is hosting next Committee for the Safeguarding of ICH in 2019

Colombia to host next Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2019.The next annual meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage will take place from 9 to 14 December 2019 in Bogotá: Colombia. This decision was taken in Port Louis: Mauritius at the close of the thirteenth session of the Committee: which brings together the representatives of 24 States Parties to the UNESCO’s Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Committee decides on measures to safeguard oral traditions and expressions: performing arts: social practices: rituals: festive events: knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe or the knowledge and skills to produce traditional crafts: which constitute intangible heritage.Reference from ICH UNESCO https://ich.unesco.org/en/news/colombia-to-host-next-committee-for-the-safeguarding-of-the-intangible-cultural-heritage-in-2019-00328

The 5th Workshop of UNESCO accredited NGO Association in Korea

The four UNESCO accredited NGOs(IMACO, WoMAU, CICS, KCHF of Korea are now having a workshop in Andong city, Republic of Korea.

Symbol of Costa Rican Hardwork: Las Carretas

Las Carretas is the national pride of Costa Rica. The Spanish whom brought their design to incorporate them into the Costa Rican coffee transport first introduced these Costa Rican Oxcarts. The original oxcarts did not work well in the terrain and climate of the new land. A native design aesthetically and functionally were needed to fit its environment. As the oxcarts became more adapted to Costa Rica, they took on their own identity. The families would make colorful designs of their surroundings onto the oxcarts making them unique. It became a status symbol among families distinguishing them according to their elaborate design and functions of the oxcarts. Las Carretas flourished in the 19th and parts of 20th century. The strong oxen would carry coffee, the Costa Rican national export, into unpaved roads and mountainous terrains. Although the invention of motor based vehicles would eventually take over the transportation, it became a symbol of hard work and the embodiment of the Costa Rican lifestyle. It appears in festivals or street corners, with each Las Carretas having its own sound, enchanting the village or crowd with its pleasant sound. Las Carretas’ function as a symbol of hardworking Costa Rican life is undisputed. There are many oxen-carts around the world but none of it is like Las Carretas as UNESCO recognized it as ICH in 2005. The function and different twists that Las Carretas shows this Costa Rican oxcart is a work of art and stands out as one of this worlds heritage to be shared with everyone. Reference: ICH UNESCO, Wikipedia Images from <a href="www.elsouvenir.com">www.elsouvenir.com</a>

National inventory: places, rituals, practices

Aigine Curltural Research Center (Kyrgyzstan) continues the inventory of sacred sites and related practices under the project " Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures." At this stage, desk researches are conducted on the basis of the organization’s previous field materials. The purpose of this researches is to compile national lists of sacred places, practices and rituals performed on places of pilgrimage. In the course of the desk researches, the lists of sacred sites are clarified and the rituals of each region are described. Interviews are also held with spiritual practitioners. Interviews are held in the format of real and online meetings, telephone conversations. The stage of desk research precedes the work with regional teams. On 20 February 2019, Aigine CRC conducted a preliminary workshop in the framework of the project. The main goal of the workshop was to discuss ways and patterns of inventorying rituals and practices related to sacred site pilgrimage. During the workshop, participants became acquainted with UNESCO ICH and the relevant provisions of 2003 Convention, as well as experience of other counties on inventorying ICH. The sacred site guardians and activists, members of the interested community groups, journalists and MA students of the Anthropology department took part in the workshop. The project " Safeguarding of Practices and Rare Rituals Related to Sacred Sites in Kyrgyzstan: Preparation of an Inventory and Safeguarding Measures" started in December 2018 and is supported by the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Foundation (France).

Bigwala : The warm welcome of royal African hospitality, dance, and song

Bigwala : The warm welcome of royal African hospitality, dance, and song Bigwala is Busoga’s music, dance, and performance of Uganda. It was historically performed infront of kings who would want their people to come together through their customary dance and music. Bigwala is formed from trumpet players ranging from four to five players who are joined by the people singing and dancing. The lyrics are often about uniting under Bigwala, marriages, and other customary norm of Busoga. The important message of Bigwala is about Busoga’s hospitality and by showing the unity through music, dance, and overall comradery in the villages; fellowship is formed. Currently there are only three living masters of Bigwala, who can precisely inherit their skills to the next generation. All three masters are of old age so letting the world know of this precious art form is necessary. Watch the video on youtube <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymWBjb1VzBc&t=10s">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymWBjb1VzBc&t=10s</a> References ICH UNESCO, Newvision (<a href="www.newvision.co.ug">www.newvision.co.ug</a>)

The 5th Workshop of UNESCO Accredited NGO Association in Korea

Date: March 5th: 2019 (Tuesday)Time: 14:00-20:00Place: Andong Grand Hotel: Republic of KoreaTopic: Enhancing the role of NGOs in the Intangible Cultural HeritageThe five UNESCO accredited NGOs in Korea conduct a workshop Spring and Fall each year to communicate and collaborate in order to strengthen the network. The 5th workshop will be organized by International Mask Arts and Culture Organization (IMACO) and the five NGOs take their turns once every 2 years hosting it. They will discuss enhancing the roles of NGOs in the Intangible Cultural Heritage sector. The five UNESCO Accredited NGOs Association in Korea (UANAK):Inter-City Intangible Cultural Cooperation Network (ICCN) - ICCNWorld Martial Arts Union (WoMAU)Center for Intangible Culture Studies (CICS)International Mask Arts & Culture Organization (IMACO)Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation (KCHF)

(Extended deadline)2019 Jeonju International Awards for Promoting ICH

The deadline for 2019 Jeonju International Award was extended until March 31st:2019. Please encourage ICH Communities and share about the Award for more participations and email at cics.center@gmail.com for more questions. 2019 Jeonju International Award for Promoting Intangible Cultural Heritage will be held in South Korea’s cultural epicenter: Jeonju. This quite: slow city has had the moniker of the ‘Most Traditionally Korean City’ for many years. It is only fitting that the awards take place here in Jeonju to promote and preserve any safeguarding practices regarding Intangible Cultural Heritages. The Awards are meant to set an example of tolerance and congruity among the international ICH community. We are hoping to support and encourage all ICH practitioners to participate in this great event! Candidates for the awardsAwards are open to Living Human Treasures (practitioners): groups and communities: administrators: researchers: NGOs and those who have made substantial contributions for promoting Intang

Master’s TEMA Heritage Studies Program (including ICH) and scholarships are available!

Master’s TEMA Heritage Studies Program (including ICH) and scholarships are available in Europe! Applications must be sent before February 24,2019. The TEMA Erasmus Mundus master's program in heritage studies, funded by the European Union, will be offering 20 scholarships of a value of 30 000 euros for the two year period from September 2019 to August 2021. Scholarship: 30 000 euros over two years. Study Program: all students are required to spend the first semester in Budapest (Sept. to December 2019); and the other three at the partner university of their choice (EHESS in Paris, Charles University in Prague, University of Catania in Catania, Italy, or Laval University in Quebec City (Master's Program in Ethnology and Heritage) Languages of study: English and French Co-graduation: Master's degree in the Erasmus Mundus program and Master's degree at the university of study. Deadline for submission of applications: 24 February 17h00 Application forms: available on the website: <a href="https://mastertema.eu/">https://mastertema.eu/</a>

Bistritsa Babi, archaic polyphony, dances and rituals from the Shoplouk region

Bistritsa Babi are an elderly/multi-generational female vocal ensemble carrying on the traditional dances and polyphonic singing of the Shopluk region of Bulgaria. Bistritsa Babi has been part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2005. The Bistritsa Babi sing at two or three voices, and in different pitches. “Izvikvat” – lead the song while “Buchat krivo” – keep a continuous sound. This makes the harmonic music of Bulgaria a unique sound. People dance the “Horo” dance holding each other the belts of their traditional costumes when they hear the songs. You can see people performing these songs and dances at the ritual of “Lazaruvane” when young girls go around the village collecting eggs. See the video on Youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=embqg-yKHNQ">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=embqg-yKHNQ</a> Reference Treasure quest <a href="https://heriquest.com/?p=37&l=2&c=9&id=288">https://heriquest.com/?p=37&l=2&c=9&id=288</a>

Good practice from Norway: Dual-language, multi-ethnic storytelling

Good practice from Norway: Dual-language, multi-ethnic storytelling Oral traditions from Norway. Oral myths, fables, fairy-tales, legends are being told in Norwegian and in Sami. Because of the rapid pace of immigration leading to much more cultural diversity the oral tradition is changing. There are multiplicity of new story telling traditions. However these traditions are being looked over and their influence is not part of the larger schooling curriculum. Fortellerhuset, the storytelling house, was invited to the storytelling festival in Iran. It was told in English then translated by an interpreter. Audiences could understand oral traditions in a more playful and dramatic way by the performers with two languages. The storytelling was continued in Norway. Fortellerhuset had developed the performances, techniques and new two-language productions and it is being performed at libraries, schools and kindergardens. The aims of the storytelling begin to help people with non-Norwegian backgrounds to reconnect to their ancestors’ oral tradition and teach Norwegian language. The storytelling gives children with Norwegian cultural heritage a deeper experience of oral stories. It can also encourage teachers and those working with children to develop oral storytelling skills. Please visit the link below for a full story : <a href="https://www.nordicsafeguardingpractices.org/good-practice/dual-language-multi-ethnic-storytelling/">https://www.nordicsafeguardingpractices.org/good-practice/dual-language-multi-ethnic-storytelling/</a>

Sur Jahan - World Peace Music Festival 2019

Sur Jahan is an International Peace Music Festival that celebrates traditional world music.The 9th edition of Sur Jahan: an annual: non-ticketed: open-to-all World Peace Music Festival will be held at the eastern Indian city of Kolkata between 1 to 3 February and the popular tourist destination along Arabian Sea: Goa: between 6 to 8 February. Traditional music from India: Cape Verde: Egypt: Cyprus: Spain: Hungary and Northern Ireland will be presented. More Info: http://bncmusical.co.in/surjahan-detail.phphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uM58v4rO8GM&feature=youtu.be

IX World Championship of Folklore "World folk 2019"

Location: Nessebar and the resort complex “Sunny Beach” (Wikipedia) The World Championship of Folklore "World Folk 2019" is organizing byThe World Association of Folklore Festivals - WAFF:The European Association of Folklore Festivals - EAFF:World Folklore Academy: Event Vacation. With the support of:UNESCO: IOV-WORLD: CID-UNESCOMunicipalities of Nessebar: Burgas: Pomorie and Obzor: Sveti VlasBasic InformationA special feature of the World Championship of Folklore "World Folk" is that all performances are recorded with professional audio and television equipment and the best of them are repeatedly broadcasted by 20 cable televisions in Bulgaria: by satellite televisions "Travel TV": "Rodina TV" and "Heros TV" with coverage across Europe: as well as by the Web Television "EuroFolkTV" at tv.eurofolk.com With these activities the main goal of the World Championship of Folklore "World Folk 2018“ is being realized and that is to protection and popularize the traditional folk arts through the enormous possibilitie

2018 ICH NGO FORUM : Meetings with Assistant Director-General

Meetings on ICH NGO FORUM with Assistant Director-General !

ICH NGO FORUM Steering Committee New Members!!

ICH NGO FORUM Steering Committee New Members !! Welcome !

ELECTIONS of ICH NGO FORUM Steering Committee

ELECTIONS of ICH NGO FORUM Steering Committee Port-Louis, Mauritius

Ssirum : Traditional Korean Wrestling

2018 World Forum for ICH "Intangible Cultural Heritage and Peace"

The 2018 World Forum for Intangible Cultural Heritage themed with Intangible Cultural Heritage and Peace was finished successfully thanks to enthusiasm and active involvement of all the participants, and the great help and efforts of all the volunteers and staff members of the CICS, the secretariat. It was held at the Intangible Heritage Center in Jeonju city for three days from October 25 to 27. The forum opened grandly with the keynote speech titled 'Intangible Cultural Heritage and Peace-making' by Marielza Oliveira, Director of UNESCO Beijing Office. Welcome performances, especially Jeollabuk-do Children's Korean Traditional Music Orchestra thrilled the audience the most. Also H.E. Amin Muhammad Dalhatu, embassador of Nigeria in Seoul, attended the open ceremony and congratulated the forum. All the interest showing from distinguished guests including Mayor of Jeonju city, representatives of other organizations, and experts working in the field of ICH led the forum to the successful event as well. The praises that the forum has had were that it provided the platform connecting people as a network, that it gave a broaden knowledge about ICH and gave an opportunity to learn other areas in ICH fields, and that it gave different perspectives to understand ICH. As an outcome of the forum, the secretariat (CICS) is planning to make a publication of the presentation to make it known to more people. Safeguarding ICH is building a peace. ICH connects all among individuals, communities, groups, experts, governments, and policy-makers. It is because it asks for their cooperation desperately.

Traditional Musical Instrument Masters' Knowledge and Technique

A musical instrument master is a person who possesses the ability or skill to make traditional musical instruments such as Gayageum, Geomungo, Janggu, Buk, Danso.

Falconry, a living human heritage

Falconry is the traditional activity of keeping and training falcons and other raptors to take quarry in its natural state. Originally a way of obtaining food, falconry is today identified with camaraderie and sharing rather than subsistence. It is mainly found along migration flyways and corridors, and is practised by people of all ages, men and women, amateurs and professionals. Falconers develop a strong relationship and spiritual bond with their birds, and great commitment is required to breed, train, handle and fly the falcons. Falconry is handed down from generation to generation as a cultural tradition by various means, including mentoring, learning within families and formal training in clubs. In the United Arab Emirates, Mongolia, Morocco, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, for example, falconers take their children to the desert and train them to handle the birds and build a relationship of trust with them. While falconers come from different backgrounds, they share common values, traditions and practices such as the methods of training and caring for birds, the equipment used and the bonding between falconer and bird, which are similar throughout the world. Falconry forms the basis of a wider cultural heritage, including traditional dress, food, songs, music, poetry and dance, all of which are sustained by the communities and clubs that practise it.

Tango

<p>The Argentinean and Uruguayan tradition of the Tango, now familiar around the world, was developed by the urban lower classes in Buenos Aires and Montevideo in the Rio de la Plata baasin.</p><p>Among this mix of European immigrants to the region, descendents of African slaves and the naives of the region known as criollos, a wide range of customs, beliefs and rituals were merged and transformed into a distinctive cultural identity. As one of the most recognizable embodiments of that identity, the music, dance and poetry of tango both embodies and encourages diversity and cultural dialogue. It is practised in the traditional dance halls of Buenos Aires and Montevideo, spreading the spirit of its community across the globe even as it adapts to new environments and changing times. That coommunity today includes musicians, professional and amateur dancers, choreographers, coomposers, songwriters, teachers of the art and the national living treasures who embody the culture of tango.</p><p>Tango is also incorporated into celebrations of national heritage in Argentina and Uruguay, reflecting the sidespread embrace of this popular urban music.&nbsp;</p>

The 1st CMCCFA International Conference with CICS of Chonbuk National University

CMCCFA presentation: Lanna Intangible Cultural Heritage and Ritual Beliefs-Alexandra Denes

The 1st CMCCFA International Conference in Chiang Mai

Ths 1st CMCCFA International Conferencewith CICS of Chonbuk National University in the City of Jeonju13 - 17 August: 2018At Chiang Mai UniversityThe Chiang Mai Provincial Administrative Organization: in collaboration with the Faculty of Fine Arts Chiang Mai University: has lead the campaign to promote local crafts and folk art as part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network: Crafts and folk art of Chiang Mai have focused on participatory and collaborative activities between local communities and younger generations: including the development and submission of official membership application documents for the UNESCO Creative Cities Network On October 31: 2017: included among 64 cities from 44 countries within 7 creative fields: Chiang Mai was established as a member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the field of Crafts &amp; Folk Art. Since then: Chiang Mai has continued to develop plans and strategies in co-ordination with the next generation of local artisans and members of ethnic groups: to support and

Latvian song & dance celebration Participation

Fun!!!

CICS at the ICHNGO platform in the 7th session of the General Assembly

CICS at the ICHNGO platform

Having wonderful time at 7. GA

Networking with other NGOs for safeguarding ICH is i nspiring!

Seventh Session of the General Assembly

Seventh Session of the General AssemblyThe seventh session of the General Assembly of the States Parties to the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage takes place at UNESCO headquarters: Paris: from Monday 4 to Wednesday 6 June 2018. Over the three days: 177 States Parties will discuss a number of issues that are important for the safeguarding of living heritage around the world. In the margin of this Assembly: a series of side-events is being organized by the Secretariat under the global theme of ‘Tell your #living heritage story’. They will exhibit the richness of living heritage today and provide a platform for discourse and experience-sharing among the different actors involved in safeguarding: including the States: NGOs: youth and community members.

2018 International Martial Arts Contest

2018 International Martial Arts Contest (IMAC) is going to be held in October (26 – 28 Oct). WoMAU IMAC is a competition of martial arts performances that represents spirit and techniques of martial arts. This national competition is open to every martial artist capable of his or her martial performance regardless of nationalities: affiliates and events.

2018 WoMAU AGM

The 2018 WoMAU AGM will be held on 27 July in Ferghana: Uzbekistan: organized by WoMAU member organization: Uzbek Jang Sanati Federation. WoMAU Annual General Meeting is the highest legislative organ of the Union led by the President and the Chairperson of the General Meeting of WoMAU. It is an annual gathering of the representatives of WoMAU members and other interested in the event from 62 organizations over 42 countries to discuss ways to promote and cooperate for traditional martial arts activities.

The 2018 World Forum for Intangible Cultural Heritage

Venue : National Intangible Heritage Center: JeinjuTheme : Intangible Cultural Heritage and PeaceDate : October 25~27

Cultural events in PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games period

This February 2018: South Korea's Pyeongchang: acted as host city of the 2018 Winter Olympics. To commemorate this world's biggest sports event: 2018 PyeongChang Cultural Olympiad were also held. In part of this: IMACO was honored to join here. The 2 biggest cultural events that IMACO organized were; 1. World Mask Exhibition in Ganeung Olympic Live Site - A lot of visitors who came to see the olympic games visited here before they enter the stadium 2. Korea-China Peace Concert - This was also meaning for both countries: since the next winter olympic will be held in Beijing: China

2018 ICCN General Assembly

I am pleased to inform that ICCN(Inter-City Intangible Cultural Cooperation Network)is going to host the 2018 ICCN General Assembly in September 5 to 9 in Algemesi: Spain. I would like all ICCN members: experts and other cultural partners to particpate in the ICCN GA. During the GA: La Mare de Deu de la Salut: one of UNESCO ICH: will be held so that it will be a great opportunity to enjoy the UNESCO Festivity for us. At the GA: we have an international conference on the theme of "we want to know your heritage including an executive meeting and the general assembly meeing. In addtion: all participants will have a chance to attend the UNESCO festivity's parade and cultural activities.

Jeonju Declaration on "Intangible Cultural Heritage, a Resource for the City of Today and Tomorrow."

Jeonju Declaration on "Intangible Cultural Heritage, a Resource for the City of Today and Tomorrow" - Adopted in Jeonju, Republic of Korea, Oct. 28, 2017 We, the participants of the 2017 World Intangible Cultural Heritage Forum (hereinafter referred to as the "Forum") express our sincere gratitude to the officials of Jeonju City, the National Intangible Heritage Center of Korea and the Center for Intangible Culture Studies (Jeonju). In particular, we are thankful for the possibility of holding in-depth discussions under the auspices of Mayor Kim Seung-soo and the Director Cho Hyun Jung of the National Intangible Heritage Center. The importance of intangible cultural heritage in cities is becoming increasingly apparent. According to the spirit of the UNESCO 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and in light of the Sustainable Development Goals of Agenda 2030, the significance of intangible cultural heritage and its safeguarding cannot be underestimated. In particular, we recognize its power as a resource for enhancing the social, economic, environmental and cultural conditions, aspirations and capacities of all urban people. Intangible cultural heritage and its safeguarding in urban contexts is underexplored and under-represented in policy-making, and its potentials to improve the quality of people’s lives and of the urban environment have not yet been fully utilized. We are very pleased to have had the opportunity to conduct discussions on this vital question and, while acknowledging there is still much work to be done, we present the following areas for future investigation and engagement: 1. ICH and Developing Sustainable Cities Harnessing the power of intangible cultural heritage for realizing the potential of the SDGs, in particular Goal 11 on Sustainable Cities and Communities, through developing policies with full participation of all stakeholders. 2. ICH and Decent Work Providing jobs, decent work and livelihoods for urban people by utilizing the potential of ICH, as is being explored in the UNESCO programmes of Craft Cities and Gastronomic Creative Cities. 3. ICH and Human Rights Addressing the needs and aspirations of people living in cities, including marginalized, vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, through the potential of safeguarding ICH to reduce disparities and ensure social cohesion and inclusion, among others. 4. ICH, Cultural Diversity and Identity Cultivating and celebrating the identity of the city, enriched by the diversity of its different cultures and histories, as a contact zone of mutual interaction where ICH can be safeguarded. 5. ICH and Creativity Mobilizing ICH as a resource for creative industries with the participation of communities, groups, and other relevant stakeholders, inspiring and stimulating the creativity of people from different backgrounds.

The 3rd Workshop of UNESCO Accredited NGO Association, Korea [UANAK]

The 3rd Workshop of UNESCO Accredited NGO Association, Korea [UANAK] The five UNESCO accredited NGOs in Korea gathered in Chungju for a workshop to share information and strengthen networks organized by WoMAU (World Martial Arts Union) on February 22, 2018. Due to the Pyeonchang Winter Olympic Games, the related organizations became very busy and many of them could not participate in the workshop. Each organization reported its activities throughout the year 2017 and had an apportunity to share its initiatives and knowledge. All seemed different but verified the common goal of safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage. They made sure to keep up the good work to build up capacities of the regional NGOs. They all agreed to take a good advantage of the web-board (ichngo.net), for activating networks, that CICS (Center for Intangible Culture Studies)has launched. The web-board is now being launched as a Beta version and being tested. It is believed that it would be a promising to boost networks both in accredited regional NGOs and non-accredited NGOs domestically and internationally. Another workshop is to be held in this September (2018) organized by Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation (FCHF). More fruitful talks for networking and safeguarding the ICH will be expected to be exchanged.