The “Maritime Silk Road International Cultural Forum” will take place in Macau from November 16-17, Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Leong Wai Man announced in a speech yesterday, adding that the forum will be part of the events commemorating the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.
Leong made the remarks during a press conference about the forum’s activities at the auditorium of the Macau Museum of Art (MAM) in Nape.
According to Leong, the forum, which will be jointly presented by the Secretariat for Social Affairs and Culture and the Beijing-based National Cultural Heritage Administration, and co-organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, China Academy of Cultural Heritage, Guangzhou Secretariat of the City Alliance for Maritime Silk Road Heritage Conservation and World Heritage Nomination, as well as ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) China, in conjunction with the University of Macau (UM) and Macao Institute for Tourism Studies (IFTM), will be held at the Macau Science Centre (MSC) as the main venue and sub-venues at the two tertiary education institutions for two consecutive days.
Leong noted that over 20 experts and scholars from the mainland and overseas will attend the forum concurrently online and offline to share their research results and practical experience about the Maritime Silk Road, such as “Conservation and sustainable use of the cultural heritage of the Maritime Silk Road” and “Definition in the scope of space and time of the Maritime Silk Road”.
Leong said her bureau expected the forum to promote in-depth research on academic topics related to the Maritime Silk Road, expand exchange and cooperation among regions and cities along the Maritime Silk Road, give full play to Macau’s role as One Centre, One Platform and One Base, and enhance Macau’s civil society and teenage students’ understanding of the significance of the Maritime Silk Road, as well as their support of and participation in the nomination of the Maritime Silk Road for the UNESCO Cultural Heritage List.
In order to enrich the forum’s activities and encourage public participation, a series of promotional activities, comprising a photo exhibition on the conservation and study of the cultural heritage of the Maritime Silk Road, thematic guided tours to local historical sites of the Maritime Silk Road, thematic parent-child workshops and WeChat prize games on the Maritime Silk Road, will be held between November 12 and December 18, Leong pointed out.
Meanwhile, a statement handed out during yesterday’s press conference noted that registrations for the forum, guided tours and workshops, all of which are free of charge, as well as enquiries, can be made through the forum’s webpage: www.culturalheritage.mo/MSRICF/2022 or the bureau’s “Activities Registration System”: www.icm.gov.mo/eform/event from 10 a.m. today, or by calling 2855 8747 daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Leong Wai Man delivers a speech during yesterday’s press conference about next month’s “Maritime Silk Road International Cultural Forum”, at the auditorium in the Macau Museum of Art (MAM) in Nape. – Photo: Yuki Lei
