Un taller de fortalecimiento de las capacidades sobre la aplicación de la Convención de 2003 a nivel nacional, financiado con fondos fiduciarios de la UNESCO y de la República de Corea, fue organizado en colaboración con el Departamento de Patrimonio del Ministerio de Información, Cultura y Turismo, del 11 al 15 de junio de 2012 en Vientián, República Democrática Popular Lao. Además de funcionarios del gobierno, profesionales del patrimonio cultural inmaterial participaron también en este taller co-facilitado por instructores certificados de la UNESCO, la Sra. Paritta Chalermpow Koanantakool y la Sra. Shubha Chaudhuri. La República Democrática Popular Lao es un país con 160 grupos étnicos, cada uno de los cuales ha conservado gran parte de su propio idioma, costumbres, cultura y tradiciones. El rico patrimonio cultural de Laos también tiene sus orígenes en una inmensa espiritualidad, ya que el budismo tiene una influencia que se extiende desde el estilo de vida a las artes. Este país adoptó una Ley de Patrimonio Nacional en 2005, que proporciona la base jurídica para la salvaguardia del PCI, antes incluso de la ratificación de la Convención de 2003 en el año 2009. Además, una sección sobre Patrimonio Cultural Inmaterial fue creada en el Departamento de Patrimonio del Ministerio de Información, Cultura y Turismo. La Oficina de la UNESCO en Bangkok ha estado trabajando estrechamente con las autoridades competentes que han reconocido la necesidad de mejorar su estrategia de salvaguardia del PCI, reforzar el marco institucional y normativo y desarrollar sus habilidades de inventario. Después de este primer esfuerzo de fortalecimiento de las capacidades, más talleres de capacitación sobre los inventarios de las comunidades (previsto en 2012) y sobre la preparación de expedientes de candidatura (en 2014) serán organizados en la RDP de Laos con el fin de mantener un efecto a largo plazo de este proyecto llevado a cabo en el marco de la estrategia global de fortalecimiento de las capacidades de la UNESCO.

Structured around case studies from the region, the meeting aimed to provide a platform for experts and practitioners to discuss how best to strengthen communities’ capacities to control and manage their own Intangible Cultural Heritage in the face of increased tourism. The key themes under which the case studies were organized include:

• Handicrafts in the context of sustainable cultural tourism
• Performing arts in the context of sustainable cultural tourism
• ICH in the context of environmental, agricultural and eco tourism

The meeting has been organized by the Hue Monuments Conservation Center (HMCC), the Department of National Cultural Heritage, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Viet Nam, the Korean Establishment Initiative for the Intangible Heritage Centre for Asia-Pacific (EIIHCAP) and the Office of the UNESCO Regional Advisor for Culture in Asia and the Pacific.

• Meeting page on UNESCO Bangkok website
• Final report: inglés

Many elements of Cambodia’s rich living heritage are in danger of disappearing mainly due to long-lasting conflicts, the declining number of performers and the clear tendency among the younger generation to cultural influences from outside the country. In this context, the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts in Cambodia launched, in collaboration with UNESCO, a project for the establishment of a national system of Living Human Treasures.

This project aimed at ensuring and supporting the continuous transmission of traditional knowledge and skills from one generation to another within communities and within education institutions.

A National Working Group, created for this purpose, first developed detailed procedures including the definition of the Living Human Treasures and criteria for their selection. Field research was conducted in various provinces in order to identify masters of prioritised performing arts of Cambodia. A Commission of Experts was created, whose task is to examine the information collected on masters and to provide recommendations to the Minister of Culture and Fine Arts regarding the selection of Living Human Treasures. Once the Living Human Treasures are nominated, an official nomination ceremony takes place, and the Living Human Treasures is involved in transmission activities at the community and national levels, such as holding regular classes for young students in pagodas and organizing workshops at University.

This is a project to establish in Fiji a national Living Human Treasures system so as to provide support to bearers of traditional knowledge and skills in danger of disappearing, and to ensure their effective transmission to young people.

The objectives of the project are to:

• Establish the Living Human Treasures system in Fiji in a sustainable way and with a culturally sensitive approach;
• Formulate mechanisms to identify Living Human Treasures using a systematic approach;
• Formulate and implement a system to ensure the transmission from the Living Human Treasures to younger generations.

The main activities include:

• Develop detailed procedures for the identification of target domains of intangible cultural heritage, the definition of the Living Human Treasures, and criteria for their selection;
• Conduct field research in each province in Fiji to collect and examine information on masters;
• Organize provincial workshops to raise awareness about the system among practitioners and other stakeholders.