Prabartana is a social enterprise working in diverse sections for revival which includes: arts, crafts, food security, and community-led responsible tourism. The organization provides training to weavers and has contributed to technical enhancement through documentation of patterns in computers instead of the manual style of Jacquard pattern design. As safeguarding action, they involve artisans in exhibitions and workshops for cultural exchange, audio-visual documentation and publication of books, social media-based promotions and audience development through the Web, newspaper articles and festival-relevant brochures. The organization also promotes community-led responsible tourism through AJIYER, where the community has the rights and knowledge to operate tours and promote and conserve cultural heritage, apart from safeguarding their environment.

Fifteen years ago, nobody used the term ‘intangible cultural heritage’ (ICH) in Vietnam. It was only used in the official context of the 2001 Law on Cultural Heritage. The Cultural Heritage Law of Vietnam is conforming with other international documents regarding wording for safeguarding ICH and inventories. Although inventory-making is one of the important measures used in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage, the term ‘ICH inventory making’ was not included in the law. At that time, inventory making meant surveying and collecting. In 2003, as an international legal tool, the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage helped enlighten the understanding of ICH inventory making in Vietnam. Six years later, this term, as well as other contents compatible with the Convention were included in the 2009 amended Law on Cultural Heritage. This illustrates the fact that, despite starting late, understanding and awareness of ICH inventory-making in Vietnam has developed rapidly and thoroughly.

Knowledge is the foundation of indigenous cultures. As an expression of a given culture, it establishes relationships among an indigenous community with respect to its ancestral territory. The concept of knowledge or traditional knowledge is closely related to intangible cultural heritage. Intangible cultural heritage shapes the spirit of a culture, and central to its promotion and protection, is the revitalization and safeguarding of knowledge and cultural systems.

The Cultural Research Foundation (CRF) was founded in 2002. Led by folklorists and anthropologists, the work of CRF regarding intangible cultural heritage can be categorized as\n\n- Researching and documenting ICH,\n- Sharing and promoting ICH through publications and events, and\n- Creating cultural heritage awareness, especially for pre-school and youth.\n\nCRF, accredited under the UNESCO ICH Convention in 2012, carries out this work under the sections of Culinary Culture, Toy, Crafts and Rituals Research Programs. CRF is also a member of the Izmir ICH Commission.

The Asia-Pacific region can be called a treasure house of ICH because of its diverse heritage and rich cultural environment. However, much of the ICH in the region is facing the possibility of disappearance because the value of ICH isn’t fully understood and there is a shortage of institutional and administrative support. In particular, developing or underdeveloped countries in the region are experiencing difficulties in effectively safeguarding ICH in the context of maintaining sociocultural traditions and promoting sustainable development because globalisation, urbanisation, and modernisation stand as obstacles.Recognising the shortcomings in ICH safeguarding, ICHCAP, a UNESCO Category 2 Centre, has recently been established based on the approval of UNESCO General Conference in 2009 and the agreement between UNESCO and the government of the Republic of Korea. The main roles and functions of the Centre focus on information and networking in the ICH safeguarding field. ICHCAP has contributed to ICH safeguarding and has learned a lot from the activities the Centre has conducted and participated in over the past four years.In this paper, I will introduce the main roles, functions, and collaborative works of ICHCAP in relation to ICH safeguarding in the Asia-Pacific region. I am hoping that the information provided here will also contribute to developing useful methods and cooperative measures in the ICH field among Asia-Pacific Member States and ICHCAP.

Modernization and other internal and external influences have caused vernacular houses in the Asia- Pacific region to be replaced. Today, their traditional status has been taken over by houses constructed using newly introduced materials and styles, even in remote villages. Although a house, as a physical object, may be considered to be a tangible heritage, the vernacular house is a product that encompasses intangible components, including the knowledge, skills, and local traditions associated with their construction, use, and maintenance by the particular community. The conservation or protection of vernacular houses is, in other words, tantamount to safeguarding their rich culture rather than merely the preservation of static buildings. \n\nVernacular houses in the tropics of Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands are often built using native plants, and they require occasional rebuilding and regular maintenance. The knowledge and skills required for the construction of a vernacular house building are rarely documented. Instead, the expertise is generally stored in memory and in the activities that are undertaken by an individual, family, or community. This is transferred through practical experience down the generations and is only shared among the members of a community. Our initiative focuses on the reconstruction of vernacular houses in conjunction with local communities, creating opportunities to understand all the requisites of building these traditional structures by thoroughly recording the construction process. \n\nChanges that have occurred in individual values, the lifestyles of ethnic communities, and their surrounding environments have created a situation in which the resources that are necessary for the construction of vernacular houses are less easily available or no longer available. It is common for vernacular houses to be perceived as outdated, old-fashioned, and underdeveloped. A vernacular house can no longer be built and used in the same way that it was when it was the only choice of housing. We need to identify ways in which to sustain traditional house building practices and to utilize this knowledge by examining its potential and its meaning in the modern context. This paper introduces our approach to the reinstatement and reconstruction of vernacular houses and to the revival of related activities in conjunction with local communities in Fiji, Thailand, Vanuatu, and Vietnam and illustrates some of our findings. In the process, the study identifies what it takes to build and sustain vernacular housing.

This paper and the presentation highlight the value of the Yapese fish weirs and how they, and the associated intangible cultural heritage can be used to assist modern-day approaches to marine ecological \nconservation, in addition to keeping traditional sustainable fishing practices alive.\n\nYap is located 840 km south west of Guam and 1,850 km east-south\u0002east of Manila. It consists of four volcanic islands (referred to as Yap Proper), seven small coralline islands and about 130 atolls forming the \n‘Outer Islands’ that cover about 800 km in the north west Pacific Ocean, all of which forms Yap state—one of the four States of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). \n\nOn the reef flat adjacent to the volcanic islands, the Yapese developed a harmonious, sustainable system of fishing that incorporated spiritual, social, cultural and environmental connectivity and awareness. This is of particular importance to the inshore fishery, which is a sensitive region for fish breeding, and needs to be well conserved, maintained and not overfished. The Yapese employed a number of cultural practices (living heritage) related to fishing, and created a number of tangible cultural heritage, and together they form the Yapese maritime cultural landscape. This system employed a number of fish traps and weirs, with the tidal stone-walled fish weirs—aech—surviving to this day.\n\nYap has now four Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Yapese are aware that fishing is currently not implemented in a sustainable manner and are declaring ‘no catch zones’ in certain marine areas. Many of the studies associated with the need for and development of MPAs are largely science based, with little relevance and benefit given to traditional fishing (cultural practices and the material cultural). Traditional fishing practices using traditional ecological knowledge were carried out sustainably for hundreds of years and the incorporation of this knowledge into MPA management should not be overlooked.

Kutch is a frontier district in the state of Gujarat in western India, situated on the border of India and Pakistan. Covering an area of 45,674 km², it is the largest district of India. It is surrounded by the Great and Little Rann of Kutch on the North, South, East, and the Arabian Sea on the West. In the beginning of the twelfth century, Kutch was ruled by Chavda, Sama, Sanghar, Kathi, and Solanki dynasties. From 1147 AD to 1947 AD, Kutch was ruled by the Jadejas, whose ancestors migrated to Kutch from Sindh (now in Pakistan). Sindh is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeast of the country, it is the third largest province of Pakistan. Sindh is bordered by Balochistan province to the west and Punjab province to the north. Sindh also borders the Indian states of Gujarat and Rajasthan to the east and Arabian Sea to the south. The influence of Sindhi culture is very prominent in Kutch due to the history of migration of pastoralists as well as artisanal communities. The current paper aims to explore the cross border cultural relationships between local communities of Kutch, India and Sindh, Pakistan by critically examining their shared oral tradition of Gujharat and a significant traditional textile craft practice called Ajrakh.

The South-Western Alps, across Italy and France are an area of long-lasting and significantly dense presence of diverse intangible cultural heritage expressions, resulting from the peculiar forms of relation and adaptation between the communities and the mountain ecosystems. But now, this area faced a number of challenges, Alessio Re & Giulia Avanza introduced the projects for building up resilience on the South-Western Alps territory.

banglanatak dot com is a social enterprise working across India since 2000 with a mission to foster inclusive and sustainable development using culture-based approaches. The organization has a hybrid structure. It is a social business and a not-for-profit formed by the employees. It is an accredited NGO in consultative status with the 2003 ICH Committee. banglanatak dot com works for pro-poor and sustainable development.

Culture is chiefly perceived as a driving force for sustainable development in the UN’s action plan for people, planet, and prosperity entitled “Transforming Our World: 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’. In this context, there is a foreseeable strength in ICH to generate means for sustainable development. The following issues are considered as starting points of discussion: (1) the methods of aligning commercial activities with ICH safeguarding activities, (2) the possible risks to ICH viability and the ways in which they can be mitigated, and (3) the prospect of moving toward and maintaining a mutual relationship between ICH Safeguarding and development policies.\nKeeping the grassroots level highly pertinent in Session 3, we intend to put various NGOs activities at the center of the discussion, particularly in light of our pursuit to assess their presence in sustainable tourism development and eco‐tourism, looking into the possibility of expanding the role of NGOs in areas such as cultural mapping and gender equality. To end, a plenary discussion will be held. The outcome document will be circulated to share the discussion points of and lessons learned from the meeting.

Culture is the very essence of our existence—it reflects our history, our language, our tradition and our beliefs. However, with the wind of globalization and change, our cultures and traditions do not remain static, but evolve overtime. Papua New Guinea (PNG), being one of the most culturally rich and diverse countries in the world, wherein about ninety percent of its approximate six million people speak over 850 distinct languages and live in their respective social structures in their cultural communities, generally rely on their environment to ensure their livelihood. Papua New Guineans’ daily relationship among each other coupled with the evolving environment depicts a high appreciation of their unique cultures and traditions. On the contrary, it is on the verge of disappearing.