An exhibition of beldemchi was launched at the Gapar Aitiev Fine Arts Museum in Bishkek on 7 June 2017. The exhibition is still ongoing through the partnership of the Kiyiz Duino Foundation and the Gapar Aitiev Fine Arts Museum, an institution named after one of the first Soviet Kyrgyz artists who became a national artist of the Kyrgyz Soviet Socialist Republic in 1954. The exhibition displays more than forty items collected from state museums and private collections. It represents all regions of the country and various embroidery styles and techniques. The event is a sign of increasing interest in beldemchi in Kyrgyz society; renowned designers are already coming up with unique beldemchi design.\n\nOne of the Kyrgyz ICH elements, beldemchi is a traditional women’s skirt worn over a dress, gown, and sometimes thin coat. Conventionally, women wear their first beldemchi after a severe stress, e.g. first labor or situations demanding warmth. When worn as postpartum clothing, beldemchi helps women correcting their posture. It also gives physical support. Historically, as Kyrgyz people led a nomadic lifestyle in inland continental climate conditions during pre-Soviet times until 1917, beldemchi was an essential part of Kyrgyz women’s traditional apparel.\n\nBeldemchi may be worn daily and in holidays or festive events. It is made up of velvet and silk adorned with embroidery. The embroidery could cover either the whole skirt or its edges. Viewed as a protective amulet against evil eye, jinxes, and other unpleasant troubles, it is also a determinant of a woman’s age, social status, region, and her artistic skills based on the composition, style, and quality of the embroidery since every woman is supposed to know how to make a beldemchi and its embroidery. The main base of beldemchi is a double-leaved swing skirt with wide and thick belt. Beldemchi has several regional differences. In the north where the winter season is cold and long, it is mainly a wraparound flared skirt from warm fabric with a thick band over the belt. In the south, beldemchi is a buttoned front open cut skirt.\n\nThe presentation of beldemchi at the exhibition displays how the making of traditional clothing for women has gradually turned into a field of rich female creativity. Notwithstanding, beldemchi has started to disappear from Kyrgyz everyday life, which may have been caused by the changing views and lifestyle. During the Soviet modernism in the 1960s, wearing beldemchi was a sign of backwardness and provincialism. Soon in the 1970s, it fell into disuse. However, elderly women in rural areas have kept wearing beldemchi until now.\n\nPhoto : Women wearing Beldemchi © Kyiz Duino Fund

Two festivals of ak-elechek (or elechek) took place in Kyrgyzstan in March 2017. One of them was held at the national scale; one thousand women from all provinces wearing ak-elechek participated in the event in the nation’s capital, Bishkek. The second event took place in Talas, a small northern province, where women made eighty-six elechek models.\n\nAk-elechek is a traditional white Kyrgyz female turban, made of many layers of a single piece of cloth. The material (silk, wool, or cotton), number of turban layers, and its model depend on the age, social, and marital status of women.\n\nIn the past, a young woman would put on an ak-elechek for the first time when going to a prospective husband’s house, and then, after the marriage ceremony, the woman had to wear ak-elechek at all public events. In emergencies, Kyrgyz women would sometimes use ak-elechek during unexpected births or for wounds or trauma. A widespread traditional blessing, “Don’t let your white ak-elechek fall down from a head,” is a wish for lifelong family happiness.\n\nOne thousand women in ak-elechek in Bishkek and eighty-six women in Talas impressively gathered to promote Kyrgyz traditional values and recall the important roles women in society. Women of different ages and social statuses from all regions of the country participated in the national and regional festivals. Events were organized by the public association Kyrgyz Tilekteshtigi (the Kyrgyz Cooperation) and by the Kiyiyz-Duino – Kochmon Rukhu (Felt World – Spirit of Nomadism) Fund.\n\nPhoto : Women wearing Ak-elechek© Kiyiyz-Duino – Kochmon Rukhu

The Rom Dance is a prominent cultural heritage originating from Ambrym Island in the Vanuatu archipelago. Ole in the Ambrym vernacular language refers to dance performances in which participants wear a rom mask. The rom, which is the mask itself, is a simpler version of the Banks Islands’ tamate mask, but it looks more similar to South Malekula masks.

The concept of sustainable development is at the heart of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which recognizes in its preamble the importance of the intangible cultural heritage as a mainspring of cultural diversity and a guarantee of sustainable development. Furthermore, Article 2.1 of the Convention, dedicated to the definition of intangible cultural heritage, stipulates that consideration will be given solely to such intangible cultural heritage as is compatible with existing international human rights instruments as well as with the requirements of mutual respect among communities, groups, and individuals, and of sustainable development.

The parent organization of CEE Himalaya is the Centre for Environment Education (CEE), which was established in August 1984. CEE is a national institution with its headquarters in Ahmedabad and has been given the responsibility by the central government of promoting environmental awareness nationwide. It undertakes demonstration projects in education, communication, and development that endorse attitudes, strategies, and technologies that are environmentally sustainable. Based in the city of Lucknow in the state of Uttar Pradesh, CEE Himalaya has been working in the states of the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) for over two decades. The mission of CEE Himalaya is to enhance understanding of sustainable development in formal, non-formal, and informal education through its work with schools, higher educational institutions, local and Indigenous communities, policy makers and administration, youth, and the general commu-nity. The primary objective of CEE Himalaya is to improve public awareness and understanding of environmental issues with a view to promote the conservation of nature and natural resources by integrating education with traditional streams of knowledge and cultural expressions. This approach demonstrates and grounds sustainable practices in rural and urban communities and facilitates the involvement of the business and public sectors to respond to the effects of climate change and variability.

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.

Duong Bich HANH is the Chief of Culture Unit in the UNESCO Bangkok Office. She has been working to promote the ratification and implementation of UNESCO’s six cultural Conventions- including the 2003 ICH Convention- and coordinating a number of regional projects in Southeast Asia and Asia-Pacific. She is especially interested in promoting the role of culture and cultural heritage, both tangible and intangible, in sustainable development and in ensuring that local communities both participate and benefit from the protection of their own heritage. Ms Hanh is an Anthropologist with extensive knowledge and experience in Southeast Asia and international development.

Alisher Ikramov reviews information collected through a survey funded by ICHCAP. While his work primarily reviews ICH festivals, he is also able to gain insights into ways that networks can promote ICH along the Silk Roads. Looking at the importance of local communities and the popularity of such festivals locally, there is concern about a lack of a network to encourage larger tourist attendance. However, there are feelings that festivals do not authentically represent local traditions and products. Therefore, this could lead to an undesirable level of commoditization and as a result lower the quality of the event.

Masks and mask dance exist through which they try to realize equality and be free from judgement, allowing you to express yourself as an equal in society regardless of class. The mask dance festival starts on the last Friday of September and lasts for ten days, and over a million people visit domestically and internationally. It has garnered attention from world leaders. Queen Elizabeth II of the UK, George H. Bush and George W. Bush of the USA, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, and other influential leaders have attended. The festival is about mixing modernity with tradition coming together, creating a mosaic of different colors and cultural significance. They use the mask dance festival as a collaborative tool that can bring various cultures together. The mask dance festival also plays a large role in transmitting the heritage to younger generations through various associations that function as a network.

The Silk Roads is a path and a route, not a fixed concept but a dynamic and expanding polysemic concept. The definition of the Silk Roads varies depending on academic perspectives. Toward the end of the twentieth century, the Silk Roads have become symbols of peace and understanding. It is at risk of abuse, commercialization, and political misapplication. Countries along the Silk Roads are experiencing a great deal of change, especially under the influence of globalization and commercialization. They are, therefore, highly vulnerable to change. It is necessary to consider the definition and target countries/areas, membership, access online and offline, gaps in ICT content production, and updating and maintaining information. Recommendations on improving a possible network include strengthening the information sharing capacity, improving the quality of information, and promoting and making successful public and private partnership programs. Two questions we have to ask are “What is the position of intellectual/academic cooperation for ICH safeguarding along the Silk Roads?” and “Can we support another new scientific approach?”

The life of the Bauls of Bangladesh revolves around body-centric ascetic practice termed sadhana. Bauls believe in the co-existence of every element of the endless Brahmanda, meaning universe in the human body. Thus, they make caring for the body their highest priority over anything else. They have created extensive verse about body-centric sadhana codes that they transmit through song. The verses or songs include descriptions of control over the consumption of daily necessaries, mainly food. And, they believe in the doctrine মানুষ যা খায়, সে তাই (a human is what he or she consumes). They also judge food as medicine, as the need to live a hale and hearty.

The profound difficulties international ICH community faces during the Corona pandemic is truly worrisome. For the NGOs of Korea, the common factor in dealing with the pandemic was for the ICH communities to absorb online activities and become fluent in online platforms for ICH safeguarding. But Bridging the digital gap is still remaining. So Hanhee Hahm, presented experience of COVID-19 and engagement of her with the ICH Community and counter measures against the pandemic society.