The early history of the Nagas is shrouded in obscurity and many theories abound of their origin  and  migration.  How  and  when  they  came  to  settle  in  the  north‐eastern  region  of India is an unsettled question. \nSeveral  traditions  exist  within  the  multi‐ethnic  Naga  communities  on  their  origins. \nAccording to the oral traditions passed down through songs, folklore and word of mouth the Ao emerged from six stones at Long‐terok, which exists to this day near Chungliyimti, the first legendry settlement of the Ao. ‘Long’ meaning stone and ‘Terok’ six, refers to the six stones from which emerged three pairs of male and female progenitors whom the Ao claim  to  be  their  ancestors.  The  Ao  is  distinguished  with  two  phratries  –Chongli  and Mongsen. The Chongli claim  that the  three males and  females who emerged at Longtrok were Tongpok and his sister Lendina, Longpok with his sister Yongmenala and Longjakrep with  his  sister  Elongshe.  They  were  the  first  human  beings  who  emerged  at  Longtrok. \nEach  male  member  along  with  his  sister  formed  the  three  phratries  of  the  Chongli. \nTongpok founded the Imsong‐Pongen clan, Longpok the Longkumer clan and Longjakrep with  his  sister  founded  the  Jamir  clan  respectively.  The  three  siblings  intermarried  and through  these  marriages,  the  Ao  clans  came  into  existence  and  a  well‐  knitted  clan exogamy marriage evolved that is followed to this day. 

The sixth sub-regional networking meeting took place in Pacific Harbor, Fiji, in April 2015. The meeting was organized by ICHCAP and the Department of Heritage and Arts of Fiji in collaboration with the UNESCO Office in Apia.\nThis meeting report includes presentation materials from the sub-regional meeting as well as summaries of the meeting with the intent of providing information to promote international cooperation among experts and institutions in the ICH safeguarding field in the Pacific region.

ICHCAP and the Vanuatu Cultural Center organized the fourth sub-regional networking meeting in collaboration with the UNESCO Apia Office. Representatives from the collaborating organizations as well as from six Pacific countries—Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, and Vanuatu—attended the meeting in Port Vila, Vanuatu, in April 2013. This publication includes presentation materials as well as meeting summaries to provide information to promote international cooperation among Pacific experts and institutions in the ICH safeguarding field.

This report publication is a collection of the discussion papers presented on 28 November 2011 at the International Conference on Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage under the theme ‘Regional Collaboration for Safeguarding ICH in Asia and the Pacific: Tasks and Strategies’, which was held in commemoration of ICHCAP’s inauguration. The conference provided an opportunity to look into the current ICH status and environment of the five sub-regions within the Asia-Pacific region and to seek measures to overcome the many different challenges involved with ICH safeguarding.

As part of the Cultural Partnership Initiative of 2016, ICHCAP invited ICH professionals from Malaysia, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and Tonga. Each participant researched ICH topics of interest that relate to comparative studies, sustainable development, traditional medicine, and safeguarding organizations. These reports were compiled into a bound publication and is now made available as an online download.

ICHCAP is pleased to announce the publication of the Handbook on ICH Safeguarding system in the Asia-Pacific, which aims to facilitate information sharing in the Asia-Pacific region.\n\nThe main contents of this publication are reports from thirty-two nations collected by ICHCAP from 2009 to 2015 as part of its annual projects to collect information on intangible cultural heritage safeguarding in the Asia-Pacific region. We have also compiled information from other reports and conference materials collected by ICHCAP to present key data, such as national inventories and information on related organizations, in an easily accessible format.

The international conference of ICH NGOs was held in the National Intangible Heritage Center in Jeonju from 26 to 28 June 2014 to strengthen the NGO's networking efforts. Under the theme of “Towards Efficient Roles of NGOs for Safeguarding ICH in the Asia-Pacific Region,” some fifty NGOs from the Asia-Pacific, Europe, South America, and Africa participated in the lively discussion on the diverse roles of NGOs as mediators between the government and local communities. This book is an outcome of the conference presentations and discussions.

ICH Courier is the quarterly magazine on ICH in the Asia-Pacific region issued by ICHCAP since 2009. Every issue has its own theme under the title of the Windows to ICH, and the theme of the Vol 22 is 'Epic Stories in Central Asia.'

ICH Courier is the quarterly magazine on ICH in the Asia-Pacific region issued by ICHCAP since 2009. Every issue has its own theme under the title of the Windows to ICH, and the theme of the Vol 30 is 'Royal Court Dances.'

This report includes presentation papers and a discussion summary of the three sessions that took place during the conference. The first chapter, “What Is the Significance of the 2003 Convention,” includes papers on the historical meaning and current situation of the Convention. The second chapter, “How to Safeguard the Value of ICH,” reviews measures on how ICH can promote cultural diversity, sustainable development of humanity, and social development in developing countries. The last chapter, “How to Promote Better ICH for Sustainable Development,” includes country reports that outline the efforts each participating country has taken to promote and use ICH.

ICHCAP hosted an international seminar, ‘ICH Pedagogy: Status and Challenges in the Asia-Pacific Region in Reference to UNESCO’s Overall Results Framework,’ at the National Museum of Korea, Seoul, on 10 May, in cooperation with the Asia-Pacific Education Network for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage (APHEN-ICH), UNESCO Bangkok Office, and Korea National University of Cultural Heritage (KNUCH) and with support from the Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea.

ICHCAP published a book in collaboration with banglanatak dot com, an UNESCO accredited NGO, about ICH NGOs’ contribution to sustainable development. The 29 NGOs’ story showcase us how intangible cultural heritage can drive, enable, and guarantee achieving SDGs along each of its three dimensions –the economic, social, and environment-underpinned by peace and security as fundamental prerequisites for sustainable development.\n\n