Aidai Asangulova is one of the famous craftswomen in Kyrgyzstan and the head of the “Kiyiz Duino” Public Foundation. \n\nThe goal of PF “Kiyiz Duino” is to revive and safeguard traditional knowledge and skills related to crafts and the cultural space around it. “Kiyiz Duino” aims to draw general public attention to Kyrgyz traditions and customs; show people how a person can coexist with the surrounding nature in harmony, use its gifts without causing it harm; explain how important it is to take care of nature and preserve its purity for future generations.\n\nThe Foundation holds various community-based events, such as workshops on making Kyrgyz traditional clothing, or festivals to popularize traditional rituals and practices from local to national levels. They also actively cooperate in the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage with governmental and nongovernmental institutions, participate in field trips, conduct research, and document ICH elements. \n\n“Kiyiz Duino” has contributed greatly to the preparation of nomination files as “Ak-kalpak craftsmanship, traditional knowledge and skills in making and wearing Kyrgyz men’s headwear” and “Elechek, Kyrgyz female headwear: traditional knowledge and rituals”.\n

Jacob MAPARA is cu「rently the Director of the\n \n\nCatego’Y\n \nInstitute of Lifelong Learning and Development Studies of Chinhoyi University of Technology, Zimbabwe. He is Professor and Chairperson for Centre for Indigenous Knowledge and Living Heritage. At present he is leading\nthe “Inventorying oral traditions, expressions , local\nknowledge and practices of the Korekore of Hurungwe district in Zimbabwe” pr이ect. He holds a Dlitt et Phil (PhD)\n \nand a Maste「s’\n \ndegree in African Languages from the\n \nUniversity of South Africa. He has an Honours degree in Shona (one of the languages of Zimbabwe) as well as a Graduate Certificate in Education from the University of Zimbabwe. In addition , Dr. Mapara holds a Certificate in Environmental Education (now Education for Sustainable Development) from Rhodes University, South Africa

Aibek Baiymbetov graduated from the Kyrgyz National University named after Jusup Balasagyn with a Master's degree in International Relations. He also studied at the University of Tsukuba in Japan as an exchange researcher. Besides, he studied the Chinese language and oriental culture in Guangzhou, China. \n\nAibek Baiymbetov has been working in the field of cultural heritage and journalism for more than 10 years, with a focus on safeguarding the intangible cultural heritage, popularizing the traditional knowledge and practices of nomadic culture, as well as creating a value-oriented, modern creative network in the field of traditional music, journalism, animation, film, and theatre art. \n\nRecently, he has been actively working on preserving the biocultural diversity, adapting the cultural meanings to modern perception - through digital and creative products. Aibek Baiymbetov is a co-founder of the musical project "Kyrgyz Kairyk" which focuses on the safeguarding and popularisation of traditional music, he also acted as a consultant in several projects on the restoration and popularisation of Kyrgyz traditional art. \n\nHe took part in many research expeditionary initiatives to study the traditional culture of the indigenous people of the Tian Shan, Pamir, Himalayas, and Altai. He is a founder of the Public Fund "Peace Dialogue and Holistic Development", which has been working for more than 5 years in the field of safeguarding ICH, as well as creating a network of expert councils in the fields of climate, ecology, philosophy and traditional cultural and spiritual practices. He is an author of a short documentary anthology film "Man - Universe". At the moment, he is a researcher at the Department of Cultural Heritage and Humanities at the University of Central Asia. \n\nAibek Baiymbetov's academic and research interests lie in the area of the religious and cultural heritage of Kyrgyzstan/Central Asia - traditional Islam and traditional practices of the nomadic ideology. In the field of biocultural diversity and traditional cultures of indigenous people. Traditional art - Kyrgyz folklore, epic heritage and music. \n\nHe is the winner of the UNESCO 2021 “Silk Road Youth Research Grant” competition among the young researchers, as well as the winner of international and local film festivals in the field of documentary films about ICH. \n

Dr. Ming Chee Ang is a general Manager of George Town World Heritage Incorporated and a Facilitator of UNESCO Global Network of Facilitators on Intangible Cultural Heritage. Born and raised in the inner city of George Town, she carries her duties with much passion and fervour, incorporating innovative ideas and holistic management on World Heritage Site for the benefit of the local people. Specialized in resource mobilization, policy making, project management and risk assessment, she has incorporated built conservation, with elements of disaster risk reduction and intangible cultural heritage safeguarding to create a sustainable heritage city for the people who live in, work in and use George Town. Ang also showcases active participation in leading projects, programs and panels, as Executive Producer for George Town Heritage Celebrations, Chairperson for Sia Boey Archaeological Advisory Panel, Chairperson for Penang Public Arts Review Panel, Deputy Chairperson for Penang Island City Council’s Technical Review Panel, Committee for Guar Gepah Archaeological Advisory Panel, lead researcher for “Field Survey of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Safeguarding Efforts in the Asia-Pacific Region” and “Feasibility Studies on the Introduction of Rent Regulation Enactment”, as well as project manager for “Sia Boey Integrated Management Plan” and “Supporting Community-Based Management and Sustainable Tourism at Melaka and George Town”

At The Kishkinda Trust (TKT) in Anegundi, conservation empowers communities and creates a way of life that considers culture as an intangible element permeating all activities in life- ranging from functional to ideational-  ecology, cuisine, crafts, design, agriculture, technology, education, markets and festivals. Founded in the year 1997 by Shama Pawar, The Kishkinda Trust (TKT) assists the villagers of Anegundi at a grassroots level to build capacity in order to maintain business incubators and to conserve their historical heritage. TKT runs several unique programs, which are seamlessly integrated with the lives of the local people and that empower them economically.

The Nomadic Civilization Center named after Kurmanjan Datka located in Ornok village of Issyk-Kul province, Kyrgyz Republic. \n\nThe Center was opened in 2017 with an aim to present to the public general the rich historical and cultural heritage of nomadic people. The Center constantly organizes cultural, educational, and scientific activities for the safeguarding, dissemination, and popularization of nomadic cultural values. Most of the activities of the Center are organized with the support of the local ICH communities e.g. exhibitions and fairs are usually conducted with the close cooperation of the Center and the craftspeople from the village or province.\n

Founded in 2015, the Island Ark Project seeks to safeguard intangible cultural heritage (ICH)nimperiled by modernization and migration by promoting the use of digital technologies in thenPacific island states. Our primary strategy to combating threats to ICH is to train local stakeholdersnin the adoption, creation, and modification of websites and online databases to store and share ICHnrecords with people overseas. Our team members are from the U.S., Germany, and Palau.

The Yap State Historic Preservation Office (YSHPO), located in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), operates under the Department of Youth and Civic Affairs of the Yap State Government and has a regular budget funded by the local government and the National Park Service (NPS) and the United States Department of the Interior (DOI). YSHPO also receives occasional funding assistance for projects, technical or capacity building, and training and workshops from esteemed regional and international organizations—such as UNESCO, ICHCAP, and CRIHAP—and various national governments, including those of Australia, France, United States, and the FSM. YSHPO also collaborates and networks with other regional organizations, universities, and other bodies. To name a few, they include the University of Oregon, the University of Guam, Queens College, La Trobe, and others by conducting field schools in Yap during academic breaks.\nYSHPO has five main functions: 1) collecting Yapese written and oral history, 2) registering and surveying cultural and historical properties, 3) inventorying and mapping cultural and historical sites and properties, 4) restoring and rehabilitating cultural and historic properties, and 5) performing general YSHPO administration, including NPS/DOI Historic Preservation Fund (HPF). The organization also occasionally assists and supports the operation of the Yap State Living History Museum. Of some related projects, ICHCAP has funded three in Yap: 1) Youth Meets ICH with OurYAP, an umbrella youth organization for all the youth clubs, including high school children in Yap State, 2) the Preliminary Survey on Dormant ICH Data in the Pacific with a mixture of project workers from the Waab Cultural Heritage Society (elders) and some young people along with YSHPO staff, and 3) the 2017 ICHCAP-YSHPO Joint Cooperation Project for Safeguarding Intangible Heritage by Digitizing ICH-Related Analogue Data of the FSM, which is still ongoing.