The Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre (TAEC) was launched in July 2007 to promote understanding of Laos’ ethnic diversity and advocate for the survival and transmission of Laotian cultural heritage. It is the only independent museum and cultural heritage center in Laos dedicated to the collection, preservation, and interpretation of the traditional arts and lifestyles of the country’s ethnic groups.\nCurrently, the Centre features exhibits, two brick-and-mortar fair trade shops with handicrafts produced by rural artisans, a small library, café, and kids’ activity area. The Centre received over 27,000 visitors in 2017 and has rapidly emerged as a regional leader in cultural heritage management and community development.\nAs an independent organization, TAEC receives no funding from the government. The Centre was started with seed money from private donors and two foundations. Now, the Centre’s admission fees, tourist-related services, and café and shop income cover day-to-day running costs, and the organization operates as a social enterprise, with all profits invested towards its mission.

The Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (Bangladesh Academy of Fine and Performing Arts) is the apex institution in the field of culture. Located in the heart of the capital city Dhaka and overlooking the historic Ramana Park, an oasis to the bustling city of nearly fifteen million people, the academy is a huge complex of three magnificent buildings that bear the hallmarks of modern architectural beauty.\nThe Academy is a statutory body under the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. It was established in 1974, under the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy Act. Its main objective is to safeguard and foster national cultures as well as intangible cultural heritage in Bangladesh. The duties and responsibilities of the academy include promoting arts and national culture as well as creating necessary facilities for their development. The activities of the academy also include organizing workshops, seminars, discussion meetings, short-term specialized training sessions; providing scholarships and financial grants for talented artists; and organizing competitions in the various fields of fine and performing arts, and it regularly holds the Asian Biennial Art Exhibition. Recently it has completed a project in cooperation with UNESCO Dhaka for safeguarding Baul Songs, the only intangible cultural heritage element of Bangladesh on the Representative List. The academy is the premier venue for the expression of traditional and contemporary arts and culture of the people of Bangladesh, and it is planning to extend its collaborative activities internationally, especially through the Asia-Pacific region.

The “Roza Otunbayeva Initiative” International Public Foundation is a non-profit, nongovernmental organization established in January 2012 with the aim of initiating and implementing programs and projects that can contribute to the social, political, and economic development of the country, as well as respect for the environment in the Kyrgyz Republic.\n\nThe founder of the Foundation Roza Otunbayeva, is a former President of the Kyrgyz Republic, member of the high-level group of advisers on mediation under the UN Secretary-General, member of the Club de Madrid, and member of the Governing Board of UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP).\n\nMain goals of the Foundation:\n•\tPromoting human development, expanding civic participation, strengthening civil society;\n•\tImplementation of educational, cultural, environmental, and charitable programs and projects;\n•\tSupporting initiatives for peacekeeping, expanding communication platforms on issues of international political, economic, and humanitarian cooperation.\n\nSince its establishment, the Foundation has initiated and implemented throughout the country, in cooperation with various partners, more than 30 projects. \n\nMuch attention is paid by the Foundation to supporting the level of accessibility of art, music, literature, and folk crafts, both for children and for the general public. Thus, the Foundation has published several books about ICH elements of Kyrgyzstan adopted for children e.g. Manas comic book based on the Manas epic, “To Visit My Friends!” which explores the diverse culture of ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan, etc.\n\nOne of the well-known projects implemented by the Foundation is "Development Centers on Jailoo". Jailoo is a summer pasture. The purpose of the project is aimed at creatinig conditions for equal access for the vulnerable population – the children of cattle breeders to preschool education. The project also includes programs aimed to promote traditional knowledge and cultural and historical heritage of the Kyrgyz people, introducing children to culture through the study of traditional games, and the formation of knowledge and skills of young children on the bases of tolerant interaction with representatives of different ethnic groups and nationalities.\n

Khamir was established in 2005 as a joint initiative of Kachchh Nav Nirman Abhiyan and the Nehru Foundation for Development to strengthen and promote the rich artisanal traditions of Kachchh district. The name ‘Khamir’ means ‘intrinsic pride’ in local language and it stands for Kachchh Heritage, Art, Music, Information and Resources. The organizational aim is to provide a platform for the promotion of traditional handicrafts and allied cultural practices, the processes involved in their creation, and the preservation of culture, community and local environments. Also a common roof of a democratic and empowering space has been created, where a range of stakeholders can exchange their ideas and collaborate. The organization works on shift consumer perspectives and raises the cultural value placed on crafts to establish a vibrant, sustainable Indian craft sector in which crafts and artisans alike are highly valued by people worldwide.

IAC highly values the traditional knowledge of our people and seeks to contemporize it with input from the latest technological knowledge. IAC believes in integration with community, building long term industrial linkages and National and International partnerships. This Liberal Arts education platform will not only impact the education sector in Pakistan but also reach out to the neighboring countries and contribute towards global scholarship. By incorporating a trilingual approach, which includes English, Urdu and their Mother Language, the students recognize culture and art education not as a foreign stimulus but the one they are inherently connected with.

International Association for Falconry & Conservation of Birds of Prey (IAF) is dedicated to the preservation of the ancient art of falconry, a hunting tradition defined as ‘taking quarry in itsnnatural state and habitat by means of trained birds of prey‘. Preserving falconry involves maintaining not only the traditional culture that builds practical skills of empathy with animals, butnalso the conservation of raptors and their prey through preservation of natural habitats. We therefore encourage falconry within the context of sustainable use of wildlife. In light of thisnintangible culture, we challenge communities, children and young falconers to engage the environmental conservation activities based on our international education programme (such as School Links Programme) and other main projects for each country.

This organisation represents the traditional Gandharba music community, a community of occupational caste musicians, functioned as the sole organised means of information and entertainment for the numerous isolated communities across the mountains of Nepal. The Gandharba Cultural Art Organisation (GCAO) is a non-profit social organisation based in Kathmandu, Nepal. Since 1995, GCAO has endeavoured to keep the Gandharba traditions alive, and to improve their economic and educational status. They have plans of documenting the tradition as well as promoting it as they feel it is endangered. The GCAO represents the Gandharba in many rural districts of Nepal, such as Gorkha, Lamjung, Tanhun, Chitwan, Dhading, Palpa, Bhojpur, Dhang and Kaski, and is currently reaching out to incorporate further districts where Gandharba communities reside.

\nFormed in 1994, the Hue Traditional Royal Theatre of Arts functions under the authority of HuếnMonuments Conservation Centre. It works to preserve and promote genres of royal arts, such asnNhã nhạc Court Music, Royal dance and Tuồng court opera. More than 150 artists andninstrumentalists who received professional training are working for the theatre. In addition, thentheatreworks in collaboration with researchers, master artists, instrumentalists, and reputablenexperts in the field such as Professor Trần văn Khê, Professor Tô Ngọc Thanh, Professor Hoàng ChâunKý, Meritorious Artist Trần Kích, and master instrumentalist Lữ Hữu Thi. Many years since itsninception, the theatre has collected, restored, and performed about 40 pieces of ritual music, plentynroyal dances, and excerpts of Tuồng, contributing to the safeguarding of important values ofnVietnamese traditional performing arts. The Theatre has also participated in art festivals in thencountry and overseas, receiving appreciations from the audiences.

Turquoise Mountain was founded in 2006 by HRH The Prince of Wales to revive historic areas and traditional crafts, to provide jobs, skills and a renewed sense of pride. Since 2006, Turquoise Mountain has restored over 150 historic buildings, trained over 6,000 artisans, treated almost 136,000 patients at our Kabul clinic, and supported and generated over $15.5 million in sales of traditional crafts to international clients, including Kate Spade and London’s Connaught Hotel. Turquoise Mountain has also curated major international exhibitions at museums around the world, from the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C. Turquoise Mountain has now built over 50 small businesses in Afghanistan, Myanmar, and the Middle East, supporting a new generation of artisan entrepreneurs who will not only drive economic development, but also preserve their unique cultures and traditions.

Tiapapata Art Centre exists and is registered with the government of Samoa as a charitable trust, a nonprofit organization promoting traditional and contemporary arts and crafts. Its patron is His Highness Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese, Head of State of Samoa. With its vision of establishing a model art school fostering creative excellence in Samoa and the Pacific, the Tiapapata Art Centre’s mission is to provide an accessible and dynamic learning and creative environment that facilitates the achievement of educational, professional, and personal goals of students, artists in residence, and teaching staff in an atmosphere that fosters excellence in creativity, diversity, and innovation.\nThe Tiapapata Art Centre recognises the importance of Samoa’s intangible cultural heritage as expressed in its traditional arts and crafts, and the center is actively involved in promoting an understanding of this heritage through photography and films. Galumalemana, with the support of the Tiapapata Art Centre, has produced several films exploring Samoa’s creative economy. O le Aganuu Manogi a Sāmoa explores making and using fragrant coconut oil; Ole Aso ma le Fīliga, o le Aso ma le Mata’igātila examines using natural fibers in Samoa; tanoa features the making of the traditional wooden bowls used to serve ceremonial drinks called ‘ava; and tatau depicts the art of Samoan tattooing.

The Craft Council of Kyrgyzstan is the craftsmen association that has united more than 5000 craftsmen throughout Kyrgyzstan and with the representatives of all regions in the country. \n\nThe Crafts Council was established in 2013 with the aim of uniting craftspeople on the basis of common interest to support efforts in promoting the handicraft sector and traditional crafts in the Kyrgyz Republic. The Crafts Council represents and protects the interests of Kyrgyz craftspeople at the national and international levels. \n\nThe Craft Council of manages the work of communities and NGOs and their cooperation in implementing measures to safeguard traditional craftsmanship. It cooperates with different stakeholders and connects craftspeople with governmental institutions or educational organizations for instance. \n\nNational Commission of the Kyrgyz Republic for UNESCO and the Crafts Council have a long successful cooperation history, which is reflected in joint nomination files such as “Ala-kiyiz and Shyrdak, art of Kyrgyz traditional felt carpets” inscribed on the Urgent Safeguarding List of UNESCO, preparation of periodic reports, organization of community-based events and traditional crafts documenting activities. All members of the Crafts Council are usually encouraged to actively take part in the safeguarding, popularization, and transmission of common heritage. \n

Karawitan Indonesia High School (SMKI) Yogyakarta or Kasihan State Vocational School 1 (Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan Nasional 1) Kasihan, Bantul, is a high-level vocational school focusing on art. The school, located on Jl. PG Madukismo, Bugisan, Kasihan, Bantul, Yogyakarta, was established in 1961 under the name Konservatori Tari (KONRI), which has a focus on dance conservation and development. The school then was changed into Karawitan Indonesia High School in 1976. In 1997 it became Kasihan State Vocational School 1. The proliferation of non-formal art education through many studios does not dampen the spirit of SMKI as the organizer of formal art education in the Yogyakarta Special Region.\nSMKI has several art majors as its learning focus—namely, a dance major, karawitan (traditional Javanese music); an art major, pedalangan (shadow puppet); an art major, and a theater art major. The education held by SMKI consists of theory and practice. Every first-grade student gets the education that other high schools give in general. The students then begins to deepen their practice during the second and third grade. The final examination of SMKI students consists of both the national exam, held by the Ministry of Education and Culture of Republic Indonesia, and the practicum examination conducted by the school. The practicum examination organized by SMKI begins with Industrial Practice (PI), where all students carry out fieldwork practice directly. After implementing the PI, the final grade students will have is their practical exam in the form of choreographic performances of artworks created and organized by all students, both as examinees and committee.