The 2021 World Heritage Youth Forum closed in Fuzhou on the evening of the 9th. The young representatives attending the conference formed suggestions on the empowerment of local community livelihood development through World Heritage protection, and the positive interaction between heritage protection and community development, which will be submitted to the 44th World Heritage Conference.
This forum, which lasts for 5 days, is the first time since its establishment in 1995 that it has been held in a combination of online and offline forms. It is also another beneficial attempt by young people from various countries to persist in exchanges and cooperation around the world heritage cause in the context of the epidemic.
In order to avoid in-depth discussions among online representatives, the forum specially invited renowned experts and scholars from international organizations related to World Heritage, such as UNESCO, ICOMOS, IUCN, and UNWTO, to give keynote speeches or lead group discussions on sub topics such as “People and Governance,” “Tourism and Community Development,” and “Empowering Communities with Innovation.”.
At the closing ceremony of the forum, Zhang Chaozhi, the academic leader of the forum and the chair host of UNESCO listed heritage sites, encouraged young people to pursue their dreams of world heritage protection together and work hard for the common cause of world heritage.
On behalf of the conference organizers, Chen Chunsheng, Secretary of the Party Committee of Sun Yat sen University, expressed gratitude to all international youth representatives attending the conference and called on them to strengthen communication and exchange in the context of unprecedented global changes, and jointly promote the protection and utilization of world heritage.
In her closing speech, Ernesto Ottoner, Assistant Director General for Cultural Affairs of UNESCO, called on global youth representatives to actively participate in the protection and utilization of World Heritage sites and play a leading role. (Reporter Yan Xu)