Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) safeguarding and community involvement have been widely discussed in recent years, but until now they have rarely been explicitly combined. In China, scholars often study ICH safeguarding and community involvement separately. However, since 2003, UNESCO has emphasized the importance of community involvement. As UNESCO celebrates the 20th anniversary of the ICH Convention, the role of local communities in ICH safeguarding has been re-emphasized, largely in response to the challenges posed by changing urban landscapes, particularly those cities affected by growing populations and development pressures. However, few studies have explored ICH safeguarding and community involvement in urban settings. So, "What is the role of community involvement in urban ICH safeguarding?", "What are the special characteristics of urban communities?" In addition, "How do different stakeholders and actors in community involvement in ICH safeguarding behave in urban settings?". This paper aims to answer the above questions by implementing fieldwork on the national ICH Taohuawu woodblock prints in the city of Suzhou, China. Furthermore, I will explore the important role of grassroots in urban ICH safeguarding and community involvement.

Authors:
Zihao Wang, University of Leeds, United Kingdom

About the Presenter(s)
Zihao Wang is a PhD candidate at the University of Leeds. Her research interest are Intangible cultural heritage, Community involvement, and sustainable develpment.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Saturday Schedule

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