I am writing this in Beijing, China. I am here for a two-week seminar on the protection and development of intangible cultural heritage for ASEAN countries organized by China’s Central Academy for Culture and Tourism Administration (the Academy).
This is part of the work we do at the Davao Historical Society (DHS), a non-profit, non-government organization that promotes the study and appreciation of Davao’s history and cultural heritage. With me are fellow DHS Trustees, Amy Bandiola-Cabusao, and Oca Casaysay, who also heads Davao City’s Office for Culture and the Arts. We are the only Filipinos in the class of 35 participants coming from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.
The Academy is a public institution directly affiliated with China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism. It provides training and education for officials in the culture and tourism system and serves as a major think-tank platform for policy research and decision-making regarding culture and tourism.
With more than 3,000 teachers in the faculty pool, the Academy provides over 1,000 courses related to culture and tourism employing distinctive teaching methods such as case-based, interview-based, experiential, and scenario-based approaches. They have multiple specialized teaching spaces and operate a national e-learning academy for culture and tourism leadership and administration, offering over 2,000 online courses serving over 10,000 registered learners.
So what exactly are we studying here when we say “intangible cultural heritage” or ICH for short? First, a clear definition and distinction between tangible heritage and intangible heritage.
Let’s think of it this way. Tangible heritage is the “hardware” of our culture — the physical objects and places like monuments and buildings, things you can see and touch. Intangible heritage is the “software” — the knowledge, traditions, and living expressions that make those objects come alive.
Take an example of an old historic church. The church itself, with its stone walls, stained-glass windows, and carved altars and religious icons, comprises the tangible heritage. The intangible heritage is the skills of the stonemasons who maintain it, the creativity of the artists and artisans who designed the altar and religious icons inside it, the liturgical music sung by the choir, the community gatherings and religious festivals held inside it, and the knowledge of the traditional crafts used in its upkeep.
Without the intangible heritage, the church becomes a silent museum piece. Without the tangible heritage, the choir loses its historic acoustic space. The two are deeply interconnected. The most powerful cultural experiences occur when tangible and intangible heritage converge.
Protecting the tangible often requires funding for physical materials, architectural expertise, and climate-controlled environments. Safeguarding the intangible requires supporting living people — the “culture bearers.” This means creating apprenticeships for young artisans; documenting the knowledge of elders through video and audio; providing platforms for performances and festivals; and integrating traditional knowledge into school curricula.
Intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is the living, breathing expression of our culture, passed down from generation to generation. It’s the knowledge, skills, practices, and meanings that communities recognize as part of their identity.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) categorizes ICH into five broad domains: (1) oral traditions and expressions like stories and chants; (2) performing arts which include music, dance, theater, and puppetry; (3) social practices, rituals, and festive events like traditional wedding ceremonies and community fairs, fiestas, and festivals; (4) knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe like traditional ecological wisdom, indigenous healing systems, traditional farming methods, and celestial navigation; and (5) traditional craftsmanship which are skills to create traditional objects from handwoven carpets to pottery to traditional embroidery.
ICH is not a relic but a vital part of contemporary life. It is important because it sustains cultural diversity. It provides a sense of identity and belonging in an increasingly globalized world. It also fosters community resilience as many traditional practices contain centuries of accumulated knowledge on how to live sustainably with the environment, manage resources, and resolve conflicts. It can be a powerful engine for local economies through cultural tourism, artisan markets, and performing arts. It is the primary mechanism through which elders pass wisdom, values, and skills to the young, keeping cultural continuity alive.
Unlike tangible heritage, ICH is fragile. It disappears when its practitioners and the environment that sustains it disappear. So in 2003, UNESCO adopted the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. This was a landmark global agreement to recognize and protect ICH.
It established two main lists: (1) The Representative List – this list aims to ensure “visibility and awareness” of ICH diversity; and (2) The List of ICH in Need of Urgent Safeguarding – this list is for elements whose survival is threatened. International cooperation is mobilized to help communities preserve them.
The UNESCO convention emphasizes that “safeguarding” does not mean freezing a tradition in time. It means ensuring it can evolve and adapt while maintaining its core meaning and value.
The Philippines and China are among the earliest countries to ratify the UNESCO Convention on ICH. Both joined in the same year, 2006.
So why are we studying ICH in China? Because China is considered the leader globally in safeguarding ICH due to its proactive and systematic national strategy that combines strong legal and financial frameworks with active community engagement and international cooperation. This concerted effort recognizes ICH as a vital part of national identity and has resulted in China having the most elements inscribed on the UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The current count is at 44, the highest in the world.
China also plays an active international role as a generous contributor to the global safeguarding ecosystem. It voluntarily contributes to the UNESCO ICH Fund and frequently engages in international cooperation projects, cultural and educational exchanges with other countries.
China’s position as a leader in ICH safeguarding is not accidental. It is the result of a conscious top-down national strategy that views “cultural heritage as inseparable from national identity and cultural confidence.” This is backed by substantial financial investment and a comprehensive legal system. This multifaceted model offers a compelling case study in the large-scale preservation of living cultural traditions.
We are only on the second day of the seminar, and we are already very impressed with what we saw and learned. One thing is clear. China takes ICH protection and development very seriously. Maybe while the rest of the Philippines is still immobilized with corruption issues, multicultural Davao City can seriously invest in our intangible cultural heritage. I believe there lies the key to our peace and prosperity as a self-reliant city.
