IRCI’s Asia-Pacific Research Forum for ICH Safeguarding hosted its 10th online seminar for safeguarding ICH in the Asia-Pacific region on 12 February 2026, in conjunction with the ‘Preliminary Research on Intangible Cultural Heritage and Ecosystems’ project.

The seminar featured a lecture by Ms Aida Mammadova (Associate Professor, Kanazawa University, Japan) entitled ‘Intergenerational Learning for Sustainable Development’. Ms Mammadova highlighted the importance of the research and education network within UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme, based on her studies conducted at the Hakusan UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, where she observed intergenerational learning among local residents. According to her, local community members actively engage in intergenerational learning by hosting and mentoring visiting students, and these exchanges create various forms of collaborative activities centred on local culture and community challenges. She noted that onsite interactive learning experiences, particularly the meaningful interactions between young visitors and community members, hold significant potential as a globally applicable approach to revitalizing local communities.

As a commentator, Ms Duong Bich Hanh (Programme Specialist for Culture, UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia) expanded on this discussion by pointing to the community-centred focus of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage as an essential challenge. Referring to initiatives by the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia, she stressed the importance of integrating the safeguarding of ICH with the protection of natural heritage including Biosphere Reserves and Geoparks. Such an integrated approach, she argued, can enhance human-nature interactions, contributing both to ecosystem conservation and to the revitalization of local communities.

A recording of this seminar will be made available on IRCI’s official YouTube channel soon.

The Asia-Pacific Research Forum for ICH Safeguarding will continue to offer online seminars. Updates on future seminars will be posted on the IRCI website, its official Facebook page, and the Forum’s Facebook Group. For inquiries, suggestions, or proposals regarding future seminars, please feel free to contact the IRCI Secretariat.

The 10th online seminar on 12 February 2026