UNESCO to celebrate 35th anniversary of Silk Roads Programme

Link: https://azertag.az/

The 35th Anniversary of the UNESCO Silk Roads Programme will be celebrated with a daylong series of events at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on 6 April 2023, from 9:30 am to 8 pm (Paris time), Room II, according to the official website of the Organization.

The events will be co-organized by UNESCO and the Permanent Delegations to UNESCO of Azerbaijan, the People’s Republic of China, Republic of Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Sultanate of Oman.

The celebration will start with an ‘International Forum on Silk Roads, Diversity, Dialogue, and Peace’ in the presence of high level representatives of the five co-organizing countries, renowned international experts and UNESCO representatives. It aims to identify and assess the achievements of the UNESCO Silk Roads Programme in reinforcing intercultural dialogue and building a culture of peace over the last three decades. It also aims to define the Programme’s orientation and objectives to strengthen capacities for intercultural dialogue and cultural diversity in the current global context.

The forum will be followed by an official presentation of the ‘Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads’ photo contest alongside an exhibition of Silk Roads artifacts.

A ‘Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads’ exhibition will be displayed on the fences of the UNESCO Headquarters building in Paris, from March to June 2023, presenting 140 exceptional photographs from the Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads photo contest.

The celebration will be continued with a brief film screening session on the knowledge and scientific exchanges along the Silk Roads.

A Scientific Symposium on the ‘Silk Roads Youth Research Grant’ will take place in the afternoon. The symposium will gather the young researchers and grantees of the first edition of the UNESCO Silk Roads Youth Research Grant to present the results of their grant winning research. These presentations will be followed by a roundtable discussion of the scientific panel of the grant.

The day’s events will conclude with a concert featuring performances of artists from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and China.

The UNESCO Silk Roads Programme was first launched in 1998 with the ‘Integral Study of the Silk Roads, the Roads of Dialogue (1988-1997,)’ an initiative which highlighted the cultural interactions between the peoples of East and West through scientific expeditions, field studies, conferences, and cultural performances along the Silk Roads. Since launching its second phase in 2012, the Programme has focused on three key areas:, developing, mobilising, and disseminating knowledge, building partnerships and networking, and empowering youth. Through major initiatives such as the Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads international photography competition, the Thematic Collection of Cultural Exchanges along the Silk Roads, and the Silk Roads Youth Research Grant, today the Programme traces the exchanges and mutual influences which occurred along the Silk Roads, seeking a deeper perspective on the development and social transformations of our modern pluralistic societies with a view to reinforce inclusion and peace.