Opening Chant "I Fanlalai’ an Oral History Project" at the opening ceremony.


The front view of the conference room

The Culture, Arts and Sustainable Development in the Pacific Forum was held in Guam from May 28 to June 3. As important part of the 12th Festival of Pacific Arts, the forum was Jointly hosted by the South Pacific Commission (SPC), the organizing committee of the Festival of Pacific Arts and the Office of the Governor of Guam. More than 30 attendees discussed cultural diversification, promote knowledge exchange and sharing. Nauru’s Interior Minister, the curator of Fiji Museum and other cultural officials of governments in the Pacific region, head of cultural institutions, experts, representatives of non-governmental organization and artists were present.

The forum covered seven issues, which were "culture and sustainable development", "women reclaiming culture", "culture, social and environmental justice", "cultural entrepreneurship and innovation", "artistic innovations and partnerships", "networks, partnerships and cultural diplomacy", and "identifying ways of furthering regional cooperation and cross-sectoral partnership", and the discussion of each issue was led by one Pacific island country.

On the issue of the culture and sustainable development in the Pacific region, Alain Godonou the Director UNESCO Office for the Pacific States gave a briefing on UNESCO's achievements in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage, pushing forward cultural dialogues and promoting the development of island countries. Specifically, ten Pacific Islands have become state parties of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage 2003 and committed to the list-making of intangible cultural heritage. Speaking of which, Tonga's traditional dance Lakalaka and Vanuatu's sand painting were listed on Representative List of the ICH of Humanity.