Official poster of the Italian Youth Forum Event in Cagliari, Sardinia (Italy) © Italian Youth Forum

Between the 22nd and the 24th of April, the opening event of the fourth edition of the Italian Youth Forum will take place in Cagliari, the capital of Sardinia. The Forum is organized by the Italian Youth Association for UNESCO.

The aim of the Forum is to open a debate on the Intangible Cultural Heritage, on human creativity and its renewed forms conveyed through new technologies and youth activism, whilst making Youth the active promoter of south discourse.

The 2003 Convention Secretary will discuss matters regarding UNESCO’s strategies and the ICH Convention. The Forum will also be a great opportunity to emphasize the importance of preserving and promoting heritage and culture. The Italian Youth Forum is made to empower young people and raise their awareness, which can also help promote ethics, respect and kindness.

During the event, traditional Sardinian and international performances will alternate with speeches by key guests of the most important national institutions such as the National Commission for UNESCO, the Ministry for Youth and Civic Society, the Ministry of Culture and the Italian National Youth Council.

Tim Curtis, Secretary of the 2003 Convention for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage is invited as a keynote speaker during the event. His speaking session is entitled ‘Challenges and Perspectives of the 2003 Intangible Cultural Heritage Convention’. For more information and/or to register for the event, you can consult this webpage.

We can also mention a traditional part of Sardinian culture as an example of the importance of culture in a society in terms of transmission: an element inscribed in 2008 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage: Canto a tenore, Sardinian pastoral songs.

We look forward to hearing all the different interventions and we hope that Safeguarding Intangible Heritage will resonate among youth during this meaningful initiative!