Chinese World Heritage Sites: From national to world scenery

Editor's note: Gao Lei, a special commentator for CGTN, is an associate professor at the Center for Xi Jinping Thoughts on Opening-up, Research Institute of Globalization and China's Modernization, University of International Business & Economics. Gao Yuxiang is a post-graduate student at the School of Marxism, University of International Business & Economics. The article reflects the authors' opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

The 46th session of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Committee was recently held in New Delhi, India, with a proposal for 27 sites newly nominated for inscription on the World Heritage List being discussed and the conservation status of the current listed properties also being assessed. In particular, the Beijing Central Axis was included by UNESCO in its world heritage list, being recognized for its integrity, authenticity, and protection and management status. As of now, the total number of world heritage sites in China has reached 59, with 15 being world natural heritage sites, 4 being cultural and natural heritage sites, and 40 being world cultural heritage sites.

World Heritage promotes mutual learning among civilizations

The Convention Concerning the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage promulgated in 1972 was a global landmark event for UNESCO, aimed at exploring cultural teleology and universal values with culture as the starting point. The Convention mainly stipulates the definition of cultural and natural heritage, as well as measures for national and international protection of cultural and natural heritage. It also specifies that all contracting states may identify the cultural and natural heritage within their territories and submit their list to the World Heritage Committee for approval. All sites inscribed on the World Cultural and Natural Heritage List are strictly protected by the laws of the country in which they are located.

Since the signing of the Convention, human society has undergone tremendous changes, which continuously affect the developing direction of World Heritage, adjusting its own orientation with these changes and playing a key role in promoting intercultural dialogue, peace-building and sustainable development. The development and change of World Heritage itself is also of great value for understanding the positive significance of world heritage protection to human society, for understanding the role of world heritage for sustainable development today, and for us to think about mutual learning among civilizations and understand the positive relationship between heritage protection and sustainable development in a broader sense.

The role of heritage protection extends from protecting the crystallization of human civilization and the global environment on which mankind depends, to promoting social justice and promoting the sustainable development of human society. As proposed by UNESCO, the cultural dimension is of great significance in the development of human society. In the field of World Heritage, peacebuilding has a certain impact on the development of the world, whether it is community-based heritage conservation and management, or the promotion of respect for cultural diversity through exchange and dialogue. Greater emphasis will be placed on the contribution of World Heritage sites to social resilience, the focus on humanity, and the inspiration for innovative ideas on the basis of core values of great civilizations.

The "Beijing Central Axis" embodies the core value of Chinese civilization

China is rich in natural and cultural resources and is one of the few countries with the most complete and abundant categories of World Heritage sites. The approval of the "Beijing Central Axis" as a World Heritage Site and the cultural protection work carried out in the new era are not only a reflection of the development of the concept of world heritage, but also a process of gradual deepening and continuous innovation of China's understanding of world heritage.

The "Beijing Central Axis," which started to be built in the 13th century and finally formed in the 16th century, runs from north to south through the old city of Beijing and has become the world's longest urban axis with a total length of 7.8 kilometers. In the World Heritage list, the "Beijing Central Axis" is composed of five types of relics, including ancient royal palace buildings, ancient royal sacrificial buildings, ancient urban management facilities, national ceremonial and public buildings, as well as the remains of the central road, reflecting the ideal capital city paradigm, displaying the development and evolution of Beijing, and reflecting the outstanding characteristics of Chinese civilization, of which the idea of keeping balance and maintaining order is at its very core.

Taking the approval of the "Beijing Central Axis" as a key opportunity, the Chinese government is to further promote the overall protection of the old city of Beijing. It provides Chinese cases and experiences for exploring the concepts and practices of ancient significant site protection in other places of the world, particularly handling the dialectical relationship between heritage protection and urban development.

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