Int'l youth conference on world heritage opens in Cambodian cultural city

SIEM REAP, Cambodia, June 10 (Xinhua) -- The World Heritage Youth Forum opened here Sunday, aiming to raise awareness of heritage protection among youth and to underscore youth's role in conservation and protection of national and world heritage, according to the organizer.

The one-week event, under the theme "Living Heritage: Temple, Environment and People", brought together youths from 16 countries, said a joint statement from the Union of Youth Federations of Cambodia, Cambodian National Commission for UNESCO, and the Apsara Authority.

"The participants will have an opportunity to present their own national heritage to the forum and discuss with experts as well as visit various sites at Angkor Archeological Park, a world heritage site in Cambodia," it said.

The forum would highlight the symbiosis relationship between temple, environment and the surrounding community, it said, adding that it would also be a platform for experience sharing, recognition and appreciation of cultural diversity whereby universal value of the world heritage is observed.

The event was held in the framework of the 37th Session of the World Heritage Committee to be hosted and chaired by Cambodian government in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap province from June 16-27.

Addressing the opening ceremony of the forum, Secretary General of Cambodian National Commission for UNESCO Tan Theany said the forum would be of great interest to make participants aware of their responsibilities in the preparation of conservation and protection of national and world heritage in the future.

Bun Narith, director general of Apsara Authority, which protects and manages Angkor Archeological Park, said participants would learn about the management of the Angkor site, a representative site where Temple, Environment and People coexist harmoniously.

At the end of the forum, the youth delegates would issue a Youth Declaration and present it to all delegates of the 37th Session of the World Heritage Committee at the opening ceremony on June 16 in Phnom Penh.

Sourced: Cambodia Daily News