| Description |
In this new century, barriers are falling, customs are changing, and yet, there is a core of meaning, of affect, of memory that people refuse to give up. In this flowing and foaming world, people rush towards the new at the same time that they want to cling to meanings and shared experiences with others. Why? Because sharing gives them a sense of self and of identity in an open world. When such bonds are lost, their need is keenly felt, psychologically and politically, as is very evident in the world today. It was the concern over this loss in the turmoil of globalization that led Member States to give UNESCO the mandate to generate actions for the protection of living culture. This was indeed a tall order, and one that led to fascinating intellectual and political meanders. At the beginning of the nineties, the “cultural turn” in world politics and the rise of representational claims had led to new ways of understanding cultural flows in terms of “worlding”—that is, creating a new cosmopolitical vision of the world based on cultural heritage, human rights, and democracy. People in nations, cultural enclaves, ethnic groups, diasporas, and recently emerged cultural groups began to mobilize to position themselves differently in the new world order. Through a deliberative process, the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage was successful in proposing a new concept for the recasting of relationships among nations, culture bearers, creators, and stakeholders. |
