This paper looks at the current situation for intangible cultural heritage in Australia, a place of great cultural diversity. Australia is a continent, a vast country, with a migration story 65,000 years old, when the first humans arrived, after homo sapiens sapiens left Africa. Since then, migrants from around the world have come to this continent, particularly since British colonization in 1788, resulting in many ethnic and cultural groups settling.

On 7 July 2020, a special guest lecture by a prominent scholar was held at the International Conference Hall of the National Intangible Heritage Center (NIHC) in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province. Entitled “An Ecological Turn in the Post-COVID-19 Era and the Future of Intangible Cultural Heritage,” this special lecture was prepared to further the public’s understanding and appreciation of “Humanity, Nature and Intangible Cultural Heritage,” which is the theme of the 2020 World Intangible Cultural Heritage Forum, scheduled to be held at the NIHC in September.

With a history of exclusion and caste-based discrimination, the Devipujaks (worshippers of the Mother Goddess) have come a long way and carved out an identity of their own through the creation of the Kalamkari(hand-painted) tradition called Mata ni Pachhedi. A community of painters, hand printers, and dyers, settled in a small urban slum in Vasna, Ahmedabad, are struggling to sustain themselves by keeping alive this age-old art. This article attempts to capture the artform Mata ni Pachhedi and how the community is working on sustaining the textile tradition despite facing numerous challenges.

Traditional games in Papua New Guinea, mainly played by children, were an integral part of society. The nature of those games can be categorized as games of skill, games of strength, water sports, and games for quieter mood.

Sitting on an unwalled cement floor with a coconut frond roof (a recently imported trend in outdoor architecture), a group of about thirty people listened on while a man explained how over one hundred years ago his grandfather gave leaves of the plant they were just now talking about to his donkeys, for strength. This would help them carry their loads much more easily. The fact that it thundered for several seconds at the exact moment the man finished talking was taken as a natural sign of confirmation. Some agreed somewhat jokingly about the thunder; others were quite clear this was a confirmation and matter-of-factly went on with the rest of the conversation; still others wanted the rest of the group to at least reflect on such a relationship with nature a little longer before continuing.\nThis is one of the latest settings in which traditional medicine, espe-cially herbalism is being explored, safeguarded, revitalized, transformed and shared. The group is Bo salú ta den bo kurá (Your health is in your yard) and meets every third Sunday of the month in a space donated for the meetings those Sundays. Medicinal and nutritional qualities of local herbs are discussed, traditional healing wisdom shared, planting methods are shown, local natural products sold and networking happens among healers, agriculturalists, healthy living advocates, community activists, retirees, people from all walks of life. The place is Curacao, and although this kind of exchange is relatively new it is based both on traditional forms and on traditional wisdom, combined with the latest information from the internet, connections to international networks, and environmental science.

La Valiha est l’instrument de musique traditionnel le plus connu de Madagascar, cette île du Sud-Ouest de l’Océan Indien. Il s’agit d’une cithare qui dans sa forme classique est tubulaire, fabriquée à partir d’un bambou d’une certaine longueur (de 46 à 92 cm voire plus). Le tube qui servira à la fabrication est appelé Volo Valiha. Les cordes, pièces essentielles pour l’instrument, sont pincées avec les doigts et lui confèrent cette sonorité si particulière. \n\nÀ Madagascar, deux catégories de Valiha sont présentes : la première est celle de type idiocorde, dont les cordes sont fabriquées à partir des fibres de l’écorce du bambou utilisé pour le tube. Celles-ci sont rattachées à ce dernier par les deux extrémités et tendues par des petits chevalets en bois, à l’exemple de la Valiha torotenany de l’Imerina ou celle des Zafimaniry. De nos jours, les cordes sont généralement métalliques (Decary, 1968, p.68). La seconde catégorie de Valiha est de type hétérocorde, avec des cordes indépendantes fixées au tube (Razafindrakoto, J., 2000, p.1). Les particularités des Valiha  tubulaires se trouvent dans le nombre de cordes, de chevalets et du matériau pour la fabrication : bambou ou raphia (Rakotomalala, M. M., 2009, pp.103-109). La Valiha sur caisse, à l’instar de la Valiha Vata des Sihanaka ou la Salegy des Mikea, appartient à la deuxième catégorie. La Valiha possède, selon la population des régions qui l’utilise et sa forme (tubulaire ou sur caisse), une riche terminologie : Marovany, Valeha, Vadiha, Manibola, Betoroky, etc. Il s’agit d’un instrument de musique qui constitue un élément du patrimoine culturel immatériel (PCI) distinctif de tout un peuple.\n.

"In this region of many “lands” surrounded by water, knowledge of the land and its harvests is tied closely to identity and heritage. This section’s themes thus offer a closer look at how the knowledge of caring for the land and harvests is a way of feeling for the Pacific islanders. This ICH, in addition to coloring people’s interactions on the land and carrying expressions of respect, is a means of ensuring sustainability and prosperity.\nPacific islanders depend largely on the land and their harvests from it for their survival, but these also hold deeper meaning for life. To the people of Vanuatu, for instance, laplap soso'ur is more than an edible delicacy: it is a feature of their cultural identity and a means to bring people together across societal levels. Similarly, in Palau, the mesei taro fields are valuable property, but they are also much more in that these pieces of land are deeply connected to the identity of the people, particularly women, and figure prominently in the colorful oral histories of the Palauans. Both of these cases, along with the other themes in this section, reflect the profound value of ICH related to the Pacific islands and their harvests."

In May 2007, the director of Memória Imaterial met José Craveiro. The University of Minho organised the IX Story Days, in Braga. Craveiro was one of the invited storytellers and José Barbieri was presenting MEMORIAMEDIA, a project dedicated to the study and inventory of expressions of intangible cultural heritage. During the break for lunch when the two of them went together to the university canteen, Craveiro interrupted the conversation to identify the plants that spontaneously grew in the outer spaces of the campus. It was at this time that José Barbieri realized that Craveiro was not only one of the most influential storytellers of the traditional Portuguese tales but also a specialist and practitioner of traditional medicine. The desire to work together on this subject was born there, and they promised each other that this project would happen at a future date. \n

"In a region as geographically immense and culturally diverse as the Pacific, intangible cultural heritage must be seen in terms of diverse worldviews, each with its own knowledge system and philosophy of life that structures and informs. This section addresses how intangible cultural heritage is reflected through specific cultural worldviews. As specific and unique as they are, however, each Pacific worldview can be seen as having a commonality structured by three dimensions: the spiritual, the physical, and the afterlife or ancestral realm. \nDespite their commonalities, the themes in this section still represent Pacific elements of knowing, philosophy, governance, and wisdom that sculpt life from vastly unique perspectives. The Tongan concept of heliaki, for instance, is not just a knowledge of language and prose, but rather a construct through which the Tongans build views about themselves and their interactions as well as the hierarchy within their society. In a similar way, Palauan place names are much more than words to mark locations; they are capsules of knowledge, events, and history that help the Palauan people identify themselves and their connections to one another. In these and the other themes in this section, the included values incorporate how the Pacific peoples perceive reality and interconnectedness and how their knowledge has shaped their worlds."

Traditional food systems of native peoples around the world are critical to cultural identity and customs as well as to the continuation of biological genetic diversity. However, such traditional cuisines are becoming increasingly vulnerable due to the advent of global food systems, agroindustry, and changing lifestyles as well as to shifting preferences and ignorance of original ingredients. Furthermore, territorial transformations and distancing from ancestral lands have led to the loss of knowledge regarding the benefits of diverse ecosystems and their natural resources.

Modernization and other internal and external influences have caused vernacular houses in the Asia- Pacific region to be replaced. Today, their traditional status has been taken over by houses constructed using newly introduced materials and styles, even in remote villages. Although a house, as a physical object, may be considered to be a tangible heritage, the vernacular house is a product that encompasses intangible components, including the knowledge, skills, and local traditions associated with their construction, use, and maintenance by the particular community. The conservation or protection of vernacular houses is, in other words, tantamount to safeguarding their rich culture rather than merely the preservation of static buildings. \n\nVernacular houses in the tropics of Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands are often built using native plants, and they require occasional rebuilding and regular maintenance. The knowledge and skills required for the construction of a vernacular house building are rarely documented. Instead, the expertise is generally stored in memory and in the activities that are undertaken by an individual, family, or community. This is transferred through practical experience down the generations and is only shared among the members of a community. Our initiative focuses on the reconstruction of vernacular houses in conjunction with local communities, creating opportunities to understand all the requisites of building these traditional structures by thoroughly recording the construction process. \n\nChanges that have occurred in individual values, the lifestyles of ethnic communities, and their surrounding environments have created a situation in which the resources that are necessary for the construction of vernacular houses are less easily available or no longer available. It is common for vernacular houses to be perceived as outdated, old-fashioned, and underdeveloped. A vernacular house can no longer be built and used in the same way that it was when it was the only choice of housing. We need to identify ways in which to sustain traditional house building practices and to utilize this knowledge by examining its potential and its meaning in the modern context. This paper introduces our approach to the reinstatement and reconstruction of vernacular houses and to the revival of related activities in conjunction with local communities in Fiji, Thailand, Vanuatu, and Vietnam and illustrates some of our findings. In the process, the study identifies what it takes to build and sustain vernacular housing.

"Whether we call it clan, kin, family, tribe, or community, there are multiple ways of knowing and identifying ourselves in the Pacific. A few of these ways are captured here. This section explores how social relationships and their hierarchies within the Pacific islands are vital ways of understanding intangible cultural heritage. Social and spiritual rituals, religious ceremonies, and various other cultural practices reflect how Pacific islanders prioritize social cohesion as a pathway to sustainable prosperity, ensuring the transformation of skills, knowledge, and wisdom for survival. \nThe themes in this section are pivotal to ICH because relationships represent an important organizing principle of life among Pacific islanders and determine how intangible heritage can be safeguarded. Relationships are marked in ceremonial events and rituals such as the communal harvest of balolo in Fiji and other ceremonies such as the bel kol in PNG. Likewise, the omengat, the first-birth ceremony in Palau, brings unrelated clans and families together and is central to family ties and social cohesion. The essays on these and other topics collected in this section illustrate that Pacific islanders take care to mark and honor relationships important to them, as these relationships ensure family, clan, and tribal ties and help to achieve enhanced social cohesion and sustainability."