National Cultural and Natural Heritage Day, celebrated annually on the second Saturday of June, serves as a collective showcase of progress made toward the protection of intangible cultural heritage items in China.

 

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To celebrate Cultural and Natural Heritage Day, Hainan Province will launch a series of events aimed at promoting intangible cultural heritage protection, including the First Hainan Intangible Cultural Heritage Shopping Festival.

Hainan has more than 300 representative intangible cultural heritage items. Of those, 82 are on the list of intangible cultural heritage items at or above the provincial level, including 28 recognized at the national level. Traditional spinning, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery techniques of the Li people have been included on UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage items in urgent need of protection.

In recent years, Hainan has worked to promote the preservation of these intangible cultural heritage items. The Li people’s firewood gathering dance, traditional spinning techniques, dyeing, weaving and embroidering skills, and pottery making skills are on display at tourist attractions; Qiong Opera, Hainan Puppet Shows, and other folk performances are staged at the Haikou Qilou Street during major public holidays; and Li brocade, coconut shell carvings, and Li pottery are fashionably designed as popular souvenirs.

This year’s event will focus on promotion of the island’s five intangible cultural heritage items, including Li brocade, Qiong opera, traditional sports, traditional medicines, and the catering sector. The provincial government will launch a series of innovative online and offline events with the aim of contributing to the safeguarding of these intangible cultural heritage items.

The First Hainan Intangible Cultural Heritage Shopping Festival will be launched through these e-commerce apps and online video-sharing platforms, such as Alibaba, Tmall, JD.com, Suning, Pinduoduo, Tik Tok, Kuaishou, and Mei Tuan.(Search keyword: 海南非遗购物节)

The aim of the First Hainan Intangible Cultural Heritage Shopping Festival is to promote tourism and cultural spending in Hainan. The festival will aim to build a new consumption model based on a combination of intangible cultural heritage, e-commerce, and tourism. Successful experience gained from the festival will be scaled up and used throughout the province and nationwide.