on 2 December, the 19 th session of the Intergovernmental Committee of the 2003 UNESCO Convention on the Conservation of intangible cultural Heritage started work in Asunción, the capital of Paraguay.
Latvia is represented in Paraguay by Gita Lancers, an expert on intangible cultural heritage of the national cultural Centre of Latvia (pictured right) and Signe Pucena, representative of the inter-branch art group “serde” of the non-governmental organisation accredited by UNESCO.
Upon commencement, the Parties to the Convention were welcomed by Santjago PENJA, President of Paraguay, and Odrija Azoul, Secretary General of UNESCO, stressing that we live in a world of cultural diversity, and UNESCO continues to seek the best ways and paths for the sustainable development of culture.
Around 1,000 representatives of various countries around the world from more than 100 countries have gathered in Asunción to decide on the inclusion of new values in UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage lists, to continue discussions about the living heritage's close ties to economic development, climate change, as well as its endangerment in international conflict situations.
Latvia, together with more than 30 countries around the world, specifically advocated support for Ukraine, where more than 1,000 cultural heritage sites have suffered during the war, two of them on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Latvia stressed that living heritage is particularly threatened during the war, because this is what strengthens the nation's viability.
The session will run until December 7.