Category Archives: Events

Title: Collections, Communities and Connections

Date: Wednesday, 27th October 2021

Time: 7:30 – 9:00 PM Indian Standard Time

Recording Link: https://youtu.be/Qpk01cfR-A4

All the international conferences of ICOM and UNESCO in the past two years have emphasised once again the centrality of community engagement in the post pandemic realities of museum development. Despite forty years of such a concern there has been a poverty of inclusive cultural leadership. Heritage Matters 21 brings you a global champion of public archaeology, museums, visitor research and cultural diversity. He hosted the International Research Network Conference on the Inclusive Museum in 2017 in Manchester.

Guest: Dr Nick Merriman, Director of the Horniman Museum and Gardens, London and Honorary Professor of Museum Studies, University of Manchester. Previously he was the Director of the Manchester Museum, England; and held leadership roles at the Museum of London and University College, London. Host: Professor Dr Amareswar Galla, UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museums and Sustainable Heritage Development, AnantU, Ahmedabad; Emeritus Faculty at the Australian National University, Canberra; and Chairperson, International Research Network Conference on the Inclusive Museum, Philadelphia, 2022. (onmuseums.com)

Title: Monuments, Cities and Connected Histories Confirmation

Panel: Dr. Shashank Shekhar Sinha is an independent researcher and currently works as Publishing Director at Routledge (South Asia). He formerly taught in undergraduate colleges at the University of Delhi. Isha Banerji is Editor at Pan Macmillan India, where she publishes books across three imprints: Pan, Macmillan and Picador. Host: Professor Dr Amareswar Galla is UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museum and Sustainable Heritage Development at AnantU, Ahmedabad and Emeritus Faculty at the Australian National University, Canberra.

Title: Indigeneity & Towards A New Social Contract

Title: Public Spaces & Heritage Values – Australian Perspectives

Date: 2nd August 2021

Time: 2:30-4:00 PM IST

Title: Tree Planting as a Spiritual Journey

Date: 5th June 2021

Time: 9:30-11:00 PM IST

Recording Link: https://youtu.be/F4LjCx2rKbY

Environmental degradation, Climate crisis and the Pandemic are interrelated. Environmental recovery is a priority. Afforestation and carbon sequestration are critical actions that everyone could take responsibility for as part of their local action plans. World Environment Day advocates putting ecosystem restoration on a pedestal. Reimagine. Recreate. Restore. Together, these form the theme of World Environment Day 2021 on 5 June, a day when the UN seeks to focus the attention of investors, businesses, governments and communities on the increasingly urgent need to restore the Earth’s ecosystems. In this context, Green Sakthi is a not-for-profit collective committed to deepening the relationship between people and nature. (www.greensakthi.org) It aspires to plant 5 million trees in Tamil Nadu, South India. Heritage Matters is focused on: Post Pandemic Sustainability Research: Towards a Green Economic Recovery for Nature, People and Planet. (https://onsustainability.com/) Heritage Matters is partnering with Green Sakthi in a conversation on the deep rootedness of tree planting as a spiritual journey.

Host: Sonya Bekkerman from New York City is an art consultant and Vice President of Divine Love World Charity, a 501 non profit organization.
Initiative: Nathalie Latham, French Australian, has been leading Green Sakthi initiatives since 2010. These include education, solar energy and the #5milliontrees program.
Narrative: Dr Amareswar Galla, UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museums and Sustainable Heritage Development; Professor of Inclusive Cultural Leadership, Anant National University, Ahmedabad, India; and Founding Executive Director, International Institute for the Inclusive Museum, Australia/USA.

Topic: Shakti – The Female Principle

Date: 21st May 2021, Friday, World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development

Time: 2:30-4:00 PM IST

Recording link: Click Here to Access the Recording

About the speaker: Padma Menon is a dancer, philosopher and pioneer in reviving the ancient practice of dance contemplation. Born and raised in India, she was a leading dancer in the Kuchipudi style of dance and trained under the guidance of the legendary Guru Dr Vempati Chinna Satyam. She studied Indian philosophy, yoga and martial arts under traditional lineages. She has lived in Australia and in the Netherlands, where her work has been groundbreaking in mainstreaming Indian dance through a practice that eschewed colonial interpretations of contemporary aesthetics for a radical aesthetic that was sourced from the depths of Indian practice. She mentors women to live to their full and sacred presence. Padma’s specific focus is the reclaiming of Goddess traditions as they are embodied in the roots of Indian dance.

Host: Prof Dr Amareswar Galla, UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museums and Sustainable Heritage Development; Professor of Inclusive Cultural Leadership, Anant National University, Ahmedabad, India; and Founding Executive Director, International Institute for the Inclusive Museum, Australia/USA.

Heritage Matters Webinar 15 in collaboration with Anthropological Survey of India cordially invites you all to join for a Museum Popular Lecture by Prof Dr Amareswar Galla, UNESCO Chair on Inclusive Museums and
Sustainable Heritage Development, Anant National University, Ahmedabad.

Topic: The future of Anthropological Museums in India: Trends and Influences

Date: 18th May 2021, Tuesday [ International Museum Day ]

Time: 11:00 AM Indian Standard Time

To join please use the following details.
Meeting Id: 184 205 4189
Password: anthro
Platform: Cisco Webex

You can also follow us live on https://www.facebook.com/Anthropological-Survey-of-India-265683356807679

Date: 8th March 2021, Monday, International Women’s Day

Time: 1930-2100 Indian Standard Time (7:30 – 9:00 PM)

The complexity of safeguarding intangible heritage is yet to be researched in depth and understood through the First Voice of the respective Bearers and Transmitters. Not all elements of intangible heritage are for safeguarding. Most need to be disaggregated. Unpacked. One such element is the Dance Heritage of the Kalavantalu- Devadasis or traditional temple dancers of South India. The practice itself is legally banned. But the deep knowledge of dance and its associated creativity is highly endangered. As more and more people co-opt or appropriate their dance heritage, the livelihood of the Kalavantalu community groups has become a major concern. This webinar opens up the intercultural dialogue addressing UN SDG 5 on Women and Girls that has become imperative for safeguarding the dance heritage of Kalavantalu.

Host: Prof Dr Amareswar Galla, Professor of Inclusive Cultural Leadership, Anant National University, Ahmedabad, India; and Founding Executive Director, International Institute for the Inclusive Museum, Australia/USA.

Date: 20th February 2021, Saturday

Time: 1930-2100 Indian Standard Time (7:30 – 9:00 PM)

Source: The Korea Times

Yeondeunghoe, the Lotus Lantern Festival, held every year to celebrate Buddha’s Birthday, was listed by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, Wednesday, becoming Korea’s 21st intangible cultural heritage recognized by UNESCO.

According to the Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA), the lantern festival was included on the list during the 15th session of the Intergovernmental Committee of the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Heritage, the same day. The event was held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris as well as online due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.

“It is with great pleasure that the evaluation body highly commends Yeondeunghoe for its function in encouraging dialogue among communities and cultures, which lead sto enhancing the visibility of intangible cultural heritages in general,” Chung Jae-suk, an administrator of the CHA, said.

“I do anticipate that the spirit of dialogue of Yeondeunghoe will be widely shared, offering inspiration in addressing conflicts between countries.”

The Lotus Lantern Festival is held around Buddha’s birthday, which falls on the eighth day of the fourth month on the lunar calendar. The festival, which consists of a Buddhist ceremony, a lantern procession and memorial service, symbolizes lighting up the world to make it an abundant and fair place for everyone.

The history of Yeondeunghoe dates back some 1,200 years, first appearing in the “Samguk Sagi” (History of the Three Kingdoms). In the book, under the reign of the 668-935 Unified Silla Kingdom, King Gyeongmun and Queen Jinseong visited the Hwangnyong Temple to observe lanterns on the occasion of the first full moon of the year in 866 and 890, respectively.

The tradition of lantern lighting continued in the 918―1392 Goryeo Kingdom, when Buddhism flourished. Directions for hosting Yeondeunghoe were included in “Hunyosipjo” (The 10 Injunctions) compiled by Goryeo’s first King Taejo for his successors. In the early Goryeo era, the lantern festival was held to observe the full moon of the first or second month in the lunar calendar and was later moved to the fourth day of the fourth month, to commemorate Buddha’s birthday.

The Lotus Lantern Festivals of Silla and Goryeo were primarily a Buddhist event, but the event became a folk event during the 1392-1910 Joseon Kingdom. As the authorities discontinued the official Buddhist lantern festival, the tradition continued as Gwandeung-nori, or the lantern celebration, in the Joseon era.

In the modern day parade, participants hold lanterns symbolizing Buddha’s wisdom. The shape and size of the lanterns varies, with each design symbolizing different cultural meanings ― a turtle shaped lantern symbolizes longevity, while fruit represents prosperity and fecundity.

Yeondeunghoe was designated as Intangible Cultural Heritage no. 122 in 2012 and the Yeondeunghoe Safeguarding Association is in charge of transmitting and passing down the tradition.

“Yeondeunghoe began as a Buddhist event, but it evolved into a spring festival anyone can participate in. People regardless of faith, age and gender take part in the Lantern Lighting Festival now and such traits correspond to the UNESCO’s guidelines for the Intangible Cultural Heritage list emphasizing community involvement,” an official of the CHA said.

This year’s Yeondeunghoe was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Next year’s event is scheduled from April to May, with the main lantern parade on May 15.

The CHA first nominated Yeondeunghoe for the UNESCO list in 2018 and amended it in 2019. It received a recommendation for inclusion on the list from the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in November.

Other Korean intangible cultural heritages recognized by UNESCO include ssireum (traditional Korean wrestling), Jeju haenyeo (women divers), nongak (community band music), kimjang (the making and sharing of kimchi) and the folk song Arirang as well as Jongmyojerye (royal ancestral rituals in the Jongmyo shrine and its music) and pansori (musical storytelling).