From March 27 to 28, 2025, the Heritage Impact Assessment Legal Frameworks Seminar for East Asia was successfully held at Minzu University of China. The seminar was co-organized by the Law School of Minzu University of China, the Law School of Renmin University of China, the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia, the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and Pacific Region (Shanghai) under the auspices of UNESCO (WHITR-AP Shanghai), and the UNESCO Chair on Cultural Heritage Law at Renmin University of China.

More than 50 experts, scholars, and practitioners from seven countries, including Australia and Italy, as well as representatives from the National Cultural Heritage Administration of China, the Antiquities and Monuments Office of Hong Kong SAR, the Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage, the China Cultural Heritage Information and Consulting Centre, Minzu University of China, Renmin University of China, Tongji University, and Northwest University, participated in the seminar.

Prof. Qiang Shigong, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and President of Minzu University of China, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech. He emphasized the significant role of the East Asian region in human civilization, noting that the protection of cultural heritage is not an isolated issue but a shared and open responsibility. He advocated for establishing cross-border and interdisciplinary cooperation platforms to strengthen legal awareness and provide practical pathways for transnational collaboration mechanisms in cultural heritage protection. Prof. Shahbaz Khan, Director and Representative of the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia, highlighted the numerous challenges facing the protection of world cultural heritage and expressed hope that the seminar would focus on how different countries address these challenges and offer new perspectives. Prof. Yang Dong, Dean of the Law School at Renmin University of China, presented the school's achievements in the field of cultural heritage law, emphasizing that the seminar serves as a valuable platform for exchange between domestic and international experts and scholars. Prof. Shao Yong, Director of WHITR-AP Shanghai, shared extensive experience in training and research on World Heritage protection. The opening ceremony was chaired by Prof. Wang Xiongjun, Member of the Party Committee and Vice President of Minzu University of China.

Following the opening ceremony, Prof. Song Ling, Dean of the Law School at Minzu University of China, chaired the keynote speech and the first session. Ms Li Hong, Project Director at WHITR-AP Shanghai, delivered a keynote address titled “Overview of Heritage Impact Assessment: From International Instruments to Local Practice”. Experts and scholars engaged in in-depth discussions on three major topics: “Legal Experiences of Heritage Impact Assessment Abroad”, “Practical Exploration of Heritage Impact Assessment”, and “Key Issues in Establishing Legal Frameworks for Heritage Impact Assessment”. Ms Duong Bich Hanh, Chief of Culture Unit at the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia, provided a summary of the discussions, noting that the outcomes would offer valuable insights for countries to better protect their cultural heritage and promote sustainable development. 

The closing ceremony was chaired by Prof. Tian Yan of the Law School at Minzu University of China. Prof. Wang Yunxia, Distinguished Professor at Minzu University of China, Professor at Renmin University of China, and Chairholder of the UNESCO Chair on Cultural Heritage Law, delivered the concluding remarks. She summarized the key consensus reached by the participating experts: Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) is an essential tool for heritage conservation and management, and there is a clear practical need to integrate HIA mechanisms into national legal frameworks. As a preventive measure, HIA standards should be applied throughout the entire heritage protection process, incorporating broader value considerations, enhancing public awareness, ensuring stakeholder and public participation, and balancing the interests of all parties involved.

However, due to the complexity of cultural heritage forms and values, the establishment of legal frameworks for HIA faces numerous challenges. Furthermore, differences in cultural contexts, legal and administrative systems, and heritage conservation practices among countries require that such frameworks be adapted to national conditions, seeking a balance between heritage protection and socio-economic development.

Ms Duong Bich Hanh and Ms Li Hong also spoke at the closing ceremony, emphasizing that the critical issues addressed during the seminar would provide valuable references for cultural heritage protection not only in East Asia but also globally.

The seminar attracted wide attention from various sectors of society, with over 30 attendees from cultural heritage management authorities, research institutions, judicial bodies, and university faculty and students from Beijing and beyond registering to observe and participate in the discussions. The seminar played a positive role in expanding and deepening cooperation between heritage conservation management, legal practice, and academia, advancing the development of Heritage Impact Assessment practices and the improvement of legal frameworks, and promoting mutual learning between Chinese and foreign civilizations as well as the systematic protection of cultural heritage.

Contributed by Ding Guangyu, Wang Yunxia, Hu Shancheng

Edited by Liu Zhen