The World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (Beijing) under UNESCO is committed to capacity building at heritage sites.
Recently, the "Community Practice of Routine Heritage Inspection and Protection During the Epidemic," a project that involved the WHITRAP Beijing Center in heritage education and training, was the only Chinese project selected as a top ten finalist for the International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (IIC) 2022 Keck Heritage Biennial Award. At the 44th World Heritage Conference, the protection and management of China's Great Wall received high praise in the draft resolution, and the heritage impact assessment work at Badaling Great Wall, which involved WHITRAP-Beijing, was highly recognized by the World Heritage Management Committee. In recent years, WHITRAP-Beijing's signature projects, such as the "Cultural Heritage Conservation Joint Workshop" and the Yannan Yuan Planning Public Participation Project, have achieved remarkable results in public engagement.
I. Activity Background
On June 22, 2014, the 38th Session of the World Heritage Committee approved the inscription of the "Grand Canal of China," a transnational serial nomination project, onto the World Heritage List. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee summarized the value of the Grand Canal as follows: The Grand Canal is the greatest masterpiece of hydraulic engineering in human history, demonstrating the technical capabilities and mastery of hydrography of ancient China within the context of a vast agricultural empire. The Beijing section of the Grand Canal stretches 82 kilometers, with a large number, wide variety, and broad distribution of heritage elements along its route, making it an important historical and cultural carrier.
The 2005 edition of the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention listed the monitoring of world cultural heritage as the most important management activity. The 2015 edition of the Principles for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in China clearly states that "maintenance and monitoring are the foundation of heritage site conservation" (Article 25). Therefore, conducting regular special monitoring of the Grand Canal (Beijing section) heritage assets and their surrounding complex environment can minimize or even avoid negative impacts on heritage values.
The Measures for the Protection of Grand Canal Heritage, which came into effect in October 2012, encourage citizens, legal entities, and other organizations to participate in the protection of Grand Canal heritage (Article 5) and explicitly state that China implements a Grand Canal heritage monitoring and inspection system (Article 12). Against this policy background, the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (Beijing) under UNESCO, together with Beijing Weiming Wenbo Cultural Technology Co., Ltd., has launched a public participation activity for heritage monitoring of the Grand Canal (Beijing Section). The main goal of this project is to initiate and promote public participation in world cultural heritage monitoring, and to support the preventive protection and research of cultural relics.
II. Activity Details
1. Team Recruitment
Planned recruitment of 18 people, divided into two groups (10 for the Beijing Old City section of the Tonghui River, 8 for the Tongzhou section of the Tonghui River), jointly forming a volunteer team for heritage monitoring of the Grand Canal (Beijing Old City section of the Tonghui River and Tongzhou section of the Tonghui River).
2. Work Content
The main tasks are to conduct regular on-site inspections and documentation of the heritage assets and environment of the Grand Canal (Beijing Old City section of the Tonghui River and Tongzhou section of the Tonghui River). Use the mobile app cultural relic inspection mini-program to take check-in photos of the heritage assets and environment comprehensively, and upload relevant inspection information.
The main inspection and documentation content includes the following aspects: water body conditions, riverbank conditions, damage to cultural relics, human-caused damage or negative tourist impacts, environmental sanitation conditions, construction projects, relocation and land clearance situations, etc. Each volunteer is responsible for approximately 1.5–2.5 kilometers of riverbank.
3. Work Schedule
The project is expected to officially launch in September of this year, with inspections carried out once every two months, and is expected to conclude by the end of September next year.
4. Work Locations
Based on the project scope, the two groups of volunteers have different work locations, mainly divided into:
(1) Designated monitoring points along the Beijing Old City section of the Tonghui River
(2) Designated monitoring points along the Tongzhou section of the Tonghui River
Location map of the Beijing Old City section of the Tonghui River
Views of the Beijing Old City section of the Tonghui River
Location map of the Tongzhou section of the Tonghui River
Views of the Tongzhou section of the Tonghui River
5. Benefits
(1) Themed lecture on "The Grand Canal Cultural Belt and Its Cultural Heritage"
(2) Training course on the use of the cultural relic inspection system and introduction to heritage monitoring
(3) Year-end recognition ceremony with the award of a "World Heritage Guardian" certificate issued by WHITRAP Beijing
(4) One-year comprehensive accidental injury insurance (100,000 RMB coverage) (value 39 RMB)
(5) One 2023 Beijing Park Annual Pass (value 100 RMB)
III. Recruitment Information
1. Target Audience
Individuals from all walks of life who live or work relatively close to either work location (or can easily reach them) and are interested in the history, culture, and cultural heritage protection of the Grand Canal.
2. Application Deadline
20:00, Tuesday, September 13, 2022 (Beijing Time)
3. How to Apply
Scan the QR code below or click "Read the original text" to fill out the application form. Due to limited capacity, we will screen applicants based on their place of residence or work, education, and work background. Selected applicants will be contacted via WeChat, and we will send you detailed work guidelines and注意事项 (important notes). Please be sure to accept the friend request.
Below is the content of the application form: Name, gender, age, ID number, mobile phone number, WeChat ID, education level, work background, residential community, choice of work location, a brief explanation of why you want to participate in this Grand Canal heritage monitoring volunteer work.
IV. Project Support
This project has received strong support from the Beijing Municipal Cultural Heritage Bureau and the Beijing Cultural Heritage Research Institute. Beijing Weiming Wenbo Cultural Technology Co., Ltd. provides technical support for the inspection system used in this project.
V. Volunteer Q&A
1. How much time will each inspection take approximately?
Under favorable weather conditions, each volunteer inspector will need about 1–2 hours to complete the inspection tasks.
2. Do I need to use the mini-program to check in and upload every time?
Yes. The volunteer administrator will set mandatory check-in tasks for each volunteer within the mini-program.
3. Out of extra enthusiasm, can I do daily check-ins in addition to completing the inspection tasks?
Of course you can!
4. Besides the Grand Canal, can I use the mini-program to inspect other cultural relics?
Yes, the next step is to develop inspection volunteer services for other cultural heritage sites as well.
