CHONGZUO, China, July 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- This is a report from china-asean-media.com. 

The 2026 ASEAN-China Cultural Exchange Cooperation Forum was held today in Chongzuo, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, co-hosted by the Bureau of International Exchange and Cooperation of China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Department of Culture and Tourism of Guangxi.

Under the theme "Innovative Conservation and Regional Joint Promotion of World Cultural Heritage," the forum featured two core panels: "Protection and Inheritance of World Cultural Heritage in the Era of Artificial Intelligence" and "Exploration of Cross-border Collaboration in Promoting World Cultural Heritage." Delegates included cultural and tourism officials, heritage experts, academics, and media representatives from China and ASEAN member states.

During the forum, the Initiative on Joint Promotion of World Cultural Heritage was formally issued. Signatories included institutions such as the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts of Cambodia, the Penang Heritage Trust (Malaysia), the Guangxi Huashan Scenic Area Administrative Committee of Chongzuo City, Beijing's Summer Palace, and the Longmen Grottoes Research Institute. The initiative aims to establish a regular information-sharing mechanism and a shared heritage resource database, create integrated online-offline promotion platforms, enhance youth dialogue between China and ASEAN, and cultivate interdisciplinary talent for cross-border heritage operations and conservation.

The forum also debuted the "Chongzuo Huashan Day" international co-branded cultural and creative collection. The visual identity, originally designed by a Beihang University team and recipient of the German iF Design Award, reinterprets millennia-old rock art motifs through contemporary, fashion-forward expression. This forms a full-cycle model—from international recognition to local implementation to global outreach—offering a new pathway for the creative industrialization of world heritage.

This year marks the 5th anniversary of the China-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the 35th anniversary of China-ASEAN dialogue relations. Participants concurred that the forum should serve as a springboard to harness culture, heritage, and technology as bridges, wings, and bonds, jointly forging a brighter future for heritage innovation and regional promotion, while injecting lasting momentum into a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future.