The 3rd UNESCO Creative Cities Beijing Summit is held on 17 and 18 September. Macao is officially attending the Summit as a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy for the first time.
Jointly organized by UNESCO and the city of Beijing, the 3rd UNESCO Creative Cities Beijing Summit offers an international platform for discussion and networking under the theme of “Creativity empowers cities, technology creates the future”, bringing together a wide range of urban stakeholders including Mayors and policymakers, representatives from the United Nations’ agencies, academics and experts, as well as innovators and entrepreneurs. With a special focus on the digital economy, the Summit explores how culture, creativity, and technology can help improve urban management and nurture the sustainable cities of the future across different development dimensions. The two-day program comprises an opening ceremony, a main forum themed as “Creativity and innovation: A path to the cities of tomorrow”, three panels and a closing ceremony, among other activities. The panels discuss topics as follows: “Creative Cities: Shaping a multi-dimensional, local approach sustainable development”, “Science, technology and creativity: Enabling urban management to address global challenges” and “Inter-city collaboration: Nurturing open and inclusive co-development through creativity”.
During the main forum themed as “Creativity and innovation: A path to the cities of tomorrow”, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government, Ao Ieong U, delivered a speech via video conferencing and expressed that since Macao, China was designated as a Creative City of Gastronomy in 2017, the Macao SAR Government has begun shouldering the mission with a pertinent four-year work plan that leverages creativity as a strategic enhancer for the city’s progress towards sustainability, which aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals listed in the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda. She added that the resumption of tourism permit issuing is the latest in a series of measures meant to re-start normal movement across the border between Mainland China and Macao, as the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be under control on both sides. While the COVID-19 pandemic has been a sweeping global challenge, she believes that the innovative capabilities and application of technology are essential elements to help ride out the challenges, capitalize on online and offline integration, improve a city’s strengths, and revive the tourism and economy.
The Summit features a lineup of prominent guest speakers including Assistant Director-General for Culture of UNESCO, Ernesto Ottone R., Director General of Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission, Xu Qiang, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macao SAR Government, Ao Ieong U, as well as officials from a range of other destinations including Wuhan, Chengdu, Changsha, Suzhou, Jingdezhen and Yangzhou (China), Rome (Italy), Cairo (Egypt), Helsinki (Finland), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Dakar (Senegal), Istanbul (Turkey), Kortrijk (Belgium), Santos (Brazil), Brazzaville (Republic of Congo), Saint-Etienne (France), Almaty (Kazakhstan), Bangkok (Thailand) and the United Arab Emirates among others. Some of these speakers participated online while others attended in person.
The first and second editions of the UNESCO Creative Cities Beijing Summit were held in 2013 and 2016. The Macao SAR Government attended the Summit in 2016 as an observer. This year, Macao, China officially attends the Summit as a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy.
