It is a great pleasure to welcome the delegates to the 2017 Pre-Symposiums Meeting, entitled Glocal Perspectives on Intangible Cultural Heritage: Local Communities, Researchers, States and UNESCO here in Tokyo.

Since the adoption of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2003 and its subsequent effectuation in 2006, the convention has been globally adopted and considered as the basic principles for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. As of 2016, 163 countries have become members of the convention and 336 heritage elements have been inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Needless to say, in the process of adoption and practice of the convention in each case of inscription, various kinds of persons, parties, institutions are involved not only at the global level but also at the local and national level.

Meanwhile, our Center for Glocal Studies (CGS), Seijo University, has been striving to examine the socio-cultural dynamics in various settings not only from a global perspective but also from a local perspective, i.e. from glocal perspective. Now, ten years after the effectuation of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, the CGS proposes to assess the realities and consequent issues regarding UNESCO intangible cultural heritage from a glocal perspective. That is why the CGS is organizing this pre-symposium meeting on Glocal Perspectives on Intangible Cultural Heritage: Local Communities, Researchers, States and UNESCO and the subsequent symposium of the same title to be held on July 7-9, 2017. At this pre-symposium and the subsequent symposium, the following issues will be discussed:

1. How local communities, local officials, researchers and government officials collaborate for the implementation of the UNESCO’s ICH convention including inventory making, safeguarding, nomination and inscription.

2. What is the transformative impact of the Convention including inventory, safeguarding, nomination, and inscription?

3. How do communities assess the impact of the inventory, safeguarding, nomination and inscription?

4. What is the role of researchers as “cultural brokers” in assessing the impact of the implementation of the Convention?

5. What feedback mechanisms could exist for local communities to have a say about the impact of the Convention to UNESCO?

The focus of this pre-symposium meeting will be on the global and national level, while in the subsequent symposium it will be on the local and national level. Through the complementary pre-symposium meeting and subsequent symposium, I am sure we will promote better understanding as to the interactions between local communities, researchers, states and UNESCO regarding safeguarding of intangible cultural heritages.

Once again, I thank you all for attending the Pre-Symposium Meeting and hope this opportunity will spur more fruitful collaborations in the future.