Workshop for educational experts and trainers at the Center for Educational Research and Development (CERD) and UNESCO Associated School principals and teachers
The Lebanese National Commission and UNESCO Beirut Office organized a series of 3 workshops moderated by Dr. Annie Tabet, Member of UNESCO Global Network of Facilitators, addressed to educational to the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), the Center for Educational Research and Development (CERD) and UNESCO Associated Schools in the framework of the “Learning with Intangible Cultural Heritage for a Sustainable Future” project.
The workshops aimed to raise awareness among decision makers, educators, principals, teachers and students about the contribution of intangible to sustainable development and the importance of its protection, as well as to discuss the pilot project implemented in four public and private Lebanese schools, which emphasized the importance of integrating Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) in education.
The first workshop, organized on November 26, 2019 at Beirut UNESCO Office, was addressed to educational experts and trainers at the Center for Educational Research and Development (CERD) and UNESCO Associated School principals and teachers, and consisted in introducing the participants to the ICH Convention, its key concepts, and the contribution of intangible cultural heritage to sustainable development, as well as the methodology adopted by the Lebanese pilot schools in integrating ICH elements in school subjects and through extracurricular activities.
In his speech, UNESCO Beirut’s Programme Specialist for Culture, Mr. Joe Kreidi, stressed that “ICH, like culture in general, is in constant change and development and gets richer with each new generation. The preservation of this heritage and its transmission to future generations is of utmost importance to keep it alive while at the same time allowing it to evolve”.
Dr. Mouna Reslan, Member of the Culture and Education Committee at the Lebanese National Commission, emphasized the importance of such initiative in promoting citizenship and the spirit of initiative, as well as strengthening the bonds of unity, national and international community synergy, through interactive and motivating platforms, and participatory activities.
The workshop also featured a live performance of the presumably oldest classical dance heritage of India, Bharatanatyam dance, by Mr. Ajay Singh, Culture Officer and Specialist of Bharatanatyam dance.
