Beijing to hold culture forum, highlight Olympic spirit

Beijing, a city with a history of 3,000 years and the only place to have held both summer and winter Olympic Games, announced on Monday that it will hold a high-level culture forum that is expected to become an annual event with national and global influence.

The two-day forum will be held on July 25 and 26 with the theme of "inheritance, creativity and mutual learning" and will include an opening ceremony, a main forum and four subforums, and activities such as cultural tours of the city, said Zhao Weidong, deputy head of the city's publicity department.

"The main forum will focus on the deeper combination of culture and tourism, boosting art development and promoting Beijing's Winter Olympic spirit," Zhao said on Monday. "Leaders from cultural as well as science and technology fields will have dialogues during the roundtable session."

Beijing, as a national cultural center, has made much progress in the sector in past decades. The government has been working on protection of the city's cultural and historical relics, has applied to put the city's central axis on the World Heritage list, and is restoring the beauty of the Grand Canal.

"Meanwhile, the number of physical bookstores has increased to more than 2,000 in recent years," Zhao said, adding that the city's more than 200 museums have also provided more "knowledge space "for residents.

"The Beijing government has been carrying out policies to boost consumption in the culture and tourism sectors. The influence of the Beijing Film Festival, as well as music and fashion festivals, has been increasing, which has helped this ancient city glitter in the new age," Zhao said.

Zhao Haiying, publicity chief of Beijing's Dongcheng district, where the forum will be held, said on Monday that the rich historical culture heritage is a "golden brand "of the district.

"We have been working on making good use of those precious resources to keep the memories of the city alive," she said. "The district has been taking measures to protect its ancient courtyards and integrate cultural elements into the city's planning and construction."

According to district statistics, the cultural industry in Dongcheng brought in total revenue of 143.6 billion yuan ($21.3 billion) in 2021, up 11.9 percent year-on-year, ranking at the top among all districts in Beijing.

"We expect that the forum will bring profound cultural influence to the district and that more high-end talent, institutions and companies will come and settle down in the district," Zhao said.

Pang Wei, deputy head of Beijing's culture and tourism bureau, said the forum will be an important platform for international communication.

"We have invited many foreign guests to participate in the forum via video to share their experience," she said. "It's hoped that the forum will help the world understand China more deeply and let China communicate better with the world."

dujuan@chinadaily.com.cn