Introduction to IICC-X
ICOMOS International Conservation Centre-Xi'an (abbreviated as IICC-X) was established in 2006 with the approval of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Cultural Heritage Administration of China, at the invitation of the Xi'an Municipal Government, as a joint initiative of ICOMOS. It is the only non-governmental, non-profit institution of ICOMOS worldwide. Positioned in the field of cultural heritage, IICC-X aims to build a professional centre for cultural heritage conservation in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as a consultation and service centre, a research centre and a training centre.
In 2009, the Centre was designated as the International Secretariat and Information Centre of the Coordination Committee for the Serial Transnational Nomination of the Silk Roads. Serving as the secretariats for the nomination of China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, the Centre has since continuously supported the international coordination of the Silk Roads nomination project, organizing related working meetings, textual coordination meetings and training programmes. Following the successful inscription, the Centre received high commendation from the Director-General of UNESCO.
Drawing on ICOMOS's international platform, IICC-X will give full play to its role as the Silk Roads secretariat, providing technical support and assistance to countries along the Silk Roads and vigorously carrying out work in conservation, management, coordination and monitoring. Guided by the promotion of coordinated communication among domestic institutions at all levels, as well as conservation research, heritage nomination and monitoring management, the Centre strengthens cooperation with professional institutions, universities and experts in various fields. Anchored in the starting city of the Silk Roads, it also emphasizes cultural heritage exchanges and cooperation along the Silk Roads and the Belt and Road, with a focus on enhancing exchanges and training related to the city's cultural heritage conservation.
IICC-X has developed the Silk Roads Archives Information Management Platform based on big-data concepts — a comprehensive platform for the storage, management, application, analysis and sharing of Silk Roads cultural heritage information. It was included among the recommended cases of the World Internet Conference under the theme of a community with a shared future for mankind. IICC-X has published professional books such as Selected International Cultural Heritage Conservation Documents, Selected International Cultural Heritage Conservation Documents (2006–2017) and Selected Excerpts from the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention, and has completed more than ten research projects at the national and ministerial levels.
