Keeping cultural heritage alive: A China-France dialogue

At a China-France dialogue on cultural heritage in Beijing on Monday, participants explored what it takes to keep cultural heritage alive: helping young people discover it in new ways, enabling artists and their works to travel, and confronting the histories associated with cultural property.

Shan Jixiang, director of the Academic Committee of the Palace Museum, said people aspire to live in an environment where they can engage with cultures from both the past and the present.

That is why cultural heritage resources need to be "brought to life." Cécile Cukierman, French senator and vice president of the France-China Friendship Association, spoke about France's efforts to return cultural property taken during its colonial period.

She said restitution is more than a symbolic gesture – it is a way to reopen dialogue and enable communities to reclaim their cultural heritage.

Jean-Marc Bustamante, a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts, said art needs to be experienced in person.

He hopes to invite Chinese artists to France and spend more time in China himself.

CGTN's Li Yiqing has the story.