Stories Happened in

the Terraced Land in

China by Professor Shi Junchao

CHINA

China is a large country, total area account for

9.6 million square kilometers, mountainous area

make up 70% of the total. West part

geographically is higher than east. Except for

Yangzi river plain and Songnen plain covering

less than 1/3 of the land total, 2/3 are

mountains, high plateaus and hills which makes

China a big terraces country centered around

paddy rice wet terraces and dry terraces

producing corn, sorghum, wheat, millet, potato,

tea and fruits. Striking stories are now taking

place in the terraces in China as termed

“rising of the terraces”.

Honghe Hani World Heritage

To our great joy, if to become world heritage in

2010 for us were a distance dream for us, then,

I could formally announce to the participants of

the Second World Terrace Conference today that

our dream come true in June 22, 2013. In only 30

minutes, our application has been improved by

the committee in the capital city of Cambodia

Phnom Penh and smoothly being listed into world

heritage.

Yunnan World Tea Tree Origin

and Puer Tea World Heritage

For my personal view, the significance of this world heritage has

surpassed that of Honghe Hani terraces. If Honghe Hani terraces’

influence is only felt within China, this is meant for the whole

world.

Half of the world population drink tea, and 60 countries produce

tea. The history of drinking tea accounted for over 10,000 years.

Tea breed different kinds of culture in different countries. In

China, it enjoy a most prestigious social status as “Cha Dao”.

However, as such influential culture, it has not been listed into

the world culture heritage, which is a pity. Tea tree grow in the

terraces, and tea culture is also terrace culture, therefore, the

regret of tea not been included into the world heritage is also a

regret for the terrace civilization.

Since 2004, after 10 years of cooperation

between the expert team led by professor Shi

and local government, in the year 2013, this

project has been listed into the number 6 of

candidate alternative list, that is to say, 6

years later, once again, we could report to

all of you that it also become world cultural

heritage.

Honghe Hani Multiple Voice Singsong

Appling the world intangible

Heritage list of UNESCO

Honghe Hani multi-voice folk songs has been described as

the most diversify- voiced folk songs in the world. In

the year 1995, musicians have found that it has 8 voices,

and through the investigation of professor Shi, it has 10

voices. These folk songs have been sung by the villagers

who worked on the terraces while planting seeds, or by

the Hani bride in a marriage ceremony, or in the funeral

of old ones, or by young girls and boys when stay

together and making friends. In Nov. of 2013, invited by

the president of Chinese Conservatory of Music Zhao,

Professor Shi address a forum featured “singing in the

sky ladder- Hani multi-voiced folk song and its culture”,

both the value of the folk songs and research of

professor Shi have been recognized by the music authority

in China.

Involvement of economic concerns. Based on our

understanding, a very important reason for

China’s inefficiency of intangible assets

protection is due to lack of concern for the

people engaged in, for example, if both academic

circle and government cultural department only

caring for the culture protection without paying

equal attention to the folk singers, it will

eventually result in nothing. Therefore, our

group started from economic bailout.

As for the cultural heritage, in the past, we assume it as fixed

and unchangeable. Now, this idea also has been proved wrong.

Youngsters nowadays even living in the mountainous regions could

communicate equal efficiently with outside through modern

communication means such as television, computer network and

mobile phone. We cooperated with Kunming Art Institute, and

recruit some Hani to receive free training in the institute.

Helped with Yang Liping and BMW company, each kid get 8,000 yuan

of tuition and 1,000 yuan of living subsidies. The courses

opened for those kids include both traditional Hani multi voices

and basic music classes in addition to computer and English.

Sometimes, the students also participated in the paid

performance, which in line with sustainable education and world

heritage concept.