The International Center for Creativity and Sustainable Development under the auspices of UNESCO is a Category 2 center for research and cooperation on creativity and sustainable development. It was established by the People's Government of Beijing Municipality and was approved at the 38th session of the UNESCO General Assembly. Since its inception, we have been conducting research on topics such as creative cities, the creative economy, and sustainable development, and have brought together experts and innovative companies from around the world in cultural and creative industries, as well as technological innovation for an ongoing discussion on related topics. We have created a multi-channel communication platform integrating periodicals, websites, and we-media accounts to spread the concept of creativity and sustainable development. We are developing training programs for less developed regions, and are working with companies and non-governmental organizations to develop demonstration programs.
After several years of research and exploration, we are increasingly convinced that creativity and innovation are the keys to the sustainable development of cities. The booming of creativity and technology in the 21st century allows us to present local traditions and uniqueness in a new light, gradually address long-standing social issues such as poverty and hunger in unprecedented ways, and reconcile the stakes between economic development and ecological conservation with innovative thinking and technology. As one of the mainstays of all these creative and innovative changes, digital technology is undoubtedly one of the most important technological innovations in today's society. It has radically altered how we communicate with each other, relate to our surroundings, and present art and culture. Especially in the year after the COVID-19 swept the world, when our activities in physical space were forced to be suspended due to the need to control the spread of the coronavirus, digital technology has built another platform for us to take part in activities, keeping our cities running with the help of virtual reality.
In fact, it is thanks to the rapid development of digital technology that we can meet in such a way today. Research on visual communication can be traced back to the early 20th century, but the realization of smooth video communication is in the 21st century when Internet technology has made great strides. Video conferencing becoming the norm was just one of the important changes that has occurred in the last year. Of course, digital technology and the digital economy centered on it are still immature in many ways. There is an urgent need for us to discuss questions such as how to regulate the digital economy at the level of regulations and policies, how to make digital technology work in offline production and life instead of competing with the offline economy for profits, and how to advance the cultural and creative industries through the digital economy. That is the purpose of today's seminar. We hope that all guests will express your views freely and help address the issues that we face.
China attaches great importance to the development of digital economy and has set up many related new policies. Creative industries, featuring global development with the fastest growth speed and are great prospects, are the common wealth of all mankind.Both the digital economy and creative industries need more participation from experts and companies representing the frontier exploration level.ICCSD will continuously conduct in-depth future research by making a good use of its own internationalized think-tank team.ICCSD is expecting to invite more experts, entrepreneurs and policy makers from these two fields to join us for more in-depth and focused seminars.
