The threat in being of one mind

Cultural diversity seen as important in the success of urbanization and in saving the planet

Even as the world talks about how to achieve development that is sustainable, it is overlooking a risk that is far more dangerous to the planet, the French economist Herve Juvin says. That risk is vanishing diversity, says Juvin, president of Eurogroup Institute, a French development consultant.

Over the past 30 years more than two-thirds of the world's languages have become extinct, and in the past 50 years about 80 percent of tribes that are of different societies and traditions have disappeared, he says.

The world needs to ensure people's rights relating to culture, social affairs and the environment, he says. Juvin says that at various times he has lived with many different peoples in Africa and India. There are probably many who regard these people as remote and unable to achieve economic development, he says, but it is more important to think about whether they in fact want economic development or to keep what they have.

Juvin was speaking at the China-EU High Level Cultural Forum hosted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing on Nov 27. The forum attracted hundreds of leaders, scholars and artists from China and Europe.

The topic: how to create economically, socially and environmentally sustainable development. The event, in its fourth year, aims to support cooperative programs between Chinese and European cities, and strengthen collaboration between the two sides in the cultural industry, heritage protection and contemporary art.

Zhang Anmeng, secretary-general of the China Ancient Village Conservation and Development Committee, talked about ancient villages in China, and in particular how they are affected by urbanization.

Twenty-five years ago, after becoming aware of a remote village in Yueyang, Hunan province, she realized that many old villages were disappearing, and that hardly anyone was saying anything about it or trying to stop it. Since then she has devoted herself to preserving the country's ancient villages.

Zhang says Europe has a rich historical and cultural heritage, so it has a lot of experience in preserving ancient villages. Chinese would do well to learn from that experience, she says.

"Towns and cities have evolved from villages, so villages are likely to eventually be part of the process of urbanization, and they will play an important role in it. However, urbanization is unfolding rapidly, and there is barely time to slow down to think about how to preserve ancient villages."

She has explored more than 100 ancient villages in China and has made documentaries to tell their stories, she says. Ancient villages are rich in knowledge and have borne culture from generation to generation, she says.

"Ancient people may lack theories on urban planning or architecture, but they have a profound knowledge of landforms and of geography, and they place great emphasis on human life being in harmony with nature."

Some villages are perfectly integrated with nature, some are built according to the contours of hillsides, and some are located on or near rivers, adding to their aesthetic beauty, she says.

"Ancient villages that have been preserved tend to be very isolated," she says, and the transmission of culture from generation to generation is another important element in ensuring their longevity.

These places can be poor, but they can also be rich in culture because this is "based on the ancient people's understanding about the universe and the world, and they also carry ancient memories and creativity".

However, Zhang says, it is very difficult to preserve theses villages when those living in them want to be part of urbanization. The villagers are usually poor, and becoming better off materially is more important to them than preserving their culture, of whose importance they may even be unaware.

In some places the authorities turn ancient villages into scenic spots, and those who live there lose any say about what will happen there, in some cases being paid to move out so developers can push ahead with their work unimpeded.

Zhang says she is eager to work with others internationally on the problem, in particular obtaining help and advice from Europe on how China should proceed.

"A lack of money is not really the problem in protecting these places. The most important point is that it is the villagers themselves who should be doing that job. It is about how to educate and guide them to manage and protect their own land and culture while giving them sufficient support."

Dani Karavan, an Israeli sculptor, largely agreed with Zhang's views on preserving heritage.

Over many decades Karavan has worked on natural preservation problems in many places, including France, Germany, Japan and the Republic of Korea. He is best known for site-specific memorials and monuments that merge into the environment, and he has won many international awards.

Without ancient villages that are owned by villagers or citizens, without the Forbidden City in Beijing, without natural rivers and mountains, the world's culture, and even the human race, would disappear, he says.

"We need to protect our nature and remember our history; only then can we realize progress."

In his works he is keen make people more aware of nature, to get design to integrate with the natural environment, and for there to be a connection with history, he says.

Ni Baosen, chairman of the board of Guo Hang Rong Tou (Beijing) Investment Inc, says that preserving cultural heritage needs to go beyond individuals, companies or countries, and depends on a combined global effort. His company is about to establish three cross-cultural museums in China, Europe and Africa aimed at improving communication between cultures.

Ni says that as urbanization and city planning in China proceed, they will take account of cross-cultural elements, local and international.

His company plans to enter into agreements with educational institutions in China and Europe to hold more international cross-cultural exhibitions.

Some experts say maintaining diversity in modern city planning during urbanization is as important as preserving old culture.

Jin Baoping, deputy secretary-general of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and executive deputy chairman of the China Society of Urban Economy, says China and Europe have different development paths.

In 1987 China's urbanization rate was about 17.8 percent, and last year that was almost 53 percent, meaning about 500 million farmers had left their villages and moved to cities in that time. It is expected that by 2020, the rate will be 60 percent, and that another 200 million to 300 million people will live in cities.

One contrast in urbanization in Europe and China is that in the continent, people have tended to leave villages after agriculture has become well developed, whereas in China many people leave villages before agriculture has developed well.

Moreover, in the West urbanization has proceeded at the same time as its industries and villages have developed.

"But in China, after the founding of New China, the country was very poor, so most of our money was used first and foremost on building up the nation and in particular cities," Jin says.

Fan Di'an, president of the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, says that because of different industrialization and urbanization paths, the culture of architecture relating to cities in China and Europe has developed in different ways.

Western architecture's transition from classic buildings, such as churches and Gothic buildings to contemporary buildings, such as skyscrapers that are made of reinforced concrete and glass, has been more continuous, while China's development of architecture has been interrupted throughout history.

"That's why Chinese architects face more challenges with modern architectural styles than do their Western counterparts. One solution is to find out more about our own traditional culture and resources."

China's architectural styles in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD220) and the Tang Dynasty (960-1279) are commonly adopted in modern buildings, such as the conference center at Yanxi Lake in Beijing, at which the recent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum conference was held.

Another way is to learn from the West, Fan says.

In Europe, cultural buildings are very important, he says, citing as an example France, where the country's president is identified with important new buildings constructed during his term of office.

In China there is now increasing demand for museums and public cultural spaces, and many cities are now seeing cultural architecture as important icons. But in building such structures, there has been a certain amount of "coarse development", he says.

"So in the process of urbanization, how to make the cultural forms of the city becomes an excellent model for cultural development, which is very urgent now."

chenyingqun@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 12/12/2014 page24)