Saving history

Luxury automaker BMW is combining its modern German technology with China's ancient cultural heritage.

It's providing significant financial support and using a fleet of its vehicles to visit and promote the protection of China's material and non-material cultural heritage.

The success of the 2007 BMW China Cultural Journey in June was followed by fruitful results this year. Among the funded projects aided by BMW was the Wuwei Gongguzi Dance in Gansu province, which was added to China's second list of intangible cultural heritages.

Based on these achievements, BMW established a partnership with the Chinese Academy of Art and the Protection Center of Intangible Cultural Heritage of China (PCICH), by donating 1 million yuan as startup capital for the Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Fund.

And as a result the BMW China Cultural Journey 2008 was listed as one of the official events on China's "Cultural Heritage Day" on June 14.

In late October 2008 BMW's Cultural Journey Car Fleet, made up of 22 BMW vehicles, set off from Beijing to Hangzhou for the 10-day journey, which covered about 2,600 kilometers.

The auto caravan, consisting of experts, scholars, BMW customers, employees and dealer members, embarked on a journey along China's historic Grand Canal through Tianjin, Shandong, Jiangsu, and reached the starting point of the Zhejiang Canal.

There participants toured ancient Huizhou (currently known as Huangshan city in Anhui province), China's second Cultural Ecological Reserve Area and the point of origin for the "Four Scholarly Treasures" that contain the essence of Chinese civilization, where they explored the canal's rich past and traced the progress of Chinese civilization.

Flowing for over 2,000 years, the Grand Canal, the longest and oldest man-made waterway in the world, is a gallery of ancient civilization and the storehouse of ancient technology, as well as a museum of traditional culture.

After visiting and collecting information on cultural heritage items along the journey, BMW provided the 1 million yuan donation cultural heritage projects with historical value along the Grand Canal.

After the journey, BMW told China Business Weekly that in cooperation with PCICH, it will hold an exhibition of the expedition's trip using photos, video and exhibits of Chinese cultural heritage relics collected during the journey to share the emotional and spiritual insights experienced and discovered along the route.

"A nation's cultural heritage is a rich asset for individuals and societies, especially in China with thousands of years of history. This is why our 'BMW China Cultural Journey' continues on its mission down a different path each year," says Christoph Stark, president and CEO of BMW Group Region China.

"As one of the world's most renowned ancient man-made structures, the Grand Canal has repeatedly made headlines for its infrastructural and economic values. Protecting the cultural heritages along the Grand Canal ensures the well-being of a historically significant canal," says Stark.

Though the Grand Canal has witnessed much of ancient China's history along with the economic and cultural developments, many of the traditional functions of the Canal have been gradually replaced and cultural artifacts and traditions have been compromised.

Thus, "action to protect the authenticity and integrity of these cultural treasures must be taken in a timely manner," says Stark.

"We join hands in revealing and recording pieces of cultural history along the way, uncovering the Grand Canal's unique charm, sharing it with the rest of the world, and we call for everybody's support in protecting China's intangible cultural heritages for years to come," adds Alfred Rupp, president and CEO of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd.

The Chinese government has attached great importance to the protection of intangible cultural heritages, resulting in great achievements in recent years.

The State Council released the first and second list of State Intangible Cultural Heritages in 2006 and 2008, covering a total of 1028 projects.

Along with its increasingly enhanced publicity and social impact, Cultural Heritage Day has strengthened public awareness about protecting historically important sites and traditions.

"As part of the major activities of 2008 Cultural Heritage Day, the BMW China Cultural Journey will have a very significant impact towards promoting China's intangible cultural heritage protection work, in addition to calling for social awareness," says Zhou Heping, vice minister of Culture.

BMW Corporate Social Contribution Activities was officially launched in 2007.

In addition to BMW China Cultural Journey in 2008, BMW will also continue to promote Corporate Social Contribution Activities such as the establishment of the BMW Warm-Heart Fund for the reconstruction of the Sichuan Earthquake-hit area, BMW Culture Night which supports the Liaoning Ballet Troupe, the BMW China Excellent University Student Award and the BMW Children's Traffic Safety Education program.

(China Daily 12/15/2008 page8)