A press conference was held for the first Honghe Hani Terraces and World Intelligent Cultural Heritage International Photography Biennial on Jan 28. The event will take place from March 17 to 20 in Yuanyang county, Honghe Hani and Yi ethnic groups autonomous prefecture of Yunnan province.

The Honghe Hani Rice Terraces were successfully listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site on June 22, 2013, becoming the first world heritage named after an ethnic minority. The Honghe Hani Rice Terraces and World ICH International Photography Biennial seeks to protect the Hani Rice Terraces and establish a cogent and efficient platform for inheriting Hani culture.

This exhibition will be the first international photography biennial specializing in world heritage on a global scale, with photography works focusing on world heritages across the world. In March, more than 2,500 works will be exhibited on 30 domestic and international photography exhibitions, including early works taken in Yuanyang from French photographer Yann Layma and works taken in Yunnan in the 1940s by photographer Lang Jingshan from Taiwan.

Aside from this year's event, each biennial will be held every two years, with photograph shooting activities in the first year and a photographic exhibition in the following year. It aims to create a normalized and influential international photographic brand through these biennials.

Besides the photographic exhibitions, events such as the Hani Rice Terraces Photography Convention, Live Photograph Shooting and Cell Phone Photograph Shooting competitions (with three prizes ranging from 50,000 yuan or $8,208, 10,000 yuan and 7,000 yuan) will also be held during the biennials.

Furthermore, a national dress fashion show, original primitive culture collection and rice terraces culture protection forum will also take place on the biennial stage.

First Han Terraces and World ICH International Photography Biennial opens. The press conference was held on Jan 28.