All you need to know about UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network
Recently, UNESCO formally announced on its official website that the Indian city of Srinagar has marked its place on the prestigious list of UNESCO’S Creative Cities Network. This was in recognition of Jammu and Kashmir’s rich, centuries old cultural and artistic ethos, ranging from crafts, folk art and its heritage. This is especially a significant honour for the artisans of Srinagar, and the entire state, that has worked consistently to keep the art scene alive and vibrant. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to his Twitter account to congratulate the people of Jammu and Kashmir for this honour.
Along with the Indian city of Srinagar, UNESCO added 49 more cities to this list, adding to the pre-existing 246 cities. Read on to find out more about what exactly is UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network-
What is UNESCO’S Creative Cities Network?
UNESCO’S Creative Cities Network or UCCN in short, is UNESCO’s project which primarily aims towards the promotion of cooperation among those cities whose creativity has been identified as a strategic factor for their sustainable urban development. The objective of this project surrounds placing creativity and other artistic cultural industries at the epicentre of development in these cities, and encouraging cooperation at the local level as well as active participation at the international level. This project was launched in 2004.
Which creative fields does the UCCN cover?
This network covers 7 major creative fields. These are: crafts and folk art, media arts, film, design, gastronomy, literature and music.
How many cities are a part of the UCCN?
As of 2021, 295 cities are included on the list. A total of six Indian cities are included on the list. They are: Hyderabad (gastronomy), Mumbai (film), Varanasi (music), Chennai (music), Jaipur (crafts and folk art) and the latest addition, Srinagar (crafts and folk art).
Goals of the UCCN
All cities which are a part of the Creative Cities Network unitedly pledge to share the best practices and work towards the development of partnerships with the involvement of both public and private sectors. These cities also aim to actively work towards the strengthening of the processes of creation, production and distribution of cultural activities. This network of creative cities also heavily focuses on achieving sustainable development goals through enterprising, innovative thinking and action. It undertakes sustainable actions which directly benefit communities at the urban level.