Date: November 17-22, 2025
From November 17th to 22nd, the 2025 International Youth Forum on Creativity and Heritage along the Silk Roads (hereinafter referred to as “IYF”) co-organized by the UNESCO，the National Commission of the People’s Republic of China for UNESCO, the Nanjing Municipal Government, the Changsha Municipal Government, and the World Federation of UNESCO Clubs, Centres and Associations (WFUCA) successfully closed in Changsha on Nov 22nd.
IYF has always been committed to inspiring young people worldwide to actively participate in the inheritance and innovative development of cultural heritage. Since its launch in 2017, IYF has attracted over 700 outstanding youth representatives from 138 countries for exchanges and learning, making significant contributions to the protection, exchange, and mutual learning of cultural heritage under the Belt and Road Initiative.
This year, IYF focused on the theme “Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Youth for Heritage Protection and Inheritance,”guiding young people from various countries to inherit cultural heritage through modern approaches, encouraging them to proactively learn and share experiences, and facilitating cultural exchanges among nations. 40 internationally recruited youth participants from 39 countries, and 36 locally invited youth representatives from 11 countries (total 76 participants from 45 countries) embarked on an exploration journey of cultural heritage in Nanjing and Changsha. They have gained in-depth knowledge of relevant technologies and protection policies, and shared their experiences, insights, and reflections at this forum.
2025 IYF Youth Gala
IYF earnestly expects global young leaders to take digital innovation as a key driver, break through the temporal and spatial boundaries of heritage protection, and become bridges for intercultural dialogue. IYF will continue to serve as a link for cultural exchange, build global consensus and synergy on heritage protection, promote the sustainable inheritance of cultural heritage through mutual learning, and lay a solid cultural foundation for peace and development.