A recent survey conducted by China Youth Daily’s Social Survey Center in collaboration with Wenjuan.com reveals that nearly 90% of young respondents believe it is essential to maintain dedication and innovate while preserving intangible cultural heritage (ICH). The study, which gathered responses from 1,000 young people, showed that 82.9% of them are eager to see more youth joining the efforts to protect and pass down ICH.
As we shift from viewing ICH as “ancient and scarce” to “cross-disciplinary and trendy,” what changes can we expect when the younger generation becomes involved in this heritage? How do they perceive the relationship between preservation and innovation? The survey indicates that among the respondents, 89.7% emphasize the importance of maintaining craftsmanship and innovating within tradition. To further develop ICH, 59.2% suggest creating diverse ICH experience projects to enhance engagement and experiential understanding, while 54.1% recommend hosting ICH cultural festivals and exhibitions to promote heritage culture.
“I hope more young people will take the time to understand ICH,” says Chang Yangyang, a post-90s professional paper cutter from Luoyang, Henan Province. Chang became engaged with paper cutting at a young age, learning from the village grandmothers. However, it wasn’t until he returned home in 2010 that he decided to make it his career. He has since traveled extensively to learn from masters and folk artists, eventually earning recognition as a representative inheritor of the Mengjin paper cutting tradition after it was added to the list of intangible cultural heritage projects in 2015.
To introduce Mengjin paper cutting to a broader audience, Chang has opened a studio, created cultural products, and explored livestreaming. Yet, he’s realized that individual effort alone isn’t enough. “Some inheritors are exceptionally talented at paper cutting, but they struggle with transforming their art into marketable products or designing and packaging them attractively. This lack of relevant skills and understanding is a significant challenge we face today.”
Xiao Yao, a post-95s representative inheritor of the “Taoyuan Embroidery” project in Hunan Province, faces similar hurdles in bringing her ICH to market. She recalls a time at her creative shop in a local tourist area when a visitor questioned the value of her work, saying, “Is this really intangible cultural heritage? Why is it so expensive? It looks similar to cross-stitch, and I can embroider too…” Such skepticism made her doubt her endeavors.
The survey highlights several challenges facing the development of ICH. 51.4% of respondents noted the difficulty in converting it into economic benefits and the lack of sustainability, while 49.6% pointed to insufficient protection and funding support. Additionally, 44% of young people believe there is a general lack of social awareness and impact surrounding ICH. Other challenges include limited innovation capacity (41.6%), a shrinking pool of inheritors (39.4%), and inadequate channels for promoting ICH (30.3%).
Reflecting on her experience over the past few years, Xiao feels that there aren’t enough young individuals willing to engage in learning and preserving ICH. “Taoyuan embroidery is one of the four great embroidery traditions in China and was included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage projects. Our school offers a dedicated embroidery program, enrolling dozens of students each year, but few choose to pursue related careers after graduation.” She believes not only Taoyuan embroidery but many other ICH projects are also facing aging inheritors and potential breakage in the transmission chain.
Despite these challenges, the emergence of the “ICH craze” and “national trend” over the past few years brings Xiao some hope. With increasing popularity, more youth are showing interest in Taoyuan embroidery. Each year, students and teachers come to engage in social practice activities, learning about the history and techniques involved. “I hope more young people will delve deeper into ICH, actively participate in its protection and transmission, ensuring its continuity,” she adds.
When it comes to innovation, Xiao asserts that it must be rooted in tradition. “From a long-term perspective, ICH needs to engage with the market while striking a balance between preservation and innovation.” She explains that handcrafted embroidery requires significant time and skill, which naturally raises prices, limiting the audience. Machine embroidery, however, is emerging, allowing for mass production and reducing costs. “Using machine embroidery doesn’t mean abandoning traditional skills. For inheritors, hand embroidery is fundamental, and they must uphold their responsibility to pass on the craft, maintaining quality in both machine and hand-stitched works,” Xiao emphasizes.
The survey indicates that 89.7% of young respondents value maintaining craftsmanship while innovating, with 50.5% considering it extremely important. Chang articulates, “The innovation of ICH must be grounded in its tradition. Today’s diverse aesthetic challenges traditional paper cutting. Regardless of external changes, it is the duty of inheritors to learn and uphold outstanding traditional techniques, ensuring that the essence of traditional folk paper cutting is passed down.”
As for promoting ICH, 59.2% of young respondents hope for diverse ICH experience projects to enhance involvement; 54.1% propose cultural festivals and exhibitions to promote heritage; and 52.4% wish to integrate ICH elements into daily life, creating relatable products. Moreover, there’s a call for increasing ICH presence in schools and communities (48.6%) and building branding efforts to boost recognition (35.2%).
In recent years, Xiao has worked on bringing Taoyuan embroidery to market by crafting small, portable gifts like earrings, brooches, and necklaces. She collaborates with various companies to enhance product variety and bring Taoyuan embroidery into public awareness. “We first need to raise awareness of ICH, like Taoyuan embroidery and Taoyuan wood carving, as many locals and outsiders are still unaware,” she believes. Xiao hopes for increased government funding for ICH initiatives and platforms that offer training in market development and marketing management to help inheritors adapt to modern demands.
Among those surveyed, 17.8% were born in the 2000s, 29.2% in the 1990s, 34.8% in the 1980s, 12.0% in the 1980s, and 6.2% in the 1970s.
