During the period of 2021-2023, two initiatives known as Heritage Story Telling (HST) and Community Cultural Heritage Challenge (CCHC) were carried out as part of the Cultural Heritage for Inclusive Growth or Heritage of Future Past Programme in Vietnam. The primary objectives of these initiatives were to empower communities to generate creative ideas, receive assistance, design and implement actions to protect and promote their own cultural heritage. Specifically, these are grant initiatives for projects led by the community, aimed at assisting marginalised communities of local ethnic groups in the provinces of Ninh Thuan and Gia Lai to actively engage in the preservation of their cultural heritage.
All the projects that received funding have achieved success by accomplishing their goals. A wide range of locally-led activities were implemented, encompassing research, documentation, conservation, education, capacity building, experimentation, innovation, and the revitalization of cultural heritage assets through contemporary practices. As a result, numerous valuable and endangered cultural heritages have been safeguarded and promoted. The participation in these projects has empowered and equally benefitted all sectors of the community.
It is worth noting that the funded projects have collectively raised local communities’ awareness regarding the significance and values of shared cultural heritage, while encouraging responsible ways of thinking and acting towards securing a better future for heritage. Importantly, many of the funded projects have enabled the people in targeted communities to establish a connection between the preservation and promotion of their living cultural heritage and the potential improvement of their livelihoods and living conditions. Additionally, these projects have had a positive impact on the policies of local authorities concerning the preservation and promotion of cultural heritage.