[Photo/Xinhua]

Cultural heritage is a living dialogue connecting the past, the present and a shared future, participants at a cultural event said on Wednesday, highlighting the importance of further deepening cooperation to enhance the reach and appeal of Chinese civilization and promote mutual learning among civilizations.

The remarks came as archaeologists, heritage experts, civilization researchers, diplomatic envoys to China and governmental officials gathered for the 2026 Conference on Hongshan Culture in Chaoyang in Northeast China's Liaoning province, from Wednesday to Thursday.

Hongshan culture, a major Neolithic culture dating back 5,000 to 6,500 years, once spanned what is now Liaoning and Hebei provinces and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

Xu Kunlin, secretary of the Communist Party of China Liaoning Provincial Committee, said the province actively participates in the national project to trace the origins of Chinese civilization, prioritizes the protection and inheritance of Hongshan culture in its drive to build a culturally strong province, and strives to continuously enhance the influence of Hongshan culture.

"We have strengthened legislative protection for Hongshan culture's Niuheliang site in Chaoyang and stepped up academic research by setting up the Hongshan Culture Research Institute, and promoted Hongshan culture beyond Liaoning to the world through a youthful tone and digital forms," said Xu.

Furthermore, Liaoning is cooperating with other regions to promote a joint bid for World Heritage status, Xu said.

Under the theme of "Hongshan Culture: A Dialogue Between Eras and Civilizations", participants delivered remarks on the culture's historical and civilizational significance.

Rao Quan, head of the National Cultural Heritage Administration, called for continued efforts to advance the transformation and utilization of archaeological achievements, upgrade the construction and operation of archaeological site parks and thematic museums, launch more high-quality exhibitions and public education activities, and offer diverse public cultural products.

Rao also advocated deeper integration of culture and tourism, calling for using cultural relic resources to develop study tours, travel routes and cultural experience programs, in order to boost public cultural confidence.

"It's important to build a robust global communication network for Hongshan culture, leveraging platforms including international archaeological cooperation, overseas thematic exhibitions and high-level academic dialogues," he said.

Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, said, "The rose patterns of Yangshao culture, the octagonal star patterns of Lingjiatan culture and the dragon-scale patterns of Hongshan culture symbolize the distinct cultural characteristics of the civilizations in the basins of the Yellow, Yangtze and Liaohe rivers."

He said that, like many stars shining together, the early Chinese cultures of different regions interacted across vast distances and eventually formed a diverse yet unified Chinese civilization.

"We should jointly tell the stories of Hongshan culture and Chinese culture to the world, helping global audiences better understand Chinese civilization and gain a deeper insight into China in the new era," Qu said.

Khaled Nazmy, ambassador of Egypt to China, said, "Our gathering today is proof that our ancient heritage and civilization are not only a chapter in history, but also a living legacy that continues to inspire us, bring us together and remind us of our shared responsibility to preserve our cultural heritage and deepen our friendship."

Shahbaz Khan, director and representative of the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia, said in a video speech: "Hongshan culture represents a foundational chapter in human development. Its ritual architecture and extraordinary jade craftsmanship reveal humanity's early spiritual and social evolution. For UNESCO, protecting these roots is about safeguarding the unique human genius that grounds our collective identity."

Wang Wei, a member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Academic Divisions, noted that Hongshan culture demonstrates that Chinese civilization did not originate from a single center, but rather emerged from the independent development and mutual influence among multiple regional cultures.

Wang noted that in the past, Chinese as well as Western archaeologists defined civilization by the presence of writings, cities and metallurgy. Hongshan culture lacked all three, yet it formed a complex society organized around belief systems, ritual structures and shared spiritual identity, showing that there is more than one path to civilization, he said.

Media representatives from Liao­ning, Hebei and Inner Mongolia shared stories behind iconic Hongshan relics: the Hongshan goddess statue, thejade dragon in ring-like shape known as jue and the C-shaped jade dragon.

At the conference, a special tribute was paid to those who have made outstanding contributions to the preservation and research of Hongshan heritage. Su Shenzhi, daughter of the late archaeologist Su Bingqi, accepted the honor on her father's behalf, together with archaeologist Guo Dashun and Sinologist Elizabeth Childs-Johnson from the United States. The three were presented with commemorative certificates.

At the event, heads of the cultural heritage administrations of Liaoning, Hebei and Inner Mongolia signed the Liaoning-Hebei-Inner Mongolia Cooperation Agreement on Archaeological Research into Hongshan Culture, a move seen as a key step toward coordinated protection and cross-regional collaboration.

Deng Zhangyu contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at xulin@chinadaily.com.cn