Korean culture conference makes Japan debut

via “Korea JoongAng Daily”

When you’re into a person, you’re naturally drawn to discovering his or her most intimate details.

The same goes for fans of K-pop stars.

Followers of these celebrities want more than to simply see their favorite singers perform at concerts or act on screen. They want to get to know them personally – finding out about the clothes they wear, the makeup they use, the food they eat, how they eat it and where they hang out.

Essentially, that’s what KCON, one of Korea’s largest conventions on so-called K-culture, hopes to provide. The event is organized by CJ E&M, also known as CJ Entertainment, the showbiz affiliate of CJ Group.

The annual convention, which concludes with a large-scale K-pop concert, began in 2012 in Los Angeles, a city with a large population of Koreans.

CJ Group executives, including Chairman Lee Jay-Hyun, has said on numerous occasions that the company’s goal is to make people around the world watch two or three Korean films a year; eat Korean food once or twice a month; watch one or two Korean dramas a week; and listen to Korean music every day. CJ has film, food, restaurants, retail and logistics businesses, among others.

One of the conventions will be held in Japan for the first time this year. KCON 2015 Japan will start on April 22 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama amid soured bilateral ties between Seoul and Tokyo due to intensified historical and territorial disputes.

Why Japan and why now?

The word “CON” in KCON stands for three things – convention, concert and cultural content – three things visitors can experience at the event.

“In order to increase KCON’s presence in 2015, we’ve added more destinations,” CJ E&M said through a press release. “Besides Los Angeles, where it has been held every year, we’ve added the east side of the U.S. as well as Japan. A total of three KCONs will be held this year.”

CJ E&M chose to hold a KCON in Japan as it has hosted the “M Countdown” K-pop concert in the nation around this time most years anyway and because it is where Hallyu, or the popularity of Korean pop culture abroad, began more than a decade ago. . . .

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First UN conference on tourism and culture opens in Cambodia, seeks to build partnerships

via UN.org 

Statues on the Angkor Wat temple in Siem Reap Cambodia. Photo: UNESCO

4 February 2015 – Aimed at bringing together Ministers of Tourism and Ministers of Culture to identify key opportunities and challenges for stronger cooperation between the fields, two United Nations agencies launched the First World Conference on Tourism and Culture today in the shadow of the legendary Angkor Wat temple, in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

The Conference, run by the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) aims to address the overlap between culture and tourism, tackling the question of how to harness the power of tourism and culture to alleviate poverty, create jobs, protect natural and cultural heritage and promote international understanding.

“Today, cultural tourism – the world’s mosaic of art forms, heritage sites, festivals, traditions, and pilgrimages – is growing at an unprecedented rate,” said Taleb Rifai, UNWTO Secretary-General. “Humanity’s curiosity about cultural heritage is the element that truly differentiates one destination from another.”

Mr. Rifai described the growth of international tourism since the 1950s and the socio-economic contribution made by tourism, accounting for one out of every 11 jobs worldwide, as well as contributing nine per cent to global gross domestic product (GDP) and 30 per cent contribution to total global exports.

Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director-General, joined Mr. Rifai in looking forward to building a new, sustainable partnership that unites tourism and culture and said her goal was to create a positive mutually reinforcing dynamic between the two, working to build sustainability and to benefit local communities.

“Our starting point is to safeguard culture under all its forms, from monuments to living heritage, encompassing traditions, festivals and the performing arts,” said Ms. Bokova. We do so, because culture is who we are. It shapes our identity and is a means to foster respect and tolerance among people.”

She underlined the need to safeguard cultural heritage while moving ahead with sustainable tourism and said she believed that was the Conference’s core message, citing that vision as the route to promoting culture as a driver and enabler of sustainable development.

Cambodia’s Minister of Tourism, Thong Khon, also welcomed delegates, looking forward to the event’s contribution to sustainable conservation and development of tourism and culture.

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