Peng Liyuan visits UNESCO headquarters, meets agency chief

China

Peng Liyuan visits UNESCO headquarters, meets agency chief

2024-05-07 10:56 Last Updated At：15:27

Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, visited the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) headquarters on Monday morning in Paris on invitation.

Upon the arrival of Peng, also UNESCO's Special Envoy for the Advancement of Girls' and Women's Education, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay warmly welcomed her at the entrance.

Azoulay accompanied Peng to visit an exhibition on the 10-year achievements of cooperation between China and UNESCO, and spoke highly of China's contribution to the development of girls' and women's education around the world.

Peng briefed Azoulay on China's latest progress in promoting girls' and women's education, especially the achievements of the Spring Bud Project, a Chinese nationwide drive to help dropout girls return to school and to improve teaching conditions in impoverished areas.

Peng said that serving as the UNESCO's Special Envoy for the Advancement of Girls' and Women's Education in the past decade, she has visited many schools in various countries and is delighted to see more and more women being able to have a better life thanks to education.

Promoting girls' and women's education is a great cause that is closely related to social progress and the shared future for humanity. The Chinese side is willing to work with UNESCO to encourage increased global investment in girls' and women's education, help more girls and women obtain equal access to education rights and jointly create a better future, she added.

For her part, Azoulay highly praised Peng's work and contributions as the special envoy, expressing UNESCO's willingness to strengthen exchanges and cooperation with China to promote new developments in global girls' and women's education.

Azoulay presented Peng with a 10-year service honor certificate. Peng presented UNESCO with a tapestry titled "Blooming Spring Bud" co-created by beneficiaries of the Spring Bud Project.

VR interactive exhibition big hit at Tianjin Museum

2024-05-19 19:40 Last Updated At：20:07

An interactive exhibition in the coastal city of Tianjin in north China has become a big hit through its use of virtual reality technology.

May 18 marks the International Museum Day. China officially joined the International Council of Museums in 1983 and has organized International Museum Day events every year since then.

Promising a more multi-dimensional and interactive experience, Tianjin Museum has launched a new exhibition named "Shining Treasures" with virtual reality technology, showcasing its most famous exhibits.

"With this equipment (of VR glasses), we can gain a deeper understanding of its historical origins and creation," said a visitor.

Tianjin Museum proudly displays a priceless bottle from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), adorned with imported enamel color materials. Porcelain like this was used by the Emperor at the time, making this exhibit one of the museum's most famous.

"This is peony, and these are two pheasants. What does this ornamentation mean? It means wealth and prosperity. (On this bottle we can see) poetry, calligraphy, painting, and seals. It's a complete picture. There are four enamel colored bottles like this in the world," said Gao Yingshuang, a staff member at the museum.

The exhibits may be priceless, but they've also inspired a number of affordable products. Tianjin Museum has created a number of cultural and creative products based on exhibits, including jewelry, stationery, fridge magnets, ice cream and lollipops.

"(The first thing is to) inherit, and it must be inherited, so as to make young people like them. Second, it's important that common people can have access to these. They aren't so expensive. And they can improve our character, like the Chinese paintings," said another visitor.

Tianjin Museum is the largest of its kind in the city, hosting nearly 200,000 historical and cultural artifacts ranging from calligraphy and paintings to bronze wares, ceramics and jade. It's a hub for appreciating and learning about China's rich heritage.