Zhang Jing expressed that contemporary tourism surpasses the mere visitation of photogenic heritage sites, evolving into an immersive experience in local culture. The proper protection and promotion of local intangible cultural heritage and cultural creative industries possess the potential to transform the nature and perception of tourism, ultimately leading to sustainable development. The training strives to enhance participants’ comprehension of social and economic opportunities, facilitating improved utilization of intangible cultural heritage and cultural and creative industries. It also aims to maximize cross-national and cross-sector collaboration to propel sustainable development in the tourism industry.

The training content covers the significant value of intangible cultural heritage for sustainable development, guidelines and case studies related to sustainable tourism, as well as an exploration of cultural and creative industries. On the opening day, the online expert panel introduced the course schedule and engaged in discussions with participants on the first topic of the training: “Can community-based tourism become a sustainable business model for ASEAN waterfront cities?” This served as a comprehensive warm-up for subsequent sessions.

This extended training program is scheduled to conclude in June of the following year, adopting a combination of online and offline formats. Next February, an offline training session is scheduled to be held in the city of Nan in Northern Thailand, and each month, at least one concentrated online learning and guidance session.