Who We Are

In line with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and within its mandate to foster intercultural dialogue and respect for cultural diversity, UNESCO promotes mutual understanding, intellectual solidarity, and international cooperation through education, science, culture and communication.

As part of this mission, UNESCO has developed various initiatives and projects – among them, the Silk Roads Programme.

The Silk Roads were an expansive network of communications that connected civilizations and brought peoples and cultures from across the world into contact with each other for thousands of years, permitting not only an exchange of goods but also an interaction of ideas and cultures that has shaped our world today.

In response to this enduring legacy, the UNESCO's Silk Roads Programme aims to revive these historic networks by encouraging dialogue and deepening understanding among the diverse cultures that flourished along these routes.

Main Initiatives

The first major initiative was the Integral Study of the Silk Roads: Roads of Dialogue (1988–1997), which explored the cultural exchanges between peoples of different regions along the historic routes.

In 2013, UNESCO launched the Silk Roads Online Platform, an interactive initiative aimed at raising awareness of the shared cultural heritage of the Silk Roads and encouraging intercultural dialogue and development.

To support academic engagement, the Silk Roads Youth Research Grant was launched in 2021. Each edition, 12 grants are awarded to young researchers aged 35 and under to explore topics linked to the shared history and legacy of the Silk Roads.

UNESCO is also currently developing a Thematic Collection of the Cultural Exchanges along the Silk Roads, which documents the reciprocal influences and rich histories of cross-cultural interaction across the region. With two major publications released on "Textiles and Clothing" and on "Architecture, Monuments and Urbanism".

The Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads Photo Contest

Launched in 2018, this international photo contest offers young people aged 14-25 years old a platform to creatively express their perspectives on the Silk Roads' shared heritage. The first six editions received entries from over 100 countries.

After each edition of the contest, around 60 of the best photos from the contest appear in a professional photo album entitled "Youth Lens on the Silk Roads" and might be showcased in exhibitions held worldwide.

Past exhibitions of selected photographs have been held since 2018, in China, Oman, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan, Türkiye, Qatar, Morocco, and at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.

In 2023, to mark the 35th anniversary of the Silk Roads Programme, an outdoor exhibition showcased 140 outstanding photographs at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, in collaboration with the Beijing International Peace Culture Foundation.

Learn more about the exhibition here.

All queries must be directed to: Silkroadsphotocontest@unesco.org