The Shaoxing Ancient City World Heritage Application Innovation Center was established today. On the theme activity of "July 15" Shaoxing Ancient City Protection Day in 2024, Wu Zhiqiang, academician of the CAE Member, general consultant of Shaoxing Ancient City's World Heritage Application, and Shi Huifang, secretary of the Municipal Party Committee, inaugurated the Innovation Center for Shaoxing Ancient City's World Heritage Application. On July 15th, the Shaoxing Ancient City World Heritage Application Innovation Center was established. The Shaoxing Ancient City Cultural Heritage Application Innovation Center, provided by the Propaganda Department of the Shaoxing Municipal Party Committee, is a meeting room for experts in the field of ancient cities worldwide, jointly organized by the Shaoxing Municipal Government and the World Planning and Education Organization WUPEN. It is an important platform for jointly building an international digital heritage research center, aiming to gather top academicians and experts in the field of ancient city protection and development from around the world, carry out interdisciplinary and cross disciplinary cooperation, and promote the innovative development of the ancient city of Shaoxing. Shaoxing is one of the first historical and cultural cities in China, and its city site has remained unchanged for over 2500 years. In 2019, Shaoxing promulgated and implemented the "Regulations on the Protection and Utilization of Shaoxing Ancient City", and based on this, established the "Shaoxing Model" for ancient city protection, which includes "legal guarantee, government drive, social participation, think tank support, and digital empowerment of cultural and commercial integration". The ancient city of Shaoxing, covering an area of 9.09 square kilometers, has been passed down from generation to generation for over 2500 years. Through strong protection and minor updates, the Yuewang Terrace has stood for thousands of years, with Qin bricks and Han tiles, Tang and Song stone bridges, Ming and Qing dynasty pavilions and buildings, and ancient cities visible everywhere. The layout of pavilions, streets, and waterways in the ancient city of Shaoxing remains clear from ancient times to the present. During the Southern Song Dynasty, 436 locations were still scattered throughout the ancient city, with numerous place names and 110 bridges, many of which still exist today. On the 1.5-kilometer-long Cangqiao Straight Street, there are over 30 intangible cultural heritage stores. Many residents live in old houses on Cangqiao Street, doing business along the street, blending popularity and commercial atmosphere, and tourists and residents blending together. Young maker Zhang Senbiao returned to his hometown Shaoxing in 2022 and opened a coffee shop on Cangqiao Street. Running towards the ancient city has become the choice of many young people today. In recent years, Shaoxing has launched the "Ancient City Youth Maker" project and introduced policies to support and motivate young makers, using real money to encourage more young people to explore the ancient city. At present, there are over 580 young entrepreneurs settled in the ancient city. Huang Xiafeng, Deputy Director of the Shaoxing City Famous City Office, said that Shaoxing Ancient City will adhere to the principle of "protection first, minimal intervention", safeguard the traditional pattern and texture, actively create conditions to promote the application for World Heritage status of the ancient city, and continuously deepen the experience of protecting and utilizing the Cangqiao Straight Street, continuously improving the level of protection of historical and cultural blocks and residents' sense of gain. (New Society)