A bird's-eye view of Daming Lake, the only lake in the world formed by springs. [Photo/WeChat Account: jnslyj]

Jinan has been ramping up efforts to boost its culture and tourism industries since it was selected as a candidate of the 2022 Culture City of East Asia in 2019, local media reported.

A part of a joint activity by China, Japan and South Korea, the East Asia City of Culture program was first proposed by the cultural ministers of the three countries in 2011.

The campaign aims to promote regional cultural diversity and increase mutual understanding among the three countries. Since the program was launched in 2013, 25 cities from the three countries have been designated as Culture City of East Asia.

Baihuazhou Historical and Cultural Block lights up as night falls. [Photo/WeChat account: jnslyj]

The Jinan government has placed much emphasis on earning the title of Culture City of East Asia as it will provide an opportunity for Jinan to enhance its international influence and promote the city's high-quality development of cultural and tourism industries, local officials said.

According to Zhi Liang, director of Jinan municipal culture and tourism bureau, the assessment indicators for Culture City of East Asia has largely corresponded with Jinan's efforts in urban construction such as external cultural exchanges, public cultural services, inheritance and preservation of intangible cultural heritage, and protection and utilization of cultural relics.

With a history of more than 4,000 years, Jinan, an ancient city in East China's Shandong province, has had a uniquely successful experience in cultural heritage protection.

Jinan, dubbed as the City of Springs, boasts numerous springs including 72 famous ones, such as the Baotu Spring and Black Tiger Spring that contribute to elegant and scenery in the city. The city's unique spring water landscape was included on the preliminary list of UNESCO world cultural heritage sites in 2019.

The Jinan delegation cheers at the 2019 International Award for Livable Communities after winning the highest award in Rome on Dec 13, 2019. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The local government has attempted to maintain the authentic look of the city's historical and cultural areas, such as Mingfucheng Historical Area and Baihuazhou Historical and Cultural Block.

The Mingfucheng Historical Area boasts a rich variety of ancient buildings built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and is a good place for visitors to get to know the city's history.

The Baihuazhou Historical and Cultural Block is now a demonstration zone for the preservation of traditional architecture and renovation for modern use. A traditional handicraft workshop featuring some 126 examples of intangible cultural heritages and traditional handicrafts, including shadow puppets, paper-cutting and wood carving, is situated in the block.

Moreover, as an important city located along the Yellow River, the city is also planning to build a Yellow River Cultural Tourism Belt with international influence by cooperating with more cities along the river.

For cultural exchanges, Jinan has established 10 cultural exchange centers in Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, Russia, South Africa and countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative in 2020. More activities will also be held in future to promote international cultural exchanges.