Culture is Carbohydrate of Development

ENCATC is strongly committed to preserving heritage and is it partnered for a second time with the Foundation Frison Horta in Brussels to bring an exciting conference for ENCATC Cultural Happy Hour guests.

On 11 July it was the occasion to deepen knowledge on Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) at the Conference "Culture is Carbohydrate of Development" with guest speaker Amitava Bhattacharya, a social entrepreneur with 30 years of global experience specialising in Culture and Development.

Organised by the Foundation Frison Horta and held at the beautiful Maison Frison (designed by the Belgian architect Victor Horta in 1894) it was the ideal setting to learn how investment in ICH directly benefits communities, helps in strengthening identity as well as cultural diversity, skill development and empowerment, developing creative enterprise, and generating new resources.

Amitava Bhattacharya’s flagship initiative “Art for Life” (AFL), is a unique model on Culture and Development, addressing SDGs using Intangible Cultural Heritage. It is a success story and has received global recognition and accreditation from UNESCO, UNWTO and UN ECOSOC. Thanks to the expertise and stories shared by, there was no doubt how investment in ICH is critical for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)!

The owner and founder of the Foundation Frison Horta is Nupur Tron. The Foundation is an active cultural bridge between east and west, restoring, preserving and sustaining rich-art and craft of the by-gone era, in an artistic art de vivre form. It has the aim to foster greater understanding and appreciation of rich heritage, Métiers d’Art and cultural traditions of the east, particularly of India in Europe and vice versa, due to which a wider audience is getting aware of restoration and preservation - the revival of Art Nouveau in its full-form. It also communicates how important it is to save the handful of buildings left of Horta, witnessing the Belle époque and rich métiers des arts and craftsmanship of a by-gone era. It is most crucial to preserve them as these are rare architectural jewels.