"Cultural Heritage Promotional Project in Macao" has been prepared by the Cultural Institute of the Macao S.A.R. Government (IC), since the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural organization (UNESCO) accepted "Macao's Cultural Heritage" into the application list of the "World Heritage" on June 29, 2001. The "World Heritage" classification was granted by the UNESCO, to preserve exceptional character of ancient structures, both cultural and natural.

To achieve its aims of enhancing the recognition and the knowledge of cultural relics in Macao, the IC has successively produced a series of promotional programs since last year, which mainly included two programs: "Recruitment of Cultural Ambassadors" and "Briefing of Macao Cultural Heritages to All the Macao Secondary Schools."

Two competitions, which were named "Photographic Competition of Macao Heritage" and "Writing Competition of Macao Heritage", were held respectively in previous year to increase teenagers' awareness and knowledge in this project. It was expected that it could not only enhance citizens' awareness to cherish cultural heritages, but also remind them of preserving Macao's identity.

According to Cultural Insitute, several Macao historical sites were listed in the World Heritage Project. They included "Barra Temple", "(Moorish Barracks) Maritime Administration Building", "The Mandarin's House", "Saint Joseph's Seminary, Church", "Guia Fort and Lighthouse", "Leng Nam School Building", "The General Post Office", "Leal Senado Building", "Dom Pedro V Theatre", "Sir Robert Ho Tung Library", "St. Dominic's Church", "Ruins of St. Paul's."

It was pointed out that each selected historical site possessed its unique architectural style and could represent different cultural aspects of Macao. Its uniqueness reminded people that Macao was not just the only city in China where gambling was legal, but was also the only place where Chinese and Western cultures co-existed for hundreds of years.

"More values would be added to Macao's cultural image, hoping that Macao could benefit by becoming an international city after its participation." Ms. Heidi Ho, the President of the Cultural Institute, revealed at the opening ceremony of "Cultural Heritage Promotional Project in Macao".

Could the perspective of Macao be improved as what the Macao government had said about the Heritage Project? 20 UM students were asked to express their opinions towards this topic. Six of them thought that it could bring negative effects to Macao since there would be more regulations that might affect the land value, housing or transportation in order to preserve the proposed sites. Moreover, Macao citizens might need to pay more tax to support this Heritage project.

The rest of the students held optimistic attitudes towards this. They thought that Macao Heritage had its unique identities, which combined the architectural styles of the west and the east, which couldn't be found elsewhere. If it was approved, it could push Macao's tourism to another climax and the economic status of Macao would be improved as well. One student especially pointed out that it was important for teenagers and future generations. "We tend to forget where we came from and what our past was like as we are merely surrounded by new buildings." She said. "Therefore, we should pay close attention to preserve our heritages as well as developing our city."