Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) has become a widely acknowledged priority for sustaining cultural continuity in a rapidly changing world. What sets China apart in this global endeavor is the scale and diversity of its actions. Over the past two decades, national and local governments have invested unprecedented resources in ICH protection. By 2024, more than 11.38 billion yuan (USD 1.6 billion) had been allocated, almost 4,000 national-level inheritors officially recognized, and hundreds of practices included in national inventories and UNESCO lists. These initiatives extend beyond preservation alone. They form part of a broader strategy linking cultural heritage to tourism, rural revitalization, educational reform, and digital innovation.In light of these developments, the Chinese experience must enter the international debate. China’s ongoing negotiation between preservation and modernization, and between authenticity and adaptation, speaks directly to challenges faced elsewhere. At a time when societies worldwide struggle with how to sustain cultural diversity while fostering inclusive education, China offers distinctive approaches that combine large-scale policy measures with community engagement and grassroots creativity.This panel brings together scholars whose professional trajectories bridge Chinese and international contexts. Each has pursued advanced studies abroad, engaging deeply with multicultural pedagogical approaches, while remaining grounded in Chinese traditions of music education. Their contributions combine policy analysis, classroom research, and community-based studies. Together, they explore how institutional frameworks and lived practice intersect in the transmission of ICH and the development of multicultural music education.The six presentations are:1. From Preservation to Strategic Governance: A Grounded Analysis of China’s ICH Policy, 1949-2025Through a grounded theory analysis of policy documents from 1949 to 2025, this study charts the transition from an emphasis on “preservation” to a model of “strategic governance.” It shows how policies have responded to social change by integrating ICH into tourism, rural development, education, and digital culture.2. Revitalizing Intangible Cultural Heritage through Interactive Music Education: An Online Playhouse Approach to Lion Dance in Hong KongThis paper examines the use of an online playhouse platform to transmit lion dance traditions. It demonstrates how interactive digital tools can revitalize heritage practices and expand participation in a globalized urban setting.3. Normative Transmission and Pluralistic Integration: Dual Missions of Intangible Cultural Heritage Music Education in Beijing SchoolsBased on a comparative study of a public school and an international school, this research uncovers two complementary logics in ICH music education: the normative transmission of cultural orthodoxy and the pluralistic integration of global perspectives. The findings highlight the dual mission of balancing cultural identity with cosmopolitan learning.4. Teaching Cantonese Opera in a University-Community Graduate Programme: Collaboration Between Music Teachers and ArtistsDrawing on three years of practice, this presentation analyzes a collaborative teaching programme where university faculty and Cantonese Opera artists jointly deliver courses. It highlights how institutional and community expertise can be integrated to create new modes of ICH transmission.5. The Lived Experiences of Older Adults’ Re-socialization in an Invented String Instrument ClassroomThis phenomenological study investigates how older adults in China re-engage with cultural life through learning the Little Four-String (中华小四弦). It shows how music education can contribute to re-socialization, intergenerational transmission, and renewed cultural participation in later life.Taken together, these contributions demonstrate how safeguarding ICH and advancing multicultural music education can be pursued through many pathways: from national policy and school curricula to community engagement, digital innovation, and intergenerational learning. The central argument of the panel is that safeguarding must move beyond preservation alone toward integration, co-creation, and long-term cultural sustainability. By situating Chinese practices within an international dialogue, the panel aims to provide fresh insights into the future of ICH safeguarding and the evolving role of multicultural music education worldwide.