Hans d’Orville
Former Assistant Director-General for Strategic Planning, UNESCO
Special Advisor to the UNESCO Development Group
Honorary Professor, Institute of Public Policy, South China University of Technology
Host Bio
Between 2000 and 2015, Deputy Director-General and Assistant Director-General for Strategic Planning of UNESCO. From 1975-2000 with the UN Secretariat and UNDP in New York. Simultaneously, he served for 10 years as Executive Coordinator of the InterAction Council of former Heads of State and Government.
Advisor to several international initiatives, such as the Africa Leadership Forum, Nigeria, the Center for China&Globalization, and the Eco-Forum Global (EFG) and its International Advisory Council in Guiyang, China. Since 2019, Chairman of the Advisory Committee of the International Center for Creativity and Sustainable Development ((CCSD), Beijing.
Currently also Honorary Professor at the South China University of Technology in Guangzhou; the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies; and the Shandong University for Arts and Design in Jinan; as well as member of the International Advisory Board of Global Engagement of Tongji University in Shanghai and Non-resident Senior Fellow, The Center for International Relations, Qianhai (Shenzhen).
Being a Fellow of the World Academy of Arts and Sciences, he also is a Board member of the German Association for the UN, and several cultural associations, such as the Friends of the German Pavilion at the Venice Biennale.He holds an MA and PhD in economics from the University of Konstanz, Germany.
Artificial intelligence and innovation driving prosperity, inclusive development and the creative economy in the APEC region
Abstract/Summary
The preparatory phase leading up to the November 2026 APEC summit allows for some reflections on specific issues that could be of relevance for the Asia-Pacific region and communities.
The official theme for APEC China 2026 will be "Building an Asia-Pacific Community to Prosper Together". Underpinning this main subject, China as host country has identified three overarching pillars:
Openness
Trade liberalization
Economic integration
Advancing the proposed Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP)
Addressing protectionism and trade barriers
Innovation
Digital economy
Artificial intelligence (AI)
Emerging technologies
Innovation-driven growth
Cooperation
Regional connectivity
Sustainable development
Inclusive growth
Cross-border policy coordination
China's core priority of "Innovation" explicitly highlights AI and other frontier technologies as new engines of growth, while seeking to ensure that the benefits of technology are broadly shared.
AI and digitalization are powerful tools rather than guaranteed solutions. If APEC members invest in digital infrastructure, skills, innovation, and inclusive policies, these technologies can help reduce development gaps by improving productivity and expanding opportunities. If access to technology, education, and investment remains uneven, however, AI and digitalization could widen existing economic and social inequalities within the Asia-Pacific region. Because APEC brings together 21 Asia-Pacific economies with diverse levels of development, it provides a forum for cooperation, dialogue, and the sharing of best practices rather than imposing regulations. For APEC members, the green transition is closely linked to innovation and inclusive development.
APEC is well positioned to coordinate and enhance sustainability and digital standards by promoting dialogue, capacity building, and voluntary alignment among its members. While it cannot enforce common rules, it can help develop shared principles, encourage best practices, and foster regional cooperation, making it an important platform for advancing sustainable and inclusive growth in the Asia-Pacific region.
Given China's emphasis on regional cooperation, cultural exchange and the creative economy, culture may assume the role of a supporting theme for the APEC summit. As increasingly important components of the digital and the creative economy, culture and artificial intelligence intersect.
AI and culture together possess a transformative role in advancing sustainable development and in promoting the cultural and creative sectors. Overall, AI can help tackle most environmental sustainability issues and strengthen inclusive and sustainable cultural ecosystems. While AI is a powerful tool - culture is the compass that guides its direction. AI is not culturally neutral. It is reshaping culture at all levels and in all fields. When responsibly governed, AI can support cultural diversity, increase access to cultural content, preserve endangered traditions and foster intercultural dialogue.
Culture influences lifestyles, creative innovation, ethical technology use, and preservation of indigenous knowledge systems. Culturally grounded AI systems can integrate indigenous and traditional ecological knowledge. However, the use of AI still needs to overcome critical challenges, such as the digital divide between the Global North and the Global South, cultural biases inherent in AI datasets, the risk of cultural homogenization, data privacy concerns and excessive energy and water consumption harmful to sustainability.
The convergence of AI and culture presents a strategic opportunity to advance sustainable modernization through high-quality, green, and inclusive AI infrastructure in alignment with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.
