Like many cities, Hong Kong struggles to balance modernisation with cultural preservation – an endeavour made more challenging by its powerful property developers and colonial past.

Fearing that local traditions were being eroded, martial arts fanatic Hing Chao decided to do something about it, establishing the Hong Kong Culture Festival to promote and sustain intangible culture. That was four years ago, and this year the five-month festival kicks off on September 14, with the opening of the “Safeguarding the Community: An Intangible Cultural Heritage New Media Exhibition”, at the City Hall Exhibition Hall, in Central.

“Through this festival we aim to raise public interest and encourage participation in traditional culture, particularly among youths,” says Chao, a scion of the Wah Kwong shipping empire and a co-founder of the International Guoshu Association, a charity dedicated to reviving Chinese sports and classical martial arts. “As a platform for collaboration across different cultural fields, it is also our goal to nurture creative talent and inject innovation into traditional culture.”