Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, said as Saturday marks this year's Cultural and Natural Heritage Day in China, hosting such an event in a place where Hongshan culture originated about 6,000 years ago has special meaning.

"The West Liaohe River Basin, akin to the Yellow and Yangtze River basins, stands as a crucial cradle of Chinese civilization. The Hongshan culture cultivated in this place shines like a bright star among the ancient cultures of Chinese civilization, which just like stars shining all over the sky," Qu said.