The Regional World Heritage Institute in Zacatecas (RWHIZ - UNESCO Category 2 Centre) participated in the opening of the exhibition *Entre Flores y Palmas: identidad, comunidad y ritual en Panchimalco* (Between Flowers and Palms: Identity, Community, and Ritual in Panchimalco). Held on September 5 at the National Museum of Popular Cultures in Mexico City, the event took place at the invitation of the Embassy of El Salvador in Mexico.

Carlos Augusto Torres Pérez, Director General of RWHIZ, joined the Ambassador of El Salvador to Mexico, Rosa Delmy Cañas, and the Director of the National Museum of Popular Cultures, Emilio Montemayor Amaya, at the opening ceremony. The program also included an artistic performance, a ribbon-cutting ceremony, and a tour of the exhibition.

The exhibition is dedicated to the Cofradía de las Flores y las Palmas (Confraternity of Flowers and Palms) of Panchimalco, which was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2025. This tradition represents a living community practice where memory, identity, social organization, and knowledge passed down through generations converge.

In his remarks, Torres Pérez highlighted that, although RWHIZ’s work primarily centers on the 1972 World Heritage Convention, the agreement establishing the Institute also recognizes the importance of fostering cooperation regarding other UNESCO heritage-related instruments and conventions. In this context, he noted the significance of supporting El Salvador in an activity linked to the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

He also emphasized the relationship RWHIZ has built with El Salvador over recent years. The country has consistently participated in the Institute’s Governing Board, and the Embassy of El Salvador in Mexico has supported various institutional activities, including the presentation of the magazine Ecos del Patrimonio (Echoes of Heritage). Additionally, in May 2025, El Salvador’s Ministry of Culture participated in the Ibero-American Symposium on Rock Art organized by RWHIZ in Zacatecas.

RWHIZ’s participation in this activity made it possible to maintain these ties and reaffirm the commitment of this UNESCO-affiliated Category 2 Centre—based in Mexico—to continue fostering spaces for cooperation, exchange, and the dissemination of the heritage of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, as well as to promote dialogue among UNESCO’s various instruments and spheres of action.