01808nas a2200169   4500000000100000008004100001653001000042653002200052653003800074653002200112653002500134100001100159700001600170245006600186856015400252520123200406                                       d10aChina10aChinese discourse10aWhole-nation system (juguo tizhi)10acultural heritage10acultural nationalism1 aZ. Liu1 aJ.-A. Chang00aWhen the whole-nation system meets cultural heritage in China  uhttps://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85173117992&doi=10.1080%2f10286632.2023.2249488&partnerID=40&md5=cf2981a432d0b8f1ed7a9870d7dab14b3 aIn this article, we explore how China mobilised its unique whole-nation system (juguo tizhi) to become a global cultural power, focusing on the encounter between Chinese and global heritage discourses. This article is based on field ethnography of three World Heritage sites in Hangzhou, China: The West Lake Cultural Landscape, the Grand Canal of China, and the Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City. The juguo tizhi is a hierarchical system mobilised to achieve national goals. In the process of China’s ‘successful’ inscribing of cultural heritage sites based on juguo tizhi, we suggest that Chinese heritage discourses are compromised, and grassroots discourses are overshadowed. The juguo tizhi reinforces statist narratives more than it protects Chinese culture, which, we argue, is linked to the tensions between cultural and national nationalism. Furthermore, we suggest that China is now moving beyond the compromising Chinese heritage discourse phase to align with global heritage discourse, and has begun to present the Chinese discourse internationally, where the juguo tizhi is mobilised. It will be noteworthy to observe how this occurrence will affect China and the global heritage landscape in the future.