The creation and love-child of two multi-talented persons, Roberto Ruta and Lisa Chiari, to call MENOW just a film festival would be a gross understatement. This is a meeting of minds, a salute to all the great arts and culture that the Region has to offer, complete with delicious food tastings, exclusive concerts and yes, of course, stunning new films.

Whatever happened to real cultural diplomacy with Iran? In April 1976, as part of a celebration of the bicentennial of America, I was officially invited to Tehran along with several other runway fashion models to present the collections of 16 of America's top designers.

On a political level, it is clear that both the Americans and the Vietnamese have an interest in moving past the long ago war and strengthening areas of cooperation. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the normalization of formal diplomatic relations between the United States and Vietnam and the relationship is rapidly developing.

Touted as the biggest international showcase of Singapore art and artists, the festival is co-organised by the National Heritage Board (NHB), National Arts Council and France’s Institut Francais, and comprises a whopping 70 events of all shapes and sizes.

The Modern Language Assn. reported that Korean language enrollment rose 45% from 2009 to 2013. Overall, language studies declined by 6.7% during that same period, and interest dropped in many popular ones, including Spanish, French and German.

Taiwan’s Tang Prize Foundation signed a cooperative agreement with U.S.-based Experimental Biology March 31, reaffirming TPF’s commitment to creating learning opportunities worldwide.

American universities are enrolling unprecedented numbers of foreign students, prompted by the rise of an affluent class in China and generous scholarships offered by oil-rich Gulf states such as Saudi Arabia.

Why did the US State Department sponsor international dance tours during the Cold War? An official government narrative was sanctioned and framed by the US State Department and its partner organization, the United States Information Agency (USIA—and USIS abroad). However, the tours countered that narrative.