A curated selection of public diplomacy-relevant news from a global cross-section of English-language media outlets, including independent, corporate-owned, and state-sponsored sources. The stories featured don't necessarily represent CPD's views nor have they been verified by CPD.

Super Abe was a Taste of Tokyo's 2020 Olympic Campaign

Tokyo stole the show at the Olympic closing ceremony in Rio de Janeiro this week as the event's next host city prepares for a cultural charm offensive ahead of the 2020 Games. In a surprise move, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe dressed up as Super Mario at the ceremony

Tags: shinzo abe, japan, 2020 summer olympics, cool japan, Cultural Diplomacy, soft power, tourism, social media

Int'l Students Gather to Celebrate Turkish Culture at Festival

Organized by the Yunus Emre Institute under the auspices of the Presidency, the seceond Turkish Language Festival will take place on Aug. 27 at the Ülker Sports Arena, which will host 540 students from 46 countries. [...] The event comes at a meaningful time with ongoing conflicts dividing countries all around the world. 

Tags: international students, turkish culture, Cultural Diplomacy, cultural exchange, international exchange, turkey, language, national image

Diplomacy and the Diaspora

It is the imperative to include overseas Indians in India’s economic development and to take care of their needs and aspirations. Successive governments have been vying with each other to give more and more concessions to them as acknowledgment of their contribution by way of remittances, investment, lobbying for India, promoting Indian culture abroad and for building a good image of India by their intelligence and industry.

Tags: india, diaspora, indian diaspora, Indian Diplomacy, narendra modi, government pd, foreign policy, national image

Xinjiang-Themed Cultural Festival in Tehran Promotes China-Iran Exchange

With the aim to promote China-Iran exchange and cooperation, a Chinese cultural festival opened at Niavaran Cultural Center in the Iranian capital Tehran on Monday. The one-week event, titled "2016 Experience China in Iran," features northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region through a photo exhibition and other cultural activities.

Tags: tehran, china, iran, cultural festivals, Cultural Diplomacy, cultural exchange, xinjiang

Russia's Eurasian Identity as Part of its Strategy

What do these three recent events tell us about Russian foreign policy? Putin is able to think strategically, using all hard and soft power tools to promote Russian foreign policy interests. To the average Western observer, Russia's recent actions in the Caspian, Iran or its CSTO military exercise are viewed as three different and unrelated things. 

Tags: russia, eurasia, soft power, vladimir putin, hard power, foreign policy, united states, government pd, Opinion

Indonesia and Australia – Opportunities Abound

A clear majority of Australians (72 percent) said they would like to learn more about Indonesian culture — a strong finding for champions of cultural diplomacy. When the discussions turned to education, the alignment was unmistakable: 57 percent of Indonesians said they would like to learn more about Australia and a similar number (59 percent) agreed basic education about Australia should be improved in Indonesian schools. 

Tags: indonesia, australia, Cultural Diplomacy, cultural exchange, education, public opinion polls, bilateral relations

Connecting Cultures while Learning a New Language too

the 27-year-old decided to come up with a better solution: learning language through talking. He launched Poliglota, a platform that organizes conversation groups for people seeking to learn a new language. The groups gather in public spaces such as parks, coffee shops and bars to converse. Anyone can join or host a group for free.

Tags: Cultural Diplomacy, language, latin america, poliglota, young leaders, social entrepreneurship, start ups, Digital Diplomacy & New Technology

Rethinking Women’s Role in Saudi Diplomacy with UK

Around a third of Saudi scholarship students in the UK are female, many of them outstanding scholars, creative artists and filmmakers. They are a massive soft-power asset that could aid Saudi Arabia address foreign public opinion about how Saudi women are benefiting from greater political, social and economic roles. Saudi diplomacy with the UK is mostly mediated by elites. 

Tags: saudi arabia, uk, soft power, international relations, international exchange, saudi women, Opinion

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