[W]e found that the ICRC tends to issue such statements only after a massacre has already taken place. For instance, when we studied the Bosnian civil war, we examined the timing of the use of force and the public diplomacy in the form of “naming and shaming” the disputants. The ICRC voiced its concerns 13 times, 11 times quite mildly. The ICRC reacts to international humanitarian law abuses. But its public condemnations do not reduce the carnage in the weeks that follow.

Tags: international committee of the red cross, red cross, non-state pd, public diplomacy, name and shame campaign, international law, geneva convention

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you to the State Department today in honor of Our Cities, Our Climate – an initiative between the State Department and Bloomberg Philanthropies.[...]At the center of the State Department’s public diplomacy is the mission to connect the United States with the world to foster creative and powerful networks of citizens around the world to build common understanding.

Tags: mayor’s office of international affairs, united states, public diplomacy, state pd, climate change, city diplomacy, united nations, michael bloomberg, john kerry, our cities our climate, public-private partnership

Global youth are tackling the root causes of extremism. Over 70 youth leaders from around the globe met recently in New York, developed an action agenda, and shared it with President Obama at the Leaders’ Summit on Countering ISIL and Violent Extremism.

Tags: #Youth4Peace, advocacy, extremism, counter-extremism, obama, united states, al-shabaab, digital diplomacy and new tech, youth leaders, islam, cameroon, Cultural Diplomacy, #ifmyvoicewasheard

Okinawa, Japan - The governor of this island, Takeshi Onaga, has annoyed both Washington and Tokyo by taking the case of his people against a US military base directly to the UN Human Rights Council.

Tags: public opinion, international image, japan, united states, military, east asia

The image and caption were posted by a right-wing Japanese artist last month. Now, more than 10,000 people have signed a Change.org petition in Japanese urging Facebook to take it down. The petition, posted by an account calling itself the "Don't Allow Racism Group", [...] demands that "Facebook must recognize an illustration insulting Syrian refugees as racism."

Tags: non-state pd, Cultural Diplomacy, japan, united states, east asia, international broadcasting

Kathleen McGinn, a professor of negotiation at Harvard Business School, wondered: Could Zambian schoolgirls stay in school if they received training in negotiation — a version of the same training given to Harvard MBAs, undergrads and executives? […] With the help of the Zambian Ministry of Education and the New Haven-based Innovations for Poverty Action, a research nonprofit, they're hoping to find out.

Tags: global aid & development, non-state pd, international exchange, education, zambia, africa, harvard, women's empowerment

Kickstarter, in what The New York Times calls its “first social service campaign” has partnered with the United Nations Refugee Agency for a week long campaign to raise funds to support Syrian refugees as they build new lives for themselves in Europe.

Tags: non-state pd, global aid & development, digital diplomacy, refugees, syria, international advocacy, middle east, europe

Kinmen (Taiwan) is eyeing closer commercial ties with China. China is seeking unification with Taiwan under its "one country, two systems" formula by which Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to Chinese rule in 1997. And Kinmen, or "Golden Gate", is a test for China's ambitions to recover Taiwan through soft power.

Tags: government pd, international business, china, taiwan, soft power, east asia