actress and comedian Rose Nyabhate is championing the rights of the girl child via an anti-female genital mutilation campaign dubbed 'We Are Watching'. According to her, having grown up in a rural area where FGM is rampant, gave her and fellow partners the basis to start the initiative which aims at sensitizing community members against the risky practice.

Tags: Social Marketing Campaign, gender issues, fgm, campaigns against female genital mutilation, celebrity diplomacy, human rights

The beheading of American journalist James Foley, apparently by a British jihadist, has drawn renewed attention to the dangers posed by radicalized young British Muslims. The government estimates that 500 or more British men and women have gone to fight for militant groups in Iraq and Syria, some of whom have already returned.Britain monitors its citizens on social media sites as part of its counter-terrorism strategy.

Tags: counter-terrorism, faith diplomacy, diaspora diplomacy

Capitalizing on the immense popularity of the ALS ice bucket challenge, an Indian woman has conceived of the rice bucket challenge as a way to encourage charity for the poor. Unlike the ice bucket challenge, which requires the participant to dump a bucket of cold water over their head, the rice bucket challenge asks that participants simply donate a bucket of rice to somebody in need.

Tags: Social Marketing Campaign, india, social media, advocacy

As Skopje 2014 nears completion, it continues to divide Macedonia over its cultural legacy and role in society. “The new area is just about making money – it isn’t anything about culture,” says one older merchant in the Old Bazaar, the heart of the former Ottoman city, dismissing the new development. “That is one thing, this is another.” Mr. Nikoleski disagrees. “Skopje 2014 will be great for Macedonia," he says. "With cheap flights and this new development more and more people will visit here and see our own culture.”

Tags: macedonia, nation branding, soft power, albania, history, Cultural Diplomacy, tourism

Assistant of Islamic Relations and Propagation of Astan Quds Razavi said, “Holy Astans and shrines of the Infallible Imams (A.S.) are the soft power of the Islamic World whose spiritual capacities should be employed.”

Tags: soft power, imam, islamic world, faith diplomacy, islam

Google “Kosovo”, and Petrit Selimi knows exactly what you’re going to see: dry, diplo-speak scouting reports at best, and depressing references to past conflicts at worst. It’s not exactly the promotional buzz a fledgling country with sights set on global integration would hope for*. To Selimi, Kosovo’s Deputy Foreign Secretary and a pioneer in Digital Diplomacy, this is a major problem.

Tags: digital diplomacy, kosovo, tourism, sports, public diplomacy, government pd

"We know our performances are a fantastic way for people to demonstrate their connections to lead politicians in both countries and to forge relationships at a cultural diplomacy level. We have a five-year vision and we would like some people who want to be part of that journey," she says. Tours are expensive for the company that, with a turnover of A$50 million (about HK$361 million), receives just 16.3 per cent of its funding from state and federal governments. 

Tags: china, australia, ballet, dance diplomacy, Cultural Diplomacy, asia

This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of diplomatic relations between France and Communist China. Urged on by President Charles de Gaulle, in 1964, the French became the first Western nation to recognize the new government in Beijing, much to the disgust of the Americans. A long established diplomatic bond of trust exists between the two nations, albeit a bond that has been stretched on one or two occasions. 

Tags: china, france, history & theory, hong kong, public diplomacy, soft power, economic ties