CPD Perspectives on the EU's International Cultural Relations

In the latest issue of CPD Perspectives on Public Diplomacy, CPD Research Fellow Mafalda Dâmaso analyzes the European Union's approach to international cultural relations (ICR).

Dâmaso emphasizes the need to redefine the relationship between culture and diplomacy as a means to help practitioners respond to challenges likely to emerge during the implementation of ICR. Her research includes interviews with ICR experts, cultural actors, members of EU delegations and staff of cultural institutes involved in six European Spaces of Culture pilot projects in Benin, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Honduras, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and the U.S. (2019–2021) and concludes that successful delivery of the EU’s approach to cultural relations requires a combination of knowledge, skills and competencies that cannot be provided by either diplomatic or cultural management training alone.

"Cultural diplomacy supports a traditional approach to diplomacy while cultural relations is profoundly revolutionary. The latter redefines who are the actors of diplomacy, the timeframe in which it operates, and how its success should be measured," writes Dâmaso.

Download the full text here.