China ranks top among emerging economies in exercising intangible power, according to the soft power index report released by consulting firm Ernst & Young...A country's intangible power varies in terms of global image, global integration and global integrity, each of which include several factors such as media exports, tourism and carbon emissions, according to Ernst & Young.

Confucius Institutes (CIs) and Confucius Classrooms (CCs) have mushroomed in the US since the establishment of the first CI at the University of Maryland in 2004. Currently there are 81 CIs and more than 300 CCs in the US. Since its establishment, the CI-UHM has contributed greatly to the US, both educationally and economically, via academic activities and cultural exchanges.

But today an op-ed appeared which made it quite clear that anybody who messes with China’s dignity should expect a flaming bag of cat hurled in the general direction of their front door sometime in the very near future....This is China at its soft power worst, scoring goals in its own net and making it exponentially harder to convince the rest of the world that the country is being run by grown-ups.

"The old public diplomacy was, 'You tell me what you think and I tell you what I think, and that's the end,'" the former ambassador told China Daily at the Meridian International Center, which is situated in a historic mansion in the US capital.

The Baima people, a mysterious ethnic group inhabiting forest areas along the Baishuijiang River in southwest China, are striving to promote their unique culture so to help the world know more about their history, art, and customs that have been preserved for thousands of years.

I had an opportunity to visit Ethiopia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe in November 2011. As I traveled from north to south on the African continent, I was able to take a close look at African culture. The trip convinced me that Africa is not a "cultural desert" as some have claimed, but an oasis steeped in culture.

The famous Chinese artist and dissident Ai Weiwei once wrote in a blog, "To express yourself needs a reason, but expressing yourself is a reason." In the highly censored world of Chinese media, this sums up the growing consensus within that country -- and around the world -- that the freedom of expression and dissent is important as an ends, and not just a means.

The meeting will contribute to the formulation of a comprehensive European strategy for culture and has a special focus on the relationship between the EU and China.