The recently tabled report on Australia's Overseas Representation – Punching below our weight? by the Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee of the Australian Parliament confirmed what many concerned stakeholders such as the Lowy Institute, peak business groups, DFAT chiefs and operatives, aid organisations and diasporas have been saying for a long time.

What the people think of their leadership and government will be increasingly reflected not in the traditional print and TV media, but in the digital media and in the blogs and micro-blogs of the digital world. The digital image of China in the international net community will increasingly influence governmental and non-governmental perceptions of China.

Ironically, technology has radically democratized nearly every social institution and industry except democracy itself. A handful among us are pioneering ways to bring transparency and interactivity to the process of self-government. On the eve of America’s political new year, Election Day, we highlight this year’s most innovative people in democracy.

t’s a wildly popular website laden with unlicensed songs and Hollywood movies, a prime exhibit of the digital piracy that affects the music industry in Asia and eroding legitimate online sales around the world. But a few clicks inside the free-to-download bonanza that has pushed Vietnam’s Zing.vn into the globe’s top 550 websites reveals a surprising presence, the American government, which maintains a bustling social media account on the site.

If not for a lottery on the micro blog of the Italian embassy's culture office, Wang Yueyue, a fan of traditional Chinese operas, may never have thought of listening to an Italian one. "I haven't watched any foreign operas because I'm afraid my local ears can't get used to them. Besides, you know, anything foreign in China costs too much," said Wang, a Beijing resident in her 30s.

Interview with Charmaine Crooks, a Canadian athlete, five-time Olympian and member of the “Champions for Peace” club, a group of 54 famous elite athletes committed to serving peace in the world through sport. Ms. Crooks believes sports to be a very powerful opportunity to put the spotlight on peace.

In what experts describe as an unusual form of public diplomacy, U.S. colleges have created State-Department-funded “American Cultural Centers” in partnership with Chinese host universities. “Their primary purpose is to expose Chinese audiences to the depth and breadth of U.S. culture,” said Erik W. Black, an assistant cultural affairs officer at the American embassy in Beijing.

Turkish municipalities are developing sister city relations with their counterparts in Balkans, as the two sides aim to boost economic, cultural, educational and people-to-people contacts to foster mutual understanding and co-operation.