Bodies like the Sahitya Akademi, the Lalit Kala Akademi and the National Gallery of Modern Art opened their accounts on popular social media site Facebook some nine months ago. And while their pages are not very exciting, to get them moving in this direction was a feat in itself, accomplished largely due to the efforts of Abhay Kumar, former Deputy Secretary, Public Diplomacy, in the External Affairs Ministry, whose personal interest motivates him to keep nudging a sluggish bureaucracy.

...ICCR president Karan Singh said people have begun to think and talk about the day when India would emerge as a superpower, but its fundamental mantras are embedded in the simultaneous growth and expansion of the country... In all the countries of East Asia, South Asia and South East Asia, strong presence and influence of Hinduism, Buddhism and Indian culture had been found, he said.

Speakers of the two states discussed cooperation in economic, cultural, scientific and educational fields. At the same time, inter-parliamentary cooperation development, including within international agencies, was especially emphasized. The necessity of forming a joint position on issues of mutual importance was stressed.

The most constant part of the Olympics is the fans. Not necessarily the intense sports fans; just the people who love the Olympics, who weave their enthusiasm into their everyday lives. The Games will just never want for fans because they appeal to everyone to some degree, whether casual or passionate.

For the last two decades and more, Chinese-American Zhao Qiguang has given countless talks and lectures on Chinese culture in the United States...To Zhao, international cultural exchanges are no less important than bilateral trade, and he feels there is a definite deficit at the moment.

APDS Blogger: Sulagna Misra

“The Oak Ridge Boys have been global ambassadors of American music and culture for decades,” Dr. David Sanders, NMC Director, said. “Cultural diplomacy is more important now than ever before, and this designation is a way for us to highlight the role that musicians, creators, and artists play in bettering our nation’s relationship with the world."

Mandarin officially became part of the SPFL Program when CI-AUF signed a Memorandum of Agreement with DepEd through the Bureau of Secondary Education on May 23, 2011. The areas of partnership include training of local teachers, joint development of a curriculum, syllabus, and teaching guide for Mandarin as a foreign language.