Cultural Diplomacy

Nearly two dozen ambassadors representing countries on five continents will spend three days learning about Wyoming’s remarkable history, exploring its environmental wonders, engaging with experts about conservation efforts, and interacting with the state’s public and private sector leaders.

The resolution on Sri Lanka at the recently held UNHRC secessions in Geneva has caused Sri Lanka to reassess the effectiveness of its investment in the deployment of diplomatic capital - its soft power. A direct consequence of this assessment has been to summon Heads of Sri Lankan Mission for a briefing by the President who emphasized the need to focus on Public Diplomacy and to realign its missions abroad.

July 12, 2012

IT SOUNDS like the beginning of a bizarre guessing game. As of this month, the following unlikely mixture of people and agencies found themselves tarred with the same brush: Liverpool City Council, the developers and municipal authorities of Panama, the Islamist rebels of West Africa and the quarrelsome bishops of some ancient Christian churches in the Middle East. They all bear a share of responsibility for the fate of places that have recently been deemed by UNESCO to be “World Heritage Sites in danger”.

Panda diplomacy has become a pillar of China's soft power strategy, but the death of a week-old baby panda in Japan -- the first born to Tokyo's Ueno zoo in 24 years -- stands to disappoint those who hoped that its birth would motivate "people-to-people sentiment" and help overcome the strained China-Japan relationship.

Kevin Wang, another student said: "I can't imagine that I can fly 26 hours through half earth to The Gambia, and interact with students. The whole Africa is a secret and strange place to us. I'm looking forward to experience local culture and different lifestyle. I hope we can show them Taiwanese culture during the two weeks, and be friends even after this activity is over."

A group of representatives from Taiwan's diplomatic allies in the Pacific is visiting Taiwan to learn more about the country's development, as part of Taiwan's cultural diplomacy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

Culture can play an integral part in promoting the realisation of the vision of the East African Community through cultural dialogue. If more cross-country cultural events are held in the five member states on a rotating basis, citizens from these nations will better understand each other's cultures and integration will be easier.

The 2012 Taiwan Study Camp for Future Leaders of Pacific Allies, aiming to promote Taiwan’s cultural diplomacy and demonstrate its soft power, kicked off July 9 in Taipei, according to event-organizer the ROC Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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