A copy of ‘The Complete Works of Shakespeare’ with a favourite passage from ‘Julius Caesar’ that Nelson Mandela inscribed with his signature will be displayed at the British Museum next month. The book is in fact a a copy of The Complete Works of Shakespeare that former Robben Island prisoner Sonny Venkatrathnam kept in his cell. Venkatrathnam disguised its cover with Diwali cards to prevent its seizure by prison authorities. He eventually passed it to 33 of his friends and fellow South African political prisoners, asking them to sign a passage that meant a lot to them.

A Bite of China, a hit documentary focused on Chinese cuisine, is reaching out across the ocean and attracting fans in Japan.

The Confucius Institutes are in themselves a good thing, as an international cultural presence for China and an exercise in soft power. Canadian universities and colleges, however, should refrain from partnerships with them, as they are bound to include a propagandistic element inconsistent with liberal education.

In fact, the China Cultural Center in Benin has designed a variety of classes for Beninese who are particularly enthusiastic about Chinese culture, including teaching them the Chinese language. Since the China Cultural Center opened in 1988 in Cotonou, it has been serving as a platform for the Beninese people and other Africans to deepen their understanding of China.

China’s ruling Communist party has long lamented that its “soft” power falls far short of that of the US. Efforts to improve matters, however, have been hampered by an overeager propaganda agenda. Mr Wang said this would change. “Our country puts too much emphasis on ‘going out’”...The harder you strive to do that, the less you will succeed."

The United States, while maintaining an excellent exchange program, needs to focus more efforts and resources toward empowering young people from the U.S. to not just experience foreign cultures but to engage in dialogue about pressing global issues.

It is important for us to borrow from the rich cultural content of Africa, for us to reposition Africa and ensure that culture is not only a tool of diplomacy, but that we also can deploy it to achieve economic as well as the Millennium Development goals for the continent.

Today, the U.S. Department of State announced it will raise the curtain today, June 19 on its groundbreaking cultural diplomacy initiative, Center Stage, which brings performing artists from Haiti, Indonesia, and Pakistan to the United States to engage American audiences in 60 medium- and small-sized towns and cities.