China zoomed past India as the main source of foreign students coming to the United States to attend college, with a 30 percent jump in Chinese students in a single year, according to a new report released today.

U.S. students studied in significantly greater numbers in less traditional destinations in 2008-2009, according to the new Open Doors survey report released today by the Institute of International Education (IIE) with funding from the U.S. Department of State.

Next Summer's Edinburgh International Festival will focus on the cultures of Asia and the influence of Eastern cultures on artists in the West. Announcing the Festival 2011 theme ‘To the Far West’ in Beijing today, Festival Director Jonathan Mills promised "a heady three weeks of exquisite artistic exploration which I hope will intoxicate audiences."

They are completely in love with the traditional dance forms of India. They take inspiration from Indians when it comes to dressing up. They relish Indian delicacies. But most importantly, one thing they truly cherish than anything else is to strike a conversation in Hindi. And it doesn’t end here.

Maximum India - a festival of India - will be held in Washington in March next year, showcasing Indian textiles, dance, music and cuisine to allow Americans 'experience' what US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle experienced in India.

Following British Prime Minister David Cameron and his country's biggest-ever delegation to China last week, Vernon Ellis, chair of the British Council, shared his vision towards cooperation with China in terms of culture and education with the Global Times Thursday in Beijing.

When Pakistani Americans Mahnaz Fancy and Zeyba Rahman launched Pakistani Peace Builders (PPB) in May, they did so to bring Pakistani music and heritage to American audiences. An independent cultural diplomacy campaign, PPB aimed to counteract stereotypes and misperceptions of Pakistanis that Fancy and Rahman saw becoming more prominent.

Iraq is back in the news, making headlines for the horrific attack on a Baghdad Catholic church that left 58 dead. It is yet another event that has widened the gap in American-Iraqi understanding and one that, for me, only reinforces the need for more opportunities for exchange and interaction between our two countries.