India’s Festival of Lights — is celebrated by Hindus worldwide, and often by Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, too. The holiday is increasingly popular in the United States, where the traditional diya (clay lamp) symbolizing the triumph of good over evil is seen from coast to coast.

In a message marking the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, Irina Bokova, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), highlighted that celebrating cultural diversity is a way of recognizing that “the wealth of cultures is the constitutive power of humanity and an important asset for peace and development, the promotion of which is inseparable from the observance of human rights.”

As India celebrated its 66th Republic Day with much fanfare in the presence of US President Barack Obama, it has diligently, over the years, turned the parade that was initially envisaged as a platform to demonstrate military might into one that exhibits its soft power to the world.

Danny Cohen, head of the BBC's television output, has promised viewers that the corporation will not make any more all-male comedy panel shows. Following recommendations made by the BBC Trust last year, Cohen has underlined his determination to see women appearing in the habitually macho environment of panel shows such as QI and Mock the Week. Talking to the Observer about his plans for better representing his audiences on screen, Cohen said: "We're not going to have any more panel shows with no women on them. It's not acceptable."

With Europe in the midst of an economic crisis, reconsidering its very identity, is there still room for cultural exchange? The ECB's Culture Days bring a bit of color to what seems at times like a bleak political table.