As interest in study abroad to non-traditional destinations continues to rise, so does the number of students interested in African languages and cultures. Despite the fact that there are somewhere between 1,000 and 2,500 languages spoken on the African continent (UNESCO, 2010), there are relatively limited options for students to focus on language study in Africa. New initiatives and programs designed to attract U.S. students to study in Sub-Saharan African countries focus students’ attention on a small subset of the most widely spoken African languages.

Despite growing up in the birthplace of hip-hop, Bronx resident Ronalda Livingston traveled all the way to Germany to learn more about her borough's biggest export. "It was a mind-blowing experience," said Livingston, now 21, of her first-ever overseas experience, a visit to Berlin in 2010. "I have grown so much since the trip."

Mayor Annise Parker has named former Houston Rockets' star Yao Ming as an Honorary Goodwill Ambassador for the city of Houston. In a Feb. 15 ceremony at City Hall, Yao was given a key to the city. Yao, who was in town to attend the NBA All-Star Game, will promote the city on the international stage.

As befitting a celebrated poet at the height of his powers, Robert Pinsky strides toward an interview in the company of a striking flame-haired woman in black. At 72, Pinsky comes close to fulfilling Hollywood's fantasy of what a poet ought to look like: trim and fit, with a full head of steel-gray hair and a profile eerily reminiscent of another Massachusetts poet, Robert Lowell.

The barefoot boys sit cross-legged on the stage, tuning their instruments to the droning A of the lutelike rubab. Behind them hangs a poster of Mickey and Minnie Mouse, shaking hands underneath the word “Cooperation.” Before them is an audience of mostly African American boys and girls, listening to Afghan instruments they’ve never before seen up close. As the visitors play a set of four traditional songs, heads begin to bob in the auditorium at William E. Doar Jr.

The previous Culture Post concentrated on the popular individualism and collectivism dimension. Individualism privileges the individual perspective, goals and actions. Collectivism emphasizes the perspective, goals and activities of the collective or larger group.

The Minister Darguste has laid the "foundation stone" of the cultural diplomacy, by signing a framework agreement between the Just for Laughs Festival, the National School of Humour of Montreal and the Ministry of Culture. "These are excellent Quebec institutions in the field of humor," stressed the Consul General of Haiti in Montreal, who is convinced that Haiti needs humor to thrive in an atmosphere of relaxation and provide International major performances.

Stephanie Stallings recently suggested that creative collaboration is a useful model for cultural diplomacy. She is definitely onto something. Circumstances have changed around the work of diplomacy. Publics are now much less distant, more assertive, and actively engaged participants in the making of their encompassing cultural worlds.