culture
A new index, which attempts to rank the countries of the world by their “goodness,” is turning heads. “What the Index does aim to do is to start a global discussion about how countries can balance their duty to their own citizens with their responsibility to the wider world, because this is essential for the future of humanity and the health of our planet,” said Anholt.
Culture can play a crucial role in diplomacy, according to the director general of the Centre for Fine Arts (Bozar) in Brussels. In an interview with New Europe, Paul Dujardin, who also serves as the centre’s artistic director, described culture as a “soft power”.
On June 26, 2014, Wilton Park published a report on their recent conference, Maximising Soft Power Assets: Towards Prosperity, which was held at the Hacienda Cantalagua, Mexico in May.
The report highlights the following key points of the conference:
A new brand campaign from Tahiti Tourisme seeks to establish a deeper mystique lying beneath the surface of the “picture postcard” beauty of the destination. With the rise of competition in the Pacific from such island destinations as Fiji and the Cooks, Tahiti Tourisme saw a need to create more differentiation. The branding is global and not specific to any particular market.
![flickr.com creative commons - felipequintanilha Brazil fans](https://uscpublicdiplomacy.org/sites/default/files/styles/275x168/public/uploads/Brazil%20World%20Cup%20edited.jpg?itok=EKpbnmga)
The World Cup might not be all hearts and roses for Brazil.
![Guests at Tokyo Disneyland, 2010/via Flickr Creative Commons Guests at Tokyo Disneyland, 2010/via Flickr Creative Commons](https://uscpublicdiplomacy.org/sites/default/files/styles/275x168/public/uploads/4836174707_9193dceccb_b.jpg?itok=AOrGnokm)
A recent book from Martha Bayles, a lecturer in humanities at Boston College, tackles the question of how American entertainment industry products confound official U.S.
![](https://uscpublicdiplomacy.org/sites/default/files/styles/275x168/public/uploads/Region-Africa.fw_.png?itok=e3SUZ1Wp)
Can culture always be used as a tool for positive public diplomacy?
he United Nations and the European Union have forged an agreement today to fund the restoration of cultural heritage in Timbuktu that was destroyed by extremists after fighting broke out in 2012 between Malian Government forces and Tuareg rebels.“This is vital for Mali and is important for the rest of the world because World Heritage is common to us all,”said UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova.