As part of a new federally sponsored program called OneBeat, 32 musicians from 21 countries on 5 continents, almost equally divided between men and women, were brought together to write, produce and record original music and take it on the road for American audiences.

Electricity is a key to Ethiopia’s future. However, historically, proposed exploitation of these resources has brought it in to diplomatic conflict with downstream states, namely Egypt. Now Ethiopia has more successfully levied its regional diplomatic power to ensure the Egyptian government is no longer able to block its attempts to produce the hydroelectric power and irrigation necessary to power its growing economy.

In China, the Gangnam phenomenon carries a special pique. It has left people asking, Why couldn’t we come up with that?... For now, China’s Gangnam moment seems far off. “In China, culture and the arts develop under the watchful eye of the government, and anything too hip or interesting gets either shut down or bought up."

Embassies perform a crucial role in maintaining diplomatic ties with foreign governments, but their function is to maintain economic, political and cultural engagement with people living in distant lands. There have been a few experiments with virtual embassies -- the United States has one for Iran.

No doubt you've seen the news about the Takeshima and Senkaku disputes: Japan is sparring with China, South Korea and Taiwan over some specks in the ocean. Why is this happening?

“The Fulbright Program has connected our two countries for 30 years in one of the most important ways possible – through the creation of knowledge and professional skills, as well as through a shared belief in educating the next generation,” says Sharon Hudson-Dean, Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Harare.

When I hear ‘sports diplomacy’ evoked in conversation I often wince, knowing that 99% of the examples do not live up to the standards of the term. Athletes and coaches who work for a team outside of their country for no purpose other than for a love of the game and personal gain do not always qualify.

With the recent death of Vaclav Havel and the passing of Nelson Mandela into a long twilight, there is only one global figure who nearly universally embodies aspirations for freedom and human dignity around the world. She is "The Lady," Aung San Suu Kyi -- or as she is endearingly termed by her fellow citizens of Burma, Daw Suu.