Against the backdrop of a sputtering economy and a spate of scandals battering India's global image, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is in Washington today. The visit -- largely touted as a damage-control and public relations initiative -- will see the senior minister...reinforce the message that the Indian growth story is still robust and that the country remains an attractive investment destination.

TechCamp Vilnius will be the third event in a series supporting Secretary Clinton’s Civil Society 2.0 initiative to build the digital literacy of civil society organizations around the world. Representing more than 15 countries...participants will get hands-on training in a variety of areas ranging from how to use social media, organize online, practice digital safety, leverage mobile applications, and more.

This week’s NexGen IT Entrepreneurs Boot Camp is a five-day training event in Cairo to help budding Internet technology businesses. It is part of a broader American initiative to help develop Egypt's economy, particularly in the wake of the Feb. 11 revolution that ousted Hosni Mubarak.

There is no way forward in Afghanistan, unless the international community rethinks the way they have operated in the country so far. To avoid failure and more of the same, they must exploit the strategic opportunity of capitalizing on the many lessons learned they have learned thus far to replace the “Afghan face” with the “Afghan hands” on getting the job done henceforth.

CPD Director Philip Seib was quoted in an Advertising Age article discussing America's brand and image abroad.

New York Times columnist David Brooks recently wrote a piece on “Smart Power Setback,” harshly criticizing the international aid system and the way it has operated in Afghanistan over the past decade. Drawing on the recent U.S.

Philip Pullman is among those who have signed a letter saying the UK's points-based visa system is "inappropriate for short-term visits by artists". The letter in the Daily Telegraph, signed by nearly 100 names from the arts world, says non-European artists are "poorly treated."

The State Department's public diplomacy position "isn't about marketing," according to its current occupant, former Discovery Communications CEO Judith McHale, as much as conversations and connections, often enabled by digital and social media.