The year is slowly fading into darkness as per the Gregorian calendar (the most widely used civil calendar in the world today) and a new year is about to dawn. The last few days of the year are generally a time of celebrations and merriment across many parts of the world and these festivities have thrived for millennia.

It takes a diplomat to orchestrate harmonious holiday meals. [...] When Portland Chef Naomi Pomeroy is not creating menu items for her critically praised Beast restaurant and Expatriate bar, she accepts assignments from the U.S. State Department to speak about American cuisine to foreigners.

We cheer the Brazilian soccer team and find our inner peace through yoga. But what is the flagship example of Chinese soft power? It might just be a day of shopping and singledom.

While public diplomacy is most often used when tackling international affairs and politics, your Thanksgiving dinner table, Hannukah celebration, or Christmas tree lighting, might feel like an international crisis…