As Japan gears up to host the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and caters to a surging influx of foreign visitors, the country faces a cultural dilemma: Should it stop identifying Buddhist temples on maps with the traditional “manji” symbol that is often confused with a Nazi swastika?

With eight percent of the global production Sri Lanka is the fourth largest manufacturer of tea in the world after China, India and Kenya. [...] It is also the first tea producing country in the world which introduced nation branding with Ceylon Tea linked to the Lion logo symbol. [...] The promotion of Ceylon tea linked to the lion logo the symbol of quality, which is the trademark of the Sri Lanka Tea Board.

Emojis are a nearly universal language – symbols that speak clearly across cultures. But Finland has created a set that has a more singular focus: putting a clever and fun spin on the culture and identity of the country.

In conversation last week with members of the global elite at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau again delivered the message that ‘Canada is back’ on the world stage. Repeating that mantra may be good communications practice, but after a decade of foreign policy retrogression, the substantive case will be more difficult to make.

South Korea has proudly touted the international success of its music industry. There is even a term coined to describe the popularity of Korean pop culture abroad – Hallyu, or “Korean Wave.” In recent years, Korean entertainment companies have tried to build on this success with localization techniques [...] But when pop stars cross borders, they’re bound to run into some sensitivities.

Everybody wants to be in the film business, it seems. Web retailer Amazon makes shows. Netflix used to only deliver content, but now makes its own series. One of the first things e-commerce giant Alibaba did after going public was to set up a film division. The reason for the rush is, in a word, branding.