Now, scores of brands with sagging fortunes in the United States are reinventing themselves as must-have luxury items in the Far East, a strategy they've adopted with particular fervor in the wake of the global economic downturn.

Before Beck's arrival, most Israelis were unfamiliar with the former Fox News host. But his rally has triggered a debate over whether he should be embraced as a pro-Israel friend or condemned as a fanatic who has battled allegations of anti-Semitism. Beck is calling his Jerusalem rally "Restoring Courage". The purpose, he has said, is to demonstrate American solidarity with Israel

As the pro-democracy rebels expand their control over Tripoli, they will need to forge a new Libyan identity – one not based on the empty nationalism of Pan-Arabism, common geography, shared history, or even Islam. No, to avoid this North African nation splintering along tribal lines or to prevent another dictator, Libyans must reimagine themselves as citizens.

Libya's internet connections appear to be slowly coming back online after a six-month blackout...it appeared that Libyans were making use of their newly restored connectivity - when available - to chronicle fast-moving events inside the country. Groups such as the Libya Youth Movement posted Twitter messages giving regular updates on attempts to capture Colonel Gaddafi's compound.

The university in Ghana started a decade ago by a visionary Microsoft engineer finally has its own campus. It represents the vision and commitment of Patrick Awuah, who left the security of a job writing software to pursue a crazy dream building a university in his homeland...to offer Ivy League-caliber education in Africa, to create ethical, broad-minded leaders who would go on to elevate the continent.

A trained opera singer, he is one of 20 young foreign vocalists in Beijing this summer to learn how to sing opera in a new language: Mandarin. It's a daunting task that culminated Thursday night with a performance at the National Center for Performing Arts...

UBS has announced that David Hayward Evans is its new head of philanthropy and values-based investing Asia-Pacific, based in Singapore...He also managed public-private partnerships for public diplomacy campaigns undertaken by the British government in China and India.

“This is a great platform to showcase Taiwan’s soft power,” Tony K. M. Chang, Taiwan Design Center CEO, said Aug. 16. “Through the event, we hope to connect Taiwan’s design proficiency to the international community, as well as helping industries understand the importance of design and how it can enhance product value.