The American withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement has opened the door to China to try and strike a pose as the leading defender of liberalized trade and globalization. The public face of this new push is none other than China’s president. This month, Xi became the first Chinese president to speak at the World Economic Forum in Davos where he set forth the case for continuing to expand global trade.

American linguistics professors and students assisting an effort by members of a tribe in Kenya in creating teaching materials for their language. We at The World in Words podcast wanted to find out more about this. Is it worth the effort? The Americans are from universities that receive federal and state support. They have sent their people to rural Kenya to assist language activist Kennedy Bosire and others. 

With six million Chinese tourists expected to travel abroad over the Lunar New Year break, China’s Jan. 27 to Feb. 2 holiday is crucial for Taiwan tour agency operator Li Chi-yueh, who relies on mainland visitors for a third of his revenue. [...] Though Tsai says Taiwan wants peace with China, Beijing suspects she seeks formal independence. “China uses its sightseeing tourists as a diplomatic weapon,” said Li. 

China’s involvement and investment in Africa have intensified in the past few years eliciting a lot of focus and research on China-Africa relations.  While this can be written off by some as simply investment [...] China’s growing involvement in the media industry in Africa and South Africa has been seen by Trans-Atlantic nations to be a challenge to their influence in Africa.

For China, tourism is a tool. The country sees it as a facilitator of people-to-people communication and a way to spread international friendship. In other words: soft power. [...] However, in the discussions during the evening reception, most participants were first asking questions and offering stories about different forms of outrageous behavior seen among Chinese travelers. 

So, ‘global Britain’ eh? This, we are told, will be the leitmotif for Theresa May’s Brexit speech tomorrow and, indeed, for her approach to international affairs more generally. And who could disagree with any of that? The argument will, of course, be couched in economic terms. The spirit of Britannia will be unleashed to sail the world’s oceans. Britain is back, you know. 

Dosa Hut? Curry Truck? Chaat Parlour? Sushi Corner? Falafel Carts? These are some of the oddities that have sprung up and can be spotted in many cities of the US, but nowhere is this more ubiquitous than in the huge megalopolis of New York whose culinary countenance has undergone a dramatic transformation as migrants from every corner of the world stream into the city.

“Speak softly and carry a big stick” Theodore Roosevelt famously said in 1901, when the United States was emerging as a great power. It was the right sentiment, perhaps, in an age of imperial rivalry but today many Americans doubt the utility of their global military presence, thinking it outdated, unnecessary or even dangerous.