Each year over 400 American and international teachers travel abroad to learn from their peers, share their own knowledge, and experience other cultures through programs sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, and still more travel through other governmental and private programs. The State Department estimates that upon their return these 400 educators reach over 65,000 students in just one year.

In discourses about elements of soft power of Pakistan, the role of the corporate sector is often omitted. Soft power is usually thought to mean culture, arts, fashion, foods, media, sports, film industry, education, and tourism. Economic growth is often termed as hard power alongside military prowess, yet in fact economic status is a significant determinant and reflection of soft power. 

In the nine short months that the Trudeau government has been in office, there has been a significant shift in the tone and frequency of Canada’s international development commitments. Marie-Claude Bibeau, the Minister of International Development is not afraid of doing things differently, a reason why we’re once again being recognized as a leader on international assistance and humanitarian issues.

To implement smart diplomacy, Cambodia needs to invest more in nurturing smart and professional diplomats and think tankers and develop smart power consisting of hard and soft power. As a small country, Cambodia needs to stand firm on rules-based international order. International laws and institutions best protect the interests of a small state. 

On his last day in Downing Street, David Cameron said one of his proudest achievements was to honour the commitment to spend 0.7% of gross national income on international aid. It was partly an attempt to stake out his legacy and partly a pitch to his successor, Theresa May, to stick to, what remains, a Conservative manifesto pledge.

The United Nations’ adoption in 2014 of an International Yoga Day was remarkable for many reasons. [...] No International Day resolution has been co-sponsored by so many countries or has been passed in such a short timeframe. It was definitely a remarkable achievement for Indian diplomacy. It has also been hailed as a demonstration of India’s soft power.

Is Pokémon Go a game changer for the Japanese economy? Is it a sign that Silicon Valley-style innovation is reinvigorating corporate Japan’s notoriously insular management? Might this be the first big success story for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s “Cool Japan” initiative, a key element in the structural reforms promised but so far undelivered by Abenomics?

Young overseas Chinese can now go on an (almost) free two-week trip to China. Since 1999, the Office of Overseas Chinese Affairs (OOCA), an office of China’s powerful State Council, has organized annual trips, called “root seeking camps,” to help Chinese children growing up abroad stay in touch with their national heritage. Many of these camps used to charge tuition and fees.