Is an alien mollusk species choking your shoreline? Don’t despair. China’s ravenous, inventive internet users have an answer to unwelcome shellfish.They’re ready to devour them. The Danish Embassy in Beijing has been absorbing that lesson since it shared a report online this week about a plague of Pacific oysters, a stubborn, gray intruder that has spread explosively along parts of the Scandinavian coast.

More than 20,000 other people also observed that moment after Adam posted a 40-second video of his experience on Facebook. It was one of many this social activist would share during his six-week trip to Somalia [...] Today, Adam is harnessing that following to galvanize support for Somalia, which is on the brink of a famine that threatens the lives of an estimated 6 million people, according to the United Nations.

Facebook’s management has been reluctant to accept responsibility for a flow of fake news via FB that seems to have played a significant role — just like the Kremlin’s cover campaign of bots, hacking and leaks — in last year’s election. If we are determined to go after Russian “bots” and trolls, shouldn’t we also demand more accountability from those who influence greatly the news we are “fed” via social media?

Non-resident Indians (NRIs) used to be looked at with skepticism once upon a time, but today India embraces their success, Ambassador of India to UAE Navdeep Singh Suri has said. Speaking at the 35th conference of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India - Dubai Chapter, Suri said the changing mindsets of diplomats and increasing social media use have aided in showcasing the hard work of NRIs and of diplomatic missions.

It is without a doubt pleasing to see that DFAT is on its way to progressing and further developing its digital diplomacy programmes, however, it is still a long way away from meeting the requirements it needs to influence people around the world, and increase the efficiency of its diplomats and enable them to adapt to a rapidly evolving technology and diplomatic space. 

Mark McDowell was a career diplomat for 20 years with the Canadian Foreign Service, where he made a name for himself as a pioneer in e-diplomacy. Defying the strictures of government bureaucracy, he pushed use of the internet and social media to engage with foreign publics and bring about cultural exchange. Mark brought his web-savvy and unconventional approach to public diplomacy to Myanmar