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There can be no more pressing time to assess, recalibrate and set a new definition for cultural diplomacy than today. The Russian aggression against the Ukraine, the rise and subsequent mistrust of globalization, the contentiousness of borders, the climate crisis, and the global pandemic have all called in various ways for the arts to step in as a conduit for change, as a unifier to connect peoples and to offer the imaginable when the unimaginable transpires.
Cultural diplomacy, the post-second world war concept that we have learned to rely on, has now outlived its original terms of reference and needs to be redefined. Today’s most pressing social, ecological and technological issues transcend borders, governments, institutions and even species. Through the prism of future thinking practices, the program explored what cultural diplomacy means now, what it will mean in the future, and how can it be a powerful tool of connectivity in our multi-polarized and post-globalized world.
Participants discussed and shared experiences about the range of cultural diplomacy instruments from institutional collaborations to micro-activations across cities and communities to explore how exchanges between cultures locally, nationally and internationally, can provide a conduit to enable change. By engaging multiple perspectives and diverse ways thinking from across the globe, the program seeked to redefine cultural diplomacy in response to the new world order.
This four-day program was highly interactive and consisted of panel discussions, interactive sessions, and working groups. Each day participants heard from a provocateur: a thinker, a musician, a video artist, futurist, politician or a diplomat who offered a perspective on ways of connecting, ways of communicating, ways of collaborating, ways of influencing, and ways of feeling. A series of curated performances and food experiences provided an opportunity to not only witness diverse acts of cultural diplomacy but offered a point of reflection for discussion and debate.
Because cultural diplomacy thrives on the cross-pollination of people, their stories and the stakeholders who bring them to life – participants included artists from all areas of practice, diplomats, politicians, leaders of cultural institutions, academics, social and political scientists, journalists, futurists, and neuroscientists. This ecosystem of influencers, strategists, and creative thinkers had time to sit alongside each other, create, and break bread together.
All images are available for download. Please credit Salzburg Global Seminar/Richard Schabetsberger. Unwatermarked images are available on request.
