International Relations and Culture

How do changing global dynamics affect culture?

Globalization -- the expanding system of integrated markets, nation states, and technologies -- presents both opportunities and challenges in the unprecedented volume of creative and cultural exchange between peoples around the world.

Do shrinking borders offer broader access to ideas, cultural products, and means of production and distribution for all? Or are the disproportionate access to some cultures and the increasingly global reach of corporations creating a homogenizing effect on culture?

Is globalization a euphemism for "Americanization"? How do we answer calls to preserve and protect that which different cultures value? How do we address conflicts that arise over these cultural clashes of value?

How can cultures be enhanced by interacting with one another? Can international cultural exchanges promote understanding of peoples across borders?

The Center for Arts and Culture looks at the impact of globalization and modernization upon culture and how foreign policies can promote understanding. We track the development of cultural and public diplomacy, exchange programs, visa policies, trade agreements, and other policies and ideas that have an international impact upon the development, preservation, and expression of culture.