Culture and Public Diplomacy

by Wang Yugeng and Tan Xingyu

“In E.U.s foreign policy， culture， like politics and economics， plays a major role， not a minor one.” The quote from Rod Fischer， President of International Cultural Think-Tank， serves as an excellent illustration of the Third E.U.-China High Level Cultural Forum & Round Table， part of the 2012 E.U.-China Year of Intercultural Dialogue.

Sponsored by Chinas Ministry of Culture and the European Commissions department of education and culture， the forum was held at the National Art Museum of China on November 30， 2012. More than 20 officials， scholars and executives from cultural institutions from China and Europe gathered to engage in in-depth discussion of the forums theme， “cultural diplomacy and cultural cooperation.”

Yu Peng， deputy director of the Foreign Liaison Bureau of Chinas Ministry of Culture， spoke at the opening ceremony. He noted that in the past a few years， cultural development between China and E.U. has witnessed rapid development. First， both sides saw iconic events in terms of formulating cultural exchange policy. Chinas 12th Five-Year Plan calls for “vigorously developing the cultural industry and culture services， and increasing the influence of Chinese culture on the international arena.” The European Commission formulated a 2011-2014 blueprint for its cultural endeavors， established a cultural and foreign expert bank， and even designated its 2012 focus to be placed on developing cultural cooperation with China. In terms of cultural exchange activities， China hosted a Year of Chinese Culture in France， Spain， Greece， Italy， and Germany in succession， and in return， each of those countries hosted a Year of Culture in China. In 2009， China hosted Europalia China Art Festival in Belgium. In 2012， the large-scale E.U.-China Year of Intercultural Dialogue attracted extensive participation.

Since China introduced reform and opening up， with its rising political and economic global status， complementary soft power has been called for. Developing soft power is not only a process involving revitalization of a 5，000-year-old civilization， but also a process of merging with other civilizations. Under the theme of “cultural diplomacy and cultural cooperation，” this forum was divided into two parts： speeches and a round table conference.

Speeches primarily addressed issues of interest to both parties， including goals at which China and E.U. aim when formulating policies of cultural diplomacy and cooperation， major challenges and opportunities， and new ways to further promote cultural cooperation between China and E.U. Also， speeches reached out for a consensus on the connotations of cultural diplomacy and cultural cooperation between China and E.U.

Rod Fischer elaborated on the gist of the forum. He pointed out that cultural diplomacy has long been seen as important in Europe. He explained that many places initially have only their own interests in mind， but eventually stumble upon real dialogue. In the real world， things rarely go as easy as planned. Many may know of the film and gourmet festivals that Europe has hosted in China， but due to a lack of strategic aims， these activities didnt account for local demands， and some projects didnt play a positive role in long-term sustainable development. He stressed that communication should not be a one-way cultural export， but rather an interactive process that attracts both sides enthusiastic participation.

At the round table conference， 13 leading cultural personalities from both sides including Li Ji， deputy curator of the Palace Museum， Tang Keyang， curator of the China Pavilion at the 12th Venice Architectural Biennale， and Dieter Jaenicke， artistic director of Hellerau， the European Center for the Arts in Dresden， talked about E.U.-China cultural exchange based on their respective personal experiences. They spoke about various topics， including short-term， medium-term， and long-term goals for E.U.-China cultural cooperation and how to finance it. They also took questions from the audience. The forum has already been held successfully three times， becoming an annual platform for face-to-face and in-depth communication between intellectuals from both sides， attracting participation from many cultural heavyweights. Through this forum， sponsors hope to deepen communication and foster development of the bilateral relationship between China and E.U.

“In E.U.s foreign policy，culture， like politics and economics， plays a major role， not a minor one.”