Cutting Edge | From standing out to reaching out: cultural diplomacy for sustainable development

Foreign relations are increasingly engaging in the field of culture and in the promotion of cultural diplomacy from the perspective of valorizing national assets. This is not just in the realm of the arts and heritage but also the use of culture more generally to promote sustainable development, intercultural dialogue, peace and security, global citizenship education, social inclusion and environmental sustainability. The recent historic declaration of the G20 attests to this shift in perceptions of culture as a driver for broader policy change. The Republic of Korea’s cultural diplomacy policy not only focuses on promotion of Korean culture (Hallyu) abroad but also reinforcing its efforts through UNESCO. Participating in UNESCO’s work, through the UNESCO Conventions and their Committees not only allows Member States to promote their cultural riches but in so doing, contributes to the safeguarding of cultural diversity. This can be through progressively expanding and deepening criteria for what culture and heritage we collectively value, and deepening cooperation on thematic issues, such as the preservation of rock art or earthen heritage. There are also some 20 Category II Centres for culture, (institutions linked to but not legally part of UNESCO) across all continents, which, through capacity-building, knowledge sharing and research, provide a valuable and unique contribution. These centres are beacons of regional cooperation and cultural diplomacy.

UNESCO, with its global mandate on culture and promoting the free flow of ideas and images is the global platform for cultural diplomacy, building in particular on legal frameworks enshrined in its Conventions and programmes. Reflecting the important place of culture in international relations, the UNESCO 1954 Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict was the second important UN-brokered agreement in the field of international humanitarian law, after the 1948 Genocide Convention. In 1966, in a context of increasingly frosty relations through the Cold War, UNESCO Member States adopted a Declaration of the Principles of International Cultural Cooperation to tackle “profound difficulties of understanding one another” and “undesirable practices in the conduct of international relations”, illustrating the need for cultural cooperation to contribute “ to the establishment of stable, long-term relations between peoples, which-should be subjected as little as possible to the strains which may arise in international life”. The fact that the 1972 World Heritage Convention  is the most ratified of all of the international conventions (with 194 States Parties) and the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage the most rapidly ratified international convention (with 179 States Parties in under 20 years) attests to the vital importance of culture for multilateral dialogue.

By encouraging multi-country listings, where cultural heritage transcends territories and countries, UNESCO’s World Heritage Convention directly supports cultural diplomacy efforts. The World Heritage List includes,for example, the Qhapaq Nan Andean Road System (covering 30,000km across six countries in South America) and the Great Spa Towns of Europe (comprising 11spa towns, located in seven countries). The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier World Heritage property spans several continents with its 17 sites across Europe, Argentina, India and Japan. Due to the number of sites listed along the Silk Roads, UNESCO has a dedicated programme that bears witness to the historic routes known for peaceful trade, and a rich history of religious and harmonious cultural exchange.

Likewise, the growing number of multinational inscriptions on UNESCO’s Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage of the 2003 Convention bear witness to the circulation of culture across countries, thereby fostering cultural cooperation. Examples are numerous from Camel racing, a social practice and a festive heritage associated with camels (United Arab Emirates – Oman), to the musical art of horn players, an instrumental technique linked to singing, vibrato, resonance of place and conviviality (France, Belgium, Luxemburg, Italy), to the art of crafting and playing Mbira/Sansi, the finger-plucking traditional musical instrument in Malawi and Zimbabwe and the Argentinian and Uruguayan tradition of the Tango. Falconry was jointly inscribed by no fewer than 24 countries (Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Republic of Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Morocco, Netherlands, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Spain, Syrian Arab Republic and United Arab Emirates). In 2021, 16 Arabic-speaking countries jointly listed Arabic calligraphy: knowledge, skills and practices. Also inscribed on the Representative List is the celebration of Nowruz, marking the first day of spring for over 3000 years in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East and other regions, and proclaimed as an International Day by the UN General Assembly in 2010.

The return and restitution of cultural property has become an increasingly prominent issue for cultural diplomacy, reflecting a shift in North-South policy discussions towards renewed dialogue on culture. The 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property – developed through inter-governmental dialogue and ratified by 141 States – provides a common framework not only for countries to take measures to prohibit and prevent the import, export and transfer of cultural property but also provide the conditions for its return and restitution. Since its adoption, increasing collaboration between national police services, as well as through Interpol, has seen multiple returns of looted and illicitly trafficked items. Recent examples include the 3,500 year old “Gilgamesh Tablet”, one of the oldest literary works in history, which was formally handed back to Iraq by the United States of America. The voluntary handover of a fragment of the Piedras Negras stela from a private collector to Guatemala, also demonstrated an evolution in the international environment, made possible through the international cooperation of Guatemala, France and UNESCO. In recent years, there has been an increase in demands for the restitution of artefacts from the colonial era reflecting a shift in North-South policy discussions towards renewed dialogue on culture. The 1970 Convention provides a framework for such policy discussions and encourages these bilateral efforts.

Cultural diplomacy is also conducive to enabling the exchange of cultural goods and services, the mobility of artists and respect for artistic expressions – a vision which is at the core of UNESCO’s 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. By providing a legal framework to support a balanced flow of cultural goods and services and promote the mobility of artists, particularly from developing countries, the 2005 Convention supports the development of bilateral and multilateral cultural cooperation agreements that cover both operational programmes and professional exchange activities. In a context where the mobility of artists from the Global South is hampered by increasingly restrictive visa regimes – as underlined by UNESCO’s soon to be published Re|Shaping Policies for Creativity report – such cultural diplomacy efforts are particularly critical.