2020 Food Project Impact Report
The project report has been moved here.
Citizen Diplomacy International Meeting #4
About Citizen Diplomacy International
Due to globalization, the internet, rising education levels, and long-term democratization, citizen diplomacy is growing, and becoming a more important part of diplomacy and international affairs. Thus, in 2020, the Public Diplomacy Council of America (PDCA), a US-based NGO devoted to advancing the field of public diplomacy, formed the Citizen Diplomacy Research Group (CDRG) to advance the research and practice of citizen diplomacy. In 2023, the CDRG became Citizen Diplomacy International (CDI), a network and program of Learning Life, a Washington DC-based nonprofit devoted to developing innovative learning communities in order to widen and deepen participation in democracy and diplomacy.
CDI meets every three months online via Zoom for 1.5 hours to share research and news on citizen diplomacy developments worldwide with an eye to building a vibrant global CD sector for a more participatory, equitable and sustainable world.. Meetings typically begin with two presentations on CD research or practice, followed by discussion of the presentations, then news and announcements of past or upcoming international CD-related initiatives, publications, funding, conferences, etc.
Anyone — including scholars, students, citizen diplomacy practitioners, current and retired official diplomats, and others interested — can join CDI to learn, network, and/or present substantial research or practice in citizen diplomacy. For more information or to join the CDI email list, contact email@learninglife.info. You can also connect with CDI members via our Facebook group and Linkedin group, to which you can post citizen diplomacy-related articles, books, events, funding, etc.
For more about CDI, click here. For the video recording of this CDI meeting at Learning Life’s Youtube Channel, click here. Photos from the meeting above.
Meeting Agenda
1) Opening remarks and introductions (10 minutes)
Please prepare to share a one-paragraph bio about you.
2) Two presentations (30 minutes):
Presenters:
Mohsen Amin, Ph.D. Candidate in Cultural Sociology, Allame Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran: The Arbaeen as Religious Diplomacy
Jacob Schouenborg, Secretary General, International Sport & Culture Association, Copenhagen, Denmark: The ISCA and Grassroots Sports Diplomacy
3) Questions and discussion about the presentations (30 minutes)
4) Announcements (20 minutes)
Meeting participants will then have the opportunity to publicize citizen diplomacy events, publications, projects, programs, and related needs. Participants can also post details and links to the Zoom chat box.
What Does Holiday Food Look Like Worldwide?
Since April this year, Learning Life has been periodically posing questions about food culture to the growing number of family members worldwide who are part of our Family Diplomacy Initiative on Facebook. In October, we asked the sixth and last question: “what is a dish your family likes to make or buy for the holidays?” In this holiday season for many families across the globe, we want to share some of the photos of holiday foods family members submitted, some from the internet, some from their own phones.
For more information about this year’s international food culture project, click here. Stay tuned: a full report and e-books about the project are coming in December and January.
To connect and learn with families worldwide via Learning Life’s Family Diplomacy Initiative on Facebook, click here.
World Food Talk Draws Participants from 9 Nations
On Sunday, November 15, members of Learning Life’s Family Diplomacy Initiative and some of their family members gathered live via Zoom to talk about world food culture. Hailing from nine nations worldwide — the USA, El Salvador, Ecuador, Senegal, Nigeria, Burundi, Egypt, Pakistan and India — the 39 international dialogue participants discussed food scarcity and waste, the influence of power on food habits, generational differences in food consumption, and other topics. For a recorded video segment of the dialogue, click here. For photos and presentation slides from the discussion, see below.
For more information about this year’s international food culture project, click here. Stay tuned: a full report and e-books about the project are coming in December and January.
To connect and learn with families worldwide via Learning Life’s Family Diplomacy Initiative on Facebook, click here.
