“How can the use of culture foster more effective diplomatic practice”? This was a guiding question of our two-day workshop on Cultural Diplomacy organized within the frames of the Junior Diplomats’ Program at the Diplomatic Institute.

During the workshop Ketevan Kandelaki, the Director of the Department of International Cultural and Humanitarian Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia provided extensive coverage of Georgia’s experience in the use of cultural diplomacy.

The participants also met with the Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Georgia, Jana Gašparíková and the Director of Czech Centre Tbilisi, Ivana Bursíková, who shared Czech experience in the field of cultural diplomacy and spoke about the activities of the Czech Center.

The central part of the workshop was facilitated by Dr. Kate Walker, Trainer at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna. It was dedicated to discussing real-life examples of practicing cultural diplomacy in foreign policy and identifying common characteristics of effective contemporary cultural diplomacy.