The Embassy of Italy in Washington DC and the Department of Communication Studies at Ben Gurion University co-hosted the special webinar “Crafting the Future of Cultural Diplomacy in the Digital Age” on March 3.
The one hour webinar, part of the Italian Embassy’s Digital Diplomacy Series, examined how digital technologies are transforming the practice of cultural diplomacy and the audience interactions with cultural content. Cultural institutions’ mass embrace of digital technologies, coupled with the Covid19 pandemic, have led to a digital revolution in cultural diplomacy. In recent years, cultural institutions have adopted a host of digital technologies ranging from virtual museums to AI generated art and immersive exhibitions.
Moderated by Ilaria Poggiolini, Chair Professor of International History at the University of Pavia, Corneliu Bjola (Associate Professor of Diplomatic Studies, University of Oxford), Allegra Baistrocchi (Italian Consul in Detroit), Franco Bevione (CEO, Wedoo LLC) and Ilan Manor (Senior Lecturer at the Department of Communications at Ben Gurion University) explored the potential of metaverse, avatars, visual representations in digital and cultural diplomacy and helped us understand how it can interfere with the way Ministry of Foreign Affairs, cultural institutions or embassies engage in cultural diplomacy.
View the panel recording on our YouTube channel here:
