Chapter 7

Ranking of the European Private Sector

The practice of Cultural Diplomacy is centuries old. Explorers, travellers, teachers and artists all can be considered examples of informal ambassadors or early cultural diplomats.  The academic discipline and study of cultural diplomacy and what these exchanges can achieve, however, is a relatively recent concept. With a growing emphasis placed on the role of cultural exchange and with intercultural understanding becoming increasingly important for relations in a globalised world, this research aims to contribute to a growing field in academia.  Historically, the exercise of cultural diplomacy is defined by government action and initiaves.  This report seeks to look outside the traditional public setting and focus on how private enterprises are engaged in various aspects of cultural diplomacy.  As truly international entities - many of these companies have market values rivalling the wealth of some countries - the capacity for corporations to become involved in cultural diplomacy is no longer negligible.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Research Design
3. Concepts
4. Methodology
5. Barriers to Research
6. Company Profiles
7. Ranking
8. Conclusion
9. Glossary
10. References

Introduction

Cultural diplomacy is far from a new practice. Explorers, travellers, teachers and artists can all be considered examples of informal ambassadors or early cultural diplomats.  The academic discipline and study of cultural diplomacy and what these exchanges can achieve, however, is a relatively recent concept. With a growing emphasis placed on the role of cultural exchange and with intercultural understanding becoming increasingly important for relations in a globalised world, this research aims to contribute to a growing field in academia.  Historically, the exercise of cultural diplomacy is defined by government action and initiaves.  This report seeks to look outside the traditional public setting and focus on how private enterprises are engaged in various aspects of cultural diplomacy.  As truly international entities - many of these companies have market values rivalling the wealth of nations - the capacity for corporations to become involved in cultural diplomacy is substantial and increasing.

This project aims to show if and to what extent private firms display interest and involvement in the progression of intercultural correspondence and intercultural exchange. Worldwide businesses are not only a significant channel for cultural exchange, but their interests in intercultural correspondence and cross cultural learning should be considered an advantage in developing their own efficiency, actions and processes.  This is not a punitive assessment aimed at exposing those companies less involved in cultural diplomacy; rather, this report aims to act as a tool of analysis, fairly identifying wanting areas and hopefully encouraging future investment into these initiatives. While it is necessary to acknowledge the division between appearance of involvement and real commitment, an assessment of cultural diplomacy engagement can be seen as much in a company’s policies as it can be in their explicit and direct actions in the field of cultural diplomacy. Ultimately this research considers private firms that promote and are involved in cultural exchanges as important pillars for cultural diplomacy and benchmarking their industry for future involvement by its sector counterparts.

This report bases its understanding of cultural diplomacy on the description offered by the American political scientist and author, Milton C. Cummings;
“[Cultural diplomacy is] the exchange of ideas, information, values, systems, traditions, beliefs, and other aspects of culture, with the intention of fostering mutual understanding”.

Translating this into criteria that can be applied to corporations means that the highest achieving companies must demonstrate an explicit recognition and understanding of foreign cultural dynamics and platforms upon which cultural dialogue is exchanged.  Furthermore, they must engage in a wide range of initiatives, organise activities independently, and display a commitment to the rights of both its employees and wider community.  Considering their sheer size and capabilities, these expectations should not be an overestimation for the companies assessed in this report.

Research Objectives

The cultural diplomacy index outlines corporate involvement in the field of cultural diplomacy as described by the companies themselves.  This index is based on various companies’ policies and direct cultural diplomacy actions. It assesses activities, projects, co-operation and engagement to evaluate how and to what extent the selected companies’ are engaged in cultural diplomacy. The Institute for Cultural Diplomacy believes that this initial ranking, one of the first of its kind, will encourage dialogue and motivate international companies to strengthen their activities in the field of cultural diplomacy.