If ever there was a question regarding the power and importance of national symbols, the recent acceptance of Palestine into UNESCO may put them to rest. Though the furor over this announcement is related to issues much more complex than the relevance of specific historical and cultural sites, the decision...

As the last of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's loyalists are being defeated on the streets of Tripoli, images of exuberant Libyan citizens, newly free, but weary from fighting and wary of what may come, remind us all that justice and democratic representation are not just political constructs whose merits are to...

Why National Identity and Public Diplomacy Should Be Part of Development Initiatives in Nascent Democracies

Just a scant four weeks ago on July 9, 2011, the world bore witness to the birth of its newest nation, the Republic of South Sudan, and while inspiring images of jubilance...

It is inevitable that, in times of crisis, a nation's character is tested, and national identity defined. Nowhere in the world have we recently witnessed the strength of having a well- defined, well-understood definition of national identity than that of Norway following the recent extremist violence.

It is unfortunate...