Deep-lomacy #5

Cultural Diplomacy, Corona times / Ziv Nevo Kulman, Head of the Cultural Diplomacy Bureau at the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The COVID-19 pandemic poses significant challenges to the promotion of international cultural relations. At the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we, too were forced to cope with the continued crisis. The transition to online activities and the need to find unconventional solutions to unconventional situations, is also an opportunity to add new tools to the cultural diplomacy toolbox.

At the beginning of the crisis, it seemed that cultural ties would be pushed to the margins of diplomatic activity. What relations could possibly be promoted when cultural institutions in Israel and in the world are closed, international festivals postponed, and states are closing their gates to foreign visitors?! Our main concern at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs was the repatriation of tens of thousands of Israeli citizens before the skies closed. At the same time, the economic division in our ministry was preoccupied with mobilizing our representatives around the world to help find the necessary components in its struggle against the pandemic. Since the professional operation of the Israeli cultural attachés abroad lies under my responsibility, my concern was aimed, first and foremost, at the health of the employees, as more than a few of our representatives, Israeli and local, including some cultural attachés, were infected or put into quarantine.

Maybe it was the singing on the balconies - a phenomenon that began in Italy and captivated the whole world - that made it clear to me that culture is a basic existential need, especially during times of crisis; and that it has the power to bring different people and cultures together. That is exactly the goal of cultural diplomacy in the first place.

Like many organizations around the world, we have also phased into online activities. Regardless of the crisis, Digital Diplomacy - in the form of social media activity aimed at reaching diverse audiences by digital means - has taken a central place in recent years. COVID-19 is accelerating the process in which we are faced with the question of how we can expose Israeli culture without leaving state boundaries, in the boundless online space.

At the beginning of the process, we shared numerous posts of artists who empathized heavily with peoples and countries who suffered more than we did during the first wave. The cultural attaché in Rome initiated a series of videos in which leading Israeli artists greet the Italian people in their own language, and wish to see each other soon. Another example is a series of videos produced in partnership with the production department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where artists performed from their homes during quarantine, with an encouraging message to audiences across the world.

However, we quickly understand that there is a degree of satiation with these kinds of expressions of solidarity. We began to discover original initiatives that connect artists with communities, in ways we hadn’t previously been familiar with. Here are some of the most beautiful and moving examples:

The Israeli embassy in Bucharest joined a local solidarity fund to assist actors in distress. Together with Etgar Keret’s local publisher, they started a project of readings of stories by the well-known author in Romanian. The actors posted the filmed readings on their social networks, and the embassy gained substantial media exposure. The idea has successfully been “replicated” since in other locations in the world.

Our Consulate in Istanbul joined an artistic project from Israel. Together they recruited thirty Israeli and Turkish artists for a “rolling art project” that connected between artists. The project resulted in an exhibition that was launched on an online platform and will be on physical display, too, once it will be possible to do so.

The cultural attaché in Tokyo initiated the shooting of a short film based on the story by Etgar Keret “Outside”, which was written during the COVID-19 period. The film was directed by Keret and choreographer Inbal Pinto, who is also very well known in Japan. It first appeared in the country’s most prestigious newspaper, Asahi Shimbun, which has a distribution of almost eight million.

Beyond these initiatives, we have been dealing recently with the dilemma of how we can hold “Exposure” events in the winter - where we host over 500 artistic directors in Israel each year - in times of COVID-19. In this case it is also necessary to think “outside the box”, and facilitate the exposure of Israeli music, dance and theater, even in times where the guests won’t be able to be physically present in Israel. Not an easy task - but the potential of reaching artistic directors who have never been in Israel due to cost, distance, or other reasons, is huge.

It is worth noting that cooperation between governments in areas related to culture, science, education and sport is flourishing during the COVID-19 period. We are sharing information and “best practices” and learning from the experience of our friends all over the world.

​These forms of cooperation and ideas are examples of a highly innovative arena that is unfolding before our eyes. That being said, I have not the slightest doubt that nothing can replace physical contact between the arts and its audience. It’s still too early to determine what of all the online collaborations will survive “the day after”, but it’s clear that the COVID-19 crisis - with all its destructive implications on our health and wellbeing - is also a kind of opportunity to “crack” a new code of cultural diplomacy.