Festivals as instruments of public diplomacy: The Festival of Embassies in Prague

Abstract

Promoting countries’ culture may become an essential element of public diplomacy as it has the power of attraction using different expressions such as food and music. Public diplomacy research has focused on strategic communications and building relationships with stakeholders, but little research about instruments of public diplomacy has been conducted. The goal of this paper is to elucidate how festivals contribute to the implementation of public diplomacy. This research utilizes a mix of qualitative and quantitative data collected through observation during the Festival of Embassies in Prague, online interviews with diplomats who attended the festival, and a survey conducted with visitors during the festival to assess their perceptions toward the festival. This paper proposes six festival dimensions: Ambassador presence in the event, ambassadors’ presentation of their countries, food, music representing countries, traditional attires, and stalls representing their countries. The results indicate that this food festival is an effective instrument of public diplomacy as ambassadors’ presentations at the event are relevant, but the country stall and food are more significant than the mere presence of the ambassadors. Recommendations for diplomats include maintaining their participation in this festival but mingling with people, and for organizers, increasing the event’s promotion.