Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Centering Gender in Public Diplomacy and Nation Branding: An Invitation to Reimagine the Future of the Field

Kaneva, Nadia and Cassinger, Cecilia LU (2022) In Place Branding and Public Diplomacy 18(4). p.305-313
Abstract
Inspired by feminist thought, this special issue aims to disturb conventional ways of thinking about public diplomacy and nation branding as “soft power” tools of the state. A feminist rethinking of the soft/hard power metaphor reveals its implicit masculinist logic and invites a critical exploration of the gendering of geopolitical contestations. This issue takes one step in addressing this gap and aims to inspire further inquiry into the gender dynamics of geopolitical influence. This introductory essay is organized in four parts. First, it reviews how gender is currently addressed in public diplomacy and nation branding research. Next, it points out several social and geopolitical trends that contextualize the need for a greater... (More)
Inspired by feminist thought, this special issue aims to disturb conventional ways of thinking about public diplomacy and nation branding as “soft power” tools of the state. A feminist rethinking of the soft/hard power metaphor reveals its implicit masculinist logic and invites a critical exploration of the gendering of geopolitical contestations. This issue takes one step in addressing this gap and aims to inspire further inquiry into the gender dynamics of geopolitical influence. This introductory essay is organized in four parts. First, it reviews how gender is currently addressed in public diplomacy and nation branding research. Next, it points out several social and geopolitical trends that contextualize the need for a greater engagement with questions of gender. Third, the six articles included in the issue are introduced. Finally, the concluding section outlines directions for future research, organized around the themes of performativity, relationality, and ethics of care. The essay’s key argument is that a focus on gender dynamics in public diplomacy and nation branding must involve more than a challenge to structures of gender inequality and oppression; it must also include a rethinking of the foundational assumptions about human autonomy, rationality, and ethical action that underpin international relations.

(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
gender, performativity, relationally, ethics of care, soft power
in
Place Branding and Public Diplomacy
volume
18
issue
4
pages
7 pages
publisher
Palgrave Macmillan
external identifiers
  • scopus:85128241785
ISSN
1751-8040
DOI
10.1057/s41254-022-00265-3
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
b8439bfa-fcee-4a43-873c-c7e1a3e96272
alternative location
https://rdcu.be/cLult
date added to LUP
2022-04-12 15:12:34
date last changed
2023-11-06 18:34:57
@article{b8439bfa-fcee-4a43-873c-c7e1a3e96272,
  abstract     = {{Inspired by feminist thought, this special issue aims to disturb conventional ways of thinking about public diplomacy and nation branding as “soft power” tools of the state. A feminist rethinking of the soft/hard power metaphor reveals its implicit masculinist logic and invites a critical exploration of the gendering of geopolitical contestations. This issue takes one step in addressing this gap and aims to inspire further inquiry into the gender dynamics of geopolitical influence. This introductory essay is organized in four parts. First, it reviews how gender is currently addressed in public diplomacy and nation branding research. Next, it points out several social and geopolitical trends that contextualize the need for a greater engagement with questions of gender. Third, the six articles included in the issue are introduced. Finally, the concluding section outlines directions for future research, organized around the themes of performativity, relationality, and ethics of care. The essay’s key argument is that a focus on gender dynamics in public diplomacy and nation branding must involve more than a challenge to structures of gender inequality and oppression; it must also include a rethinking of the foundational assumptions about human autonomy, rationality, and ethical action that underpin international relations.<br/><br/>}},
  author       = {{Kaneva, Nadia and Cassinger, Cecilia}},
  issn         = {{1751-8040}},
  keywords     = {{gender; performativity; relationally; ethics of care; soft power}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{4}},
  pages        = {{305--313}},
  publisher    = {{Palgrave Macmillan}},
  series       = {{Place Branding and Public Diplomacy}},
  title        = {{Centering Gender in Public Diplomacy and Nation Branding: An Invitation to Reimagine the Future of the Field}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/s41254-022-00265-3}},
  doi          = {{10.1057/s41254-022-00265-3}},
  volume       = {{18}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}