DiploNews – Issue 328 – 17 July 2017

Travel fund for Pacific Islands: Geneva-based multilateral events

If you are from a Pacific island, consider applying for travel support and a tailored programme back-to-back with your attendance at a Geneva-based multilateral event. This support is part of the Capacity Development Programme in Multilateral Diplomacy for Africa, the Caribbean, and Pacific Islands. The event must take place in 2017. See more details at https://www.diplomacy.edu/capacity/CDmulti

Upcoming study and training opportunities

New course on Negotiation Skills

Non-traditional areas of diplomacy (education diplomacy, health diplomacy, Internet governance, humanitarian diplomacy, development diplomacy, and more) require the use of diplomatic skills to build bridges across sectors, diverse actors, and borders. This course on Negotiation Skills, offered by DiploFoundation and the Center for Education Diplomacy, is a practical, interactive course that equips participants with the skills to successfully prepare, undertake, and conclude negotiations in formal and informal settings with government and non-government actors alike. The course introduces the concept and principles of negotiation and reflects on the role of power and empathy in negotiation. It introduces key skills supported by case studies and practical learning activities, including an online simulation exercise. Rather than going into the theoretical considerations of negotiation, such as game theory or group decision-making theory, the course focuses on key skills that are valuable for a variety of negotiations. This new online course starts on 18 September 2017. Read more on the course webpage and apply by 21 August 2017.

Humanitarian Diplomacy Diploma course – application deadline approaching

We are accepting applications for the next session of the popular online course Humanitarian Diplomacy, offered in cooperation with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). This highly interactive 13-week course, led by Ambassador Christopher Lamb and a team of experienced practitioners, extends the knowledge base and develops practical skills of current and future practitioners in humanitarian diplomacy and policy. The course familiarises participants with basic definitions, concepts, actors, and institutions in the field of humanitarian diplomacy; introduces international humanitarian law; hones advocacy and negotiation skills; develops participants’ research skills; and increases their understanding of national and regional humanitarian diplomacy activities.
 The course is offered in English; however, participants have the option to write and submit major course assignments and the final research paper in French or Spanish.
 The next session starts 11 September 2017 and the application deadline is 25 July 2017. Please visit the course webpage to read more and apply.

Applications open for the 2018 Master/Postgraduate Diploma in Contemporary Diplomacy

Diplo is now accepting applications for the 2018 Master/Postgraduate Diploma in Contemporary Diplomacy, and the Master/Postgraduate Diploma in Contemporary Diplomacy with a specialisation in Internet governance. These unique postgraduate programmes, offered in co-operation with the University of Malta, include a 10-day residential workshop in Malta followed by 16–20 months of online learning. Visit the Master in Contemporary Diplomacy webpage to read more. Scholarships covering 20–50% of the Postgraduate Diploma fee are available for applicants from small and developing states. The programme starts on 5 February 2018. The application deadline is 15 October 2017 for international applicants and 15 November 2017 for Maltese applicants.

Autumn courses on diplomacy and digital policy

Diplo offers a wide range of exciting online courses this autumn, starting the week of 3 October.

• Consular and Diaspora Diplomacy
• Cybersecurity
• Development Diplomacy
• Economic Diplomacy
• Language and Diplomacy

Apply by 7 August 2017 for University of Malta accredited courses and by 4 September 2017 for Diplo certificate courses. For further information or to apply, click on the titles of the courses above, or visit our courses webpage. Register now to reserve your place.

Malta scholarships

Thanks to support from the government of Malta, partial scholarships are available for applicants from developing countries to attend upcoming Diplo online courses. These scholarships cover 30–70% of course fees and can be applied to most online courses in 2017. Browse our course catalogue and contact us at admissions@diplomacy.edu for further information.

For more information on any of our courses and on partial scholarships, contact admissions@diplomacy.edu. You can also sign up for our courses mailing list to be informed about upcoming courses.


Reporting from ICANN59

The Geneva Internet Platform (GIP) reported from ICANN’s 59th meeting in Johannesburg in the past few days. The meeting gives supporting organisations and advisory committees the opportunity to have face-to-face discussions on various issues pertaining to ICANN’s activity. The rapporteurs also carried out video-interviews with David Olive, Vice President Policy Development Support at ICANN; Mary Wong, Senior Policy Director at ICANN; Avri Doria, co-Chair of the New gTLD Subsequent Procedures Working Group; and Leon Sanchez, co-Chair Cross-Community Working Group on Enhancing ICANN Accountability (in English and Spanish). Read the session reports and watch the videos on the observatory.

Internet governance in June

Catch up with the latest developments in Internet governance by reading Issue 22 of the Geneva Digital Watch newsletter. The main highlights: an analysis of the last meeting of the UN Group of Governmental Experts (UN GGE) and its inability to reach consensus over a final report; the top trends in June, including new cyber-norms proposed by the private sector (with a focus on Google’s proposal); governments renewing calls for more regulation of the Internet and more responsibility on the part of the private sector; court ruling placing digital legacies in focus; and widespread disruptions in Internet access. The developments were also summarised in the monthly briefing; read the digest and watch the recording. Registrations for our next briefing, on 29 August, are now open.

What’s been happening in Diplo’s blogsphere

Guest blogger Selcuk Colakoglu asks Is MIKTA sustainable as a middle power grouping in global governance? and looks at MIKTA, an informal forum consisting of five of the G20’s middle powers (Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey, and Australia) in relation to the G20 and the impact of domestic elections and unrest in some of the member states on MIKTA’s ability to be an active player in global governance. Diplo’s Barbara Rosen Jacobson looks at the impact of the Internet and social media on our social relations in To connect and disconnect: Unraveling the social fabric of the Internet. She discusses themes like filter bubbles and echo chambers through the lens of sociology and concludes that ‘digital technology undoubtedly profoundly changes the context in which we live, but society might adapt to this environment as it has adapted to developments before.’