How would you explain Donald Trump to a foreign audience? Could it be done in a coherent way? Could it be done at all? To citizens at home, this may be merely an intriguing exercise. But to our country's diplomats it is a daily challenge. As part of their jobs, especially if they are public diplomacy officers, as I was, they are charged with "telling America's story to the world," and this includes describing the leading figures and issues in an election year.

The United States government has been paying to feed and shelter thousands of Cubans trying to migrate to the United States, in what critics consider another sign of the lopsided treatment provided to Cubans under American law.

A promotional spot for a culture-bending telenovela recently aired on Spanish-language KJLA-TV channel 57. [...] "La Esposa Valiente," or "Xi Li Ren Qi" in Chinese, is the first drama the Taiwanese government has dubbed into Spanish. Thirteen Central and South American countries have aired the show since 2013 as part of an initiative by the Taiwanese government to promote Taiwanese culture.

Oftentimes, when words fail, art has the ability to express our deepest pain and unrelenting hope. Visions from the Inside is a project enlisting 15 artists from across the country to create a piece of art based off letters from women in detention. The initiative, a collaboration between CultureStrike, Mariposas Sin Fronteras and End Family Detention, illuminates the horrific realities of life inside some for-profit detention facilities in the U.S., as well as the resilient spirit that keeps the inmates going.  

As the State Department confronts a number of global challenges ranging from extremism in the Middle East and Russian aggression in Eastern Europe, a surprising provision in the White House’s newly unveiled budget proposal for Foggy Bottom would boost funding for Central America, where a mass migration of unaccompanied minors to the southern United States has exposed profound societal problems in the region.

This month’s summit, held in Beijing, certainly moved the bloc further in that direction. Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to double Chinese trade with the Celac countries over the coming decade and to invest $250 billion across the region. Ecuador’s Rafael Correa left the summit with more than $7 billion in new Chinese aid and credit, while Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro received much-needed pledges of investment from China’s state-run Bank of China and China Development Bank.

The U.S. Department of State and Major League Baseball are entering a new era of “diamond diplomacy” in the Western Hemisphere. In a renewed partnership with Major League Baseball, current professional baseball players will accompany Olympic softball stars to Colombia and Panama to serve as Sports Envoys. The U.S. Department of State recognizes the unique ability of America’s national pastime to connect with youth throughout the Western Hemisphere, as baseball enjoys an especially ardent following in Central and South America.