Global Ireland
Department of Foreign Affairs
Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoine
We now live in a world where state entities all compete for influence and power in the same online space. That space now hosts more than three billion people as well as the opportunity to reach them in near real-time. Through our partnership with the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, we have helped strengthen their work by using cultural diplomacy to bring the story of Ireland to the world.
Context
Cultural diplomacy is a course of action that uses the exchange of ideas, values, traditions, stories, and other aspects of culture and identity to strengthen relationships, enhance socio-cultural cooperation, showcase culture and promote national interests.
Ireland has always stood for the values of diplomacy, peace, and compassion. Time and time again, our country has been demonstrably an international force for good and, for this project, our communications task was to illustrate this in a natural and sympathetic tone, while remaining creative, cultural, and unexpected.
Over the past six years, we have used documentary-style films to mark historical milestones such as the anniversary of the Anglo-Irish Agreement, helped launch the Global Ireland programme, and created multilingual films like our Ireland is… video series — a series aimed at bringing Irish culture to Japan during the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
Amid a global pandemic, we created the first virtual St. Patrick’s Day, where we helped bring the best of Ireland online through virtual receptions for 70+ international missions and embassies. As well our St. Patrick’s Day campaigns, we have leveraged other significant global events, such as Bloomsday, Africa Day, and St. Brigid’s Day, to create films that emphasise our values as a nation.
Through targeted content and campaigns, we assisted in amplifying Ireland’s global presence under the ambitious Global Ireland programme — an initiative that’s on course to double Ireland’s impact and influence in the world by 2025.
In 2022, our St. Patrick’s Day films focused on Ukraine and its people. This empathic move was applauded by citizens and their leaders worldwide, while our Bloomsday and Africa Day films have won an array of craft and creativity awards.
Most importantly, we discovered when we focused on content that emphasised our place as good social citizens of the world, the world’s social media took note.
For St. Patrick’s Day 2021, we gave voice to the Irish frontline workers living abroad, who kept the world in motion throughout the COVID-19 crisis.
In 2022, we used the St. Patrick’s Day platform to show solidarity with Ukraine and its people.
“What a moving piece.” — Colin Crowell, American policy expert and former VP of Global Public Policy and Philanthropy at Twitter.
By leveraging significant global events such as St. Patrick’s Day, the Rugby World Cup in Japan, Bloomsday and Africa Day, we created compelling cultural content that emphasises our values as a nation.
