In July 2017 Māori culture took centre stage at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC as an international touring exhibition, Tuku Iho Living Legacy began a bi-coastal tour of the United States. Three years on, curious about the legacy of Tuku Iho at the Smithsonian, I had a COVID appropriate catch-up with Joshua Bell, Curator of Globalization at the National Museum of Natural History and honorary friend of Aotearoa to learn more.

If this year has taught us anything, it's that adapting to a new reality is paramount. The pandemic has accelerated trends and shifts that were already taking place across generational lines and ideological values. Our approach to public and cultural diplomacy must also adapt to meet the moment, utilizing soft power to bring people closer together and tell new stories to fresh audiences.

I often wonder about the growing impact and divide between those willing and able to pay for online news and those who are not. What are the long term outcomes of the disparities between information-rich and information-poor communities and how is it changing New Zealand?