Foreign Policy of Cities: International Modelling Strategy and Cultural Heritage

Abstract

In the cultural dimension of international relations, cultural heritage has not been sufficiently explored in its capacity as a way to promote Brazil’s international local insertion. The main question of this article is: in case of tangible and intangible cultural heritage without national protection, how can a city take advantage of that cultural resource to foster international relations? The article aims to analyse how small and middle-size cities may transform cultural heritage as a resource for an International Modelling Strategy (IMS) in order to leverage and support the foreign policy of small and middle-size cities in Brazil. The main hypothesis is: despite the fact of cultural heritage is undervalued as an active resource of international insertion and projection, it may be an interesting and effective vector for an IMS for small and middle-size cities’ foreign policies. In a difficult political scenario for the culture in Brazil, cities are gaining a new role as international
actors on the protection of local cultural heritage.