The PubDiplo project (Transforming France–China Public Diplomacy and Reputation Management in the Digital Era: Policy Shifts, Communication Strategies, and Impact Exploration, ANR-25-CE41-4061 / RGC-A-HKBU203/25) officially began on April 1, 2026. The project is coordinated by Dr. Zhao Alexandre Huang at Université Gustave Eiffel and Dr. Sheng Zou at Hong Kong Baptist University.
Marking the launch of this four-year France–Hong Kong collaboration, the project also unveiled its bilingual logo, reflecting its cross-cultural orientation and its dual Franco–Chinese research perspective. Jointly led by the DICEN laboratory in France and the School of Communication at Hong Kong Baptist University, PubDiplo aims to advance comparative research on public diplomacy and international communication between France and China in the digital age.
In the coming months, the project will launch a series of academic initiatives. These initiatives include the 2026–2027 Research Seminar Series, titled “Questioning Today’s Public Diplomacy”, which will bring together scholars to critically explore and reassess the evolving concept of public diplomacy in contemporary global contexts.
