Insight articles

UK universities are global players with local responsibilities. We look at the tensions this can cause and what they can and are doing to alleviate them.

Alison Baily reviews Ronald Inglehart’s work on ‘cultural evolution’.

A new report calls for closer alignment of the UK’s aid spending with its foreign policy goals.

Policy experts discuss how the country should keep pace in an increasingly competitive 'soft power marketplace'.

As Europe’s attention focuses on Ireland, the latest British Council research reveals the hopes and fears of young people on both sides of the border.

A discovery in the British Council’s archives throws new light on its relationship with Orwell.

With global affairs are increasingly influenced by populism and identity politics, Paul Smith examines the vital importance of culture in international relations.

The UK’s creative industries are a huge source of soft power, as well as prosperity, for the nation.

A new report highlights the economic and social impact of the Premier League and its clubs to the UK.

France tops this year’s Monocle Soft Power Survey, despite experiencing internal turbulence. We look at how internal political upheavals affect the way countries are perceived.