The Culture and Arts Unit Discusses the Opportunities and Challenges of Civilizational Communication.
The Culture and Arts Unit at the College of Arts organized a Cultural Café session titled “Civilizational Communication in the Age of Globalization: Opportunities or Challenges?” The session was delivered by Dr. Naji Al-Arfaj, an expert in communication and civilization dialogue, and was attended by the Dean of the College of Arts, Dr. Mashael Al Okaly, along with several individuals interested in cultural affairs.
The session reviewed the concept of civilizational communication as a process of human interaction among peoples and cultures, based on building bridges, fostering mutual understanding, and bringing perspectives closer together, thereby contributing to strengthening cooperation among societies. It also discussed the concept of globalization as a process of global interconnectedness across the fields of economy, media, education, and technology, which has accelerated the movement of ideas, goods, and cultures and made the world more interconnected.
The session addressed several key themes, most notably the characteristics of civilizational communication and the manifestations of globalization, such as the ease of movement of individuals and goods, the spread of the internet and rapid communication, the impact of new media, cultural exchange, and openness to global markets. It also explored the theoretical dimensions of civilizational communication, including intercultural interaction, cultural diversity, cultural identity, and the role of media and technology in promoting dialogue among civilizations.
The session witnessed active engagement from attendees through interventions and discussions, which emphasized the importance of awareness of contemporary transformations and the need to achieve a balance between global openness and the preservation of cultural specificity, in a way that contributes to building positive and sustainable civilizational communication.
