Cultural Wealth of Nations

The cultural wealth of nations is a relatively new concept that focuses on the symbolic resources of places, be it nation-states, regions, or communities. These symbolic resources include narratives, myths, frames, statuses, and reputations. Scholars using this concept make the claim that the types of symbolic resources available to places—for example, whether a country is perceived as wealthy, poor, spiritual, indigenous, or whether it is known for a large sex industry—shape and are shaped by economic outcomes. A “cultural wealth of nations” approach to branding, for example, might examine why one brand of goods from a certain country is “better” than another brand of goods from another country. Understanding why Belgian chocolates have the reputation for being one of the best chocolates in the world ...