From the mundane to the bizarre, everything seemed to include a hashtag in global development this year.

When fighting terrorism with military force, the United States, if it so chooses, is unmatched in both innovation and prowess. But when the terrorism battle is confined to the media and communications sphere, U.S. capabilities are lagging.

A panel of outside experts from Silicon Valley and the private sector has completed a skeptical review — still not public — about U.S. online efforts against ISIS, according to an article in The Washington Post. Their timely review underscores a harsh reality: The United States and its allies have not devoted the time, attention and resources necessary to countering the ideology that drives organizations like ISIS and al-Qaida.

Nigeria is falling in love with Star Wars. There are two reasons. There's a growing nerd culture in the country — young people who love science fiction and see it as a way to imagine our own futures as something better than our present […] The other reason: John Boyega, […] son of Nigerians who settled in Britain.

Ai Wei Wei, the renowned Chinese artist who is currently visiting refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos […] has been sharing pictures and videos on his personal Instagram account, drawing attention to the plight of the thousands of refugees risking stormy waters to escape war and hardship.

Professor Joseph Nye and former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage correctly pointed out that to solve the biggest problems we need a mix of hard and soft power — which they termed “smart power.” […] What would a smart power campaign directed against the challenges represented by the Islamic State look like?