Every mass protest is based on the same essential calculation: There's strength in numbers. And that certainly seems to be the assumption that's animating the astonishing numbers of demonstrators we've been witnessing in just the past few weeks, in places ranging from Egypt and Turkey, to Indonesia and Brazil, and even Bulgaria. The causes of discontent are myriad, though certain themes tend to resurface.

Officials from archrivals India and Pakistan say there is political will on both sides to take the often-contentious relationship to a new level. Indian Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid met with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's special advisor on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Brunei on Tuesday, in the first such talks since the Sharif was sworn in as Pakistan's new leader.

Perhaps the only thing that the average American knows about Rwanda is of the genocide that claimed over a million lives in 1994. When locating Rwanda, a small nation about the size of the state of Maryland, on a map of Africa, most would first notice their looming neighbor to the left, the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Mr Obama visited the country’s Ubungo power station as part of his “Power Africa” initiative, unveiled in Cape Town on June 30th, which aims to double access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa. The Norwegian-built gas plant is the kind of public-private investment that America is seeking to encourage in Africa, where two-thirds of people have no access to power.

What happens when the domestic public seemingly overtakes a country’s public diplomacy agenda? Brazil looked like it had scored a double goal when it secured the bid to host the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics. A massive promotional campaign to garner world attention was well underway. And then came the massive protests by the Brazilian public.

As Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, it has been my honor and privilege to lead our country’s vibrant engagement with the world. As I move on, I do so with an unshakeable belief, constantly reaffirmed during my 14 months here: People matter in ways they never have before. Thanks in large part to connective technology, they are communicating, sharing ideas, influencing others, growing businesses, and improving their lives in ways that were previously unimaginable.

During a discussion at the Aspen Ideas Festival, the industrial designer engaged in some designing of the political variety. He argued that the United States should further systematize its support of art and culture -- through, specifically, adding a Secretary of Culture to the presidential Cabinet.

More specifically, it is a glimpse at how urban centers led by Lagos, Africa's biggest city, are positioning themselves to accomplish what any number of rebel groups and secessionists movements have failed to achieve since the continent's independence era commenced in the late 1950s: redraw a remarkably static political map of Africa, imposed by European imperialists over a century ago.