Five Best Ideas of the Day: September 23

1. As coalition bombs fall on Islamic State targets, the future of the Kurds hangs in the balance.

By Dexter Filkins in the New Yorker

2. To solve massive international health crises and prevent future ones, the world needs a Global Health Workforce Reserve corps.

By Michele Barry and Lawrence Gostin in the Los Angeles Times

3. In Ukraine, a bad peace is better than a long war with Russia.

By Anatole Kaletsky in Reuters

4. The spiraling costs of end-of-life care signal that significant change — in policy and mindset — is needed.

By Jenny Gold in Kaiser Health News

5. Communities need information to survive and thrive. The public library is primed to meet that need.

By Amy Garmer in the Knight Blog

The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, D.C.