Legendary Doctor Passes On
Dr. V(enkataswamy), the legendary eye surgeon from South India, who with his own two hands restored the sight of over 100,000 people, passed away late last week. His work resulted in one of the world's most extraordinary models of service delivery. Thirty years ago, at the age of 58, he started an 11-bed eye clinic in an old temple-city, and with his team, turned Aravind Eye Care System into the l... posted on Jul 10 2006, 2,071 reads

The Power of One
It might just be the most moving 1-minute video you have ever seen: Made by OneEarth.org, The Power of One combines evocative visuals with a moving original score by Academy Award winner Hans Zimmer, featuring historical and contemporary exemplars who have impacted the world and illustrated that when working toward greater good, the power of one becomes the power of many. Check out this deeply ins... posted on Jul 08 2006, 4,061 reads

Doctors from Inner-city Give Back
Thirteen years ago three African-American teenagers made a pact to raise themselves out of their tough inner-city neighborhood in New Jersey and become doctors -- together. Like their peers, they came from poor, single-parent homes in urban neighborhoods where survival, not scholastic success, was the priority. Today Samson, George and Remeck have each overcome wide-ranging obstacles to fulfill th... posted on Jul 05 2006, 2,222 reads

All for Books, Books for All
At 34, John Wood was a Microsoft millionaire and head of business development in China. Then he took an interesting step -- he quit. Determined to find the "second act" of his adult life, Wood began a trekking expedition in Nepal where he saw firsthand poverty and lack of opportunity. When he got home Wood cashed out $50,000 worth of shares and started Room to Read, now a $10 million organization ... posted on Jun 25 2006, 1,428 reads

The Man Who Memorized Pi
Daniel Tammet lives with extraordinary ability and disability. He can't drive a car or tell right from left. But he can figure out cube roots quicker than a calculator and holds the European record for recalling pi to the furthest decimal point. Daniel is an "Autistic savant" -- a term that refers to individuals with autism who have extraordinary mental skills. But while most savants can't tell us... posted on Jun 21 2006, 3,575 reads

Musical Protest of Courage and Beauty
It was May 27th, 1992, in Sarajevo. A group of civilians were standing in a breadline, hoping for their share of a dwindling food supply when a mortar shell fell from the sky. Twenty-two innocent men, women and children were killed. It was May 28th, 1992, when principal cellist of the Sarajevo Opera Orchestra, Vedran Smailovic, took his cello to the crater left by the deadly blast and, amidst the ... posted on Jun 19 2006, 1,669 reads

Gates to Become Full-Time Philanthropist
Bill Gates of Microsoft announced that within two years, he plans to transition into full-time work for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the organization he founded with his wife, which focuses on global health and education. "I believe with great wealth comes great responsibility - the responsibility to give back to society and make sure those resources are given back in the best possible w... posted on Jun 18 2006, 1,634 reads

Raising 10 Kids on 35 Words or Less
In the mid-1950s, the ten Ryan kids lived on the edge of disaster and dispossession. Dad drank away his machine-shop wages, and his witty, resourceful wife, Evelyn, was too busy at home to take a job. So she started entering contests -- not today's sweepstakes but tests of literacy mettle -- churning out hundreds of rhyming couplets and mini-essays hailing the merits of soap and cat food. And by G... posted on Jun 08 2006, 2,551 reads

Wandering Scribe
A woman becomes homeless, so she gets into her car and drives. Except she has nowhere to go - so she stays in the car, with all her possessions heaped in the back, sleeping in the front seat, parking in secluded streets. For eight months, no one notices her, because she makes sure she looks respectable. But this is the information age. And even though she doesn't speak to anyone, she can go int... posted on Jun 05 2006, 3,287 reads

Beloved 'Hijos' of Mother Antonia
Mary Clarke grew up in glamour-infused Beverly Hills, was married twice, and raised seven children in relative domestic bliss. Then, at the age of fifty, she experienced a calling to serve humanity so strong that it led her to literally sew her own habit and move to one of the most infamous penitentiaries in Mexico in order to help the inmates there. For nearly fifteen years, she had little suppor... posted on Jun 01 2006, 2,514 reads