All People Making a Difference
- Difference MakerYoon Mee-hyang helps Korea’s World War II sex slaves tell their stories
She works restore the dignity and rights of women who were used as sex slaves by the Japanese during World War II.
- Father Rocky shapes a better future for Filipino children once headed for lives in the streets
Students at Tuloy school in Manila, The Philippines, are bound for the ballet and culinary careers as far away as Dubai.
- On a Maine farm, African refugees go back to their roots
Through farming and selling their crops, new immigrants make up to $20,000 a year – lifting them from poverty, alleviating debt, and, in some cases, bringing college within reach.
- Move over GDP, the SPI is the way to measure progress
Martin Burt, a former government minister in Paraguay, tells how the Social Progress Index has helped Paraguay set clearer goals and improve quality of life.
- No supermarkets, so 130 community gardens help to feed a city
A gardening effort in Camden, N.J., brings fresh food to New Jersey’s biggest food desert.
- Difference MakerJohnny Outlaw works on the right side of the law helping ex-cons stay out of prison
The former inmate, who lives on Chicago's South Side, helps those who've served time to find work and keep out of trouble.
- Drones emerge as a conservation tool
Lian Pin Koh, cofounder of ConservationDrones.org, says drones can be a key part of conservation efforts, particularly in remote regions, from counting orangutans to stopping poaching.
- Aileen Hefferren preps minority students for top schools
Prep for Prep identifies promising students of color and helps prepare them for placement at top-quality independent and boarding schools.
- The Miley Cyrus 2014 VMA shocker? An act of charity.
Miley Cyrus turned the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards spotlight on the homeless youth of America. Twerking is so last year.
- College president takes a $90,000 pay cut to give low-wage workers a raise
Raymond Burse is forfeiting a chunk of his salary at Kentucky State University to improve pay for the lowest-paid workers.
- Difference MakerBob Keesee's rain catchers bring clean water to Haiti’s poorest
Bob Keesee kept tinkering until he got his homemade rain-catching systems right. Now they collect precious water for Haiti's rural poor.
- Soaked for charity: Ice bucket challenges get cool
Ice bucket challenges and similar social media-powered stunts are raising awareness and money for charitable causes.
- Kerri Martin mixes bike repair with on-the-job training
Youths who work at Second Life Bikes for 15 hours can earn a refurbished bicycle of their own.
- 'Mama Aleta' defends Indonesia's natural habitat
After successfully defeating miners, Aleta Baun is heading into the regional parliament to continue her campaign to protect the environment in western Timor, part of Indonesia.
- Difference MakerMicah Clark offers injured vets an outdoor challenge – and new friendships
Camp Patriot prods injured US military veterans to get out and get on with life.
- Tom Osborn, inventor of 'green' charcoal, proves you’re never too young to innovate
18-year-old Kenyan Tom Osborn founded GreenChar, which makes clean-burning smokeless cooking charcoal from agricultural waste.
- Davi Kopenawa fights for his tribe's survival in the Brazilian rain forest
The once-remote Yanomami people have been challenged by the arrival of outsiders to their area of northern Brazil.
- 10 young people who are making food better
From starting their own food companies to donating food that would be thrown away youths are undertaking many inspiring projects.
- Musu Clemens-Hope shares tools to blunt the allure of extremism
As program director of Peace Through Development II she helps moderate Muslims in Africa become more media savvy.
- Jon Schull brings do-it-yourself artificial hands to the masses
His online group e-NABLE harnesses the do-it-yourself movement and 3D printers to create artificial hands for a fraction of their previous cost.