MIT graduate, Jodie Wu, had a vision that a bicycle could be more than just a machine for transportation, but a way to bring technology to the people who need it most. So, she created an organization to transform bicycles into a tool for income generation to empower the world’s 550 million small farmers.
To do this, she has engineered attachments for bicycles such as maize shellers, grinders and phone chargers. The designs are simple, affordable, and driven by pedal-power. With their adapter, the bicycle retains all functionality for transport, while gaining value as a tool for farmers.
For all those dismayed by scenes of looting in Chile or elsewhere, take heart: Good acts -- acts of kindness, generosity and cooperation -- spread just as easily as bad. And it takes only a handful of individuals to really make a difference.
In a study published by the National Academy of Sciences last week, researchers provided the first laboratory evidence that cooperative behavior is contagious and that it spreads from person to person to person. When people benefit from kindness they "pay it forward" by helping others who were not originally involved, and this creates a cascade of cooperation that influences dozens more in a social network.
President Obama named ten charities this week that will share the $1.4 million award that comes with his 2009 Nobel peace prize.
“These organizations do extraordinary work in the United States and abroad helping students, veterans and countless others in need,” said President Obama. “I’m proud to support their work.”
The charities are:
* Fisher House, a national non-profit organization that provides housing for families of patients receiving medical care at major military and VA medical centers. ($250,000)
* The Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, formed in the wake of Haiti's devastating earthquake, and per request from President Obama, former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton joined to create a vehicle for raising funds for long-term relief efforts. ($200,000)
Alexander Reyes' boyhood dream of a military career ended when he was hit by an improvised explosive device during a patrol two years ago in Baghdad.
"Laying in that hospital bed ... sometimes I felt I'd rather [have] died," Reyes said. "My life came to a complete halt."
He and a handful of other injured veterans are getting help from a custom home builder in Houston, Texas, who recently presented Reyes and his wife with an unexpected gift: a home built especially for them, mortgage-free.
"Thank you. That's all I can say," Elizabeth Reyes said, sobbing and clutching her stunned husband's arm as Wallrath surprised them with the house.
WATCH the video below, or at the CNN Heroes Website...Thanks to C. Davenport for sending the link!
When 82-year-old Jean Evans needed help with a nagging hot water tank, she ignored it as long as she could, until Facebook came to the rescue with social media-inspired helpers to solve the problem.
The cost of a hot water tank and its installation is about what Jean makes each month on Social Security. What seemed impossible for the one to pay proved to be no problem for the many -- and offers came from all over the state.
MIT graduate, Jodie Wu, had a vision that a bicycle could be more than just a machine for transportation, but a way to bring technology to the people who need it most. So, she created an organization to transform bicycles into a tool for income generation to empower the world’s 550 million small farmers.
For all those dismayed by scenes of looting in Chile or elsewhere, take heart: Good acts -- acts of kindness, generosity and cooperation -- spread just as easily as bad. And it takes only a handful of individuals to really make a difference.
President Obama named ten charities this week that will share the $1.4 million award that comes with his 2009 Nobel peace prize.
Alexander Reyes' boyhood dream of a military career ended when he was hit by an improvised explosive device during a patrol two years ago in Baghdad.
When 82-year-old Jean Evans needed help with a nagging hot water tank, she ignored it as long as she could, until Facebook came to the rescue with social media-inspired helpers to solve the problem.
