Dedications and Donations

This book is primarily dedicated to Artemis Christodulou. Artemis, my classmate at Yale University, was in a serious car accident on May 23, 2004, in Sierra Leone while she was scouting for a new location to display contributions to the National Vision for Sierra Leone, one of the projects profiled in this book (see Chapter 2). The accident caused severe injuries, and she remains impaired. Artemis sacrificed much in the service of others, and she epitomizes the essence of a young social entrepreneur. I will donate half of the book’s royalties to the Christodulou family for Artemis’s medical …  Read More

Artemis Christodulou

The following was written by Artemis’s family:

Artemis Christodulou was born in Providence, Rhode Island, on April 28, 1978, to Antonis “Tony” and Kalliope “Popi” Christodulou. Early on people recognized Artemis as special. Her kindergarten teacher took her father aside one day and said: “I have something to tell you: Artemis is one in a million.”

As a child, Artemis was very kind, respectable, neat, ambitious, sincere, and outgoing. She touched the lives of those around her and was very well respected by her friends.

Artemis loved the outdoors, particularly the sea, the beach, swimming, boating, waterskiing, and snorkeling. During visits …  Read More

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Americans for Informed Democracy

Americans for Informed Democracy is a network of young people in the U.S. concerned about our individual and collective roles in the world. We believe that the U.S. should act responsibly and collaboratively to solve our greatest challenges. We also believe that we, as young people, have the power to build a better world. The majority of our more than 50,000 members are college or university students. Our members also include high school students, graduate students, recent graduates, foreign students, professors and university staff. We are non-partisan, and we encourage students to understand and take action on issues in …  Read More

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Asylum Access

The average time in a refugee camp is 17 years.  Asylum Access was founded to change this.

Asylum Access is an innovative nonprofit that makes refugee rights a reality in Africa, Asia and Latin America. We help refugees assert their rights to live safely, work, send children to school and rebuild their lives. Through a unique combination of four integrated tools – combining grassroots legal aid with far-reaching advocacy – Asylum Access transforms the human rights landscape for refugees in first countries of refuge. Asylum Access currently provides legal assistance to over 5,000 refugees each year.  Our advocacy has …  Read More

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Children of Abraham

Between 2004 and 2008, Children of Abraham (CoA) facilitated dialogue and connected Muslim and Jewish young people from all over the world using a range of emerging online technologies. 245 alumni from 47 countries graduated from CoA’s Global Discovery Program.  The program featured guided thematic exploration of each other’s communities using Wiki, photography, and discussion boards aimed at building mutual respect through understanding. As a result of their experiences, many graduates of the program have been inspired to write newspaper articles, conduct radio interviews, form local interfaith groups, stage photography exhibitions, and recruit peers for future programs in the United …  Read More

Generation Rwanda

Generation Rwanda is working to transform higher education in East Africa. Each year, the organization recruits Rwanda’s brightest students that cannot afford university, funds their education, and trains them to become leaders in Africa’s emerging information economy. By opening a path to university for brilliant students from vulnerable backgrounds, Generation Rwanda believes that its work has the potential to revolutionize an entire society—making it smarter, more agile, and truly meritocratic.

Generation Rwanda receives over 4,000 applications from graduating students at schools and orphanages across Rwanda. Following three intensive rounds of selection, fewer than 1% are accepted into the program, making …  Read More

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Indego Africa

Indego Africa is a 501(c)(3) non-profit social enterprise that advances woman-owned cooperatives of African artisans toward sustainable, economic independence through market access and education. Indego Africa first partners with for-profit cooperatives of women artisans in Rwanda and markets and sells their handmade accessories and home décor products on its e-commerce site and to U.S. brands and retail chains, including Anthropologie, DANNIJO, J.Crew, Madewell, and Nicole Miller. Indego Africa then pools 100% of its profits from sales with donations to fund training programs for its partners in financial management, entrepreneurship, literacy, and computers – all of which are taught by Rwanda’s top university students.

Through …  Read More

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Kigali Public Library

In 1994, Rwanda experienced a genocide in which approximately one million Rwandans were killed. Through the establishment of the Kigali Public Library, Rwanda’s first-ever public library, it is our hope that the tools used for destruction will be replaced with tools of knowledge. Successful completion of this monumental effort marks a watershed in Rwanda’s history, finally providing unfettered access to a treasure trove of knowledge that has so far been unavailable to a population of over eleven million people. The library—a sanctuary for knowledge and a forum for the free exchange of ideas—is also a monument to serve as a …  Read More

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National Vision for Sierra Leone

The National Vision for Sierra Leone, originating from the Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission (SL TRC), is a national initiative promoting peace, reconciliation, unity, and equality. The National Vision contributed to the intellectual, imaginative, and cultural revitalization of Sierra Leone in the aftermath of the Sierra Leonean civil war through a multi-faceted approach that included conducting sensitization programs that utilized cultural, artistic, and scholarly activities aimed at helping Sierra Leoneans develop fresh and confident “visions“ for the future of their country.

The evolving collection of visions, which form the National Vision Exhibit, is a living memorial to victims and survivors …  Read More