1 in 4 people do not have electricity and live in the dark.

Try, if you will, to clear your mind and think about this for a minute.

1 in 4 people do not have electricity and live in the dark.

That’s the message from D.light Design, a company that is determined to ‘replace every kerosene lantern in the world with high quality and affordable light and power solutions.’

How audacious. How clever! How necessary!

This is the kind of thing that astounds me; a practical solution that delivers an essential, life-changing experience to its user. Like Iqbal Quadir, these entrepreneurs (call them ecopreneurs, or social capitalists if you will) are changing the world in measurable, almost magical ways. Such a small thing, really, but so immensely scalable.

My question then, is this: as we experience a deepening constriction (recession, depression, dismantling…) and people are laid off, how can we harness their newly available energy and ingenuity to recreate the world for the 21st century and beyond? If you could do one thing to change the world, what would it be?

More on this coming up next, as I write about the Innovation Economy.