Making a Difference

Sure, Bono and Richard Branson can change the world. But there are millions of individuals making a difference who are not rich or famous. This section is for that unheralded community – “to honor the decency and courage and selflessness that surround us,” as Editor Richard Bergenheim described the Monitor’s journalistic mission in 2005.

A church that is home to the homeless

Pastor Richard Berry lives the motto 'faith without works is dead'

Photo: Richard Berry stands in a former Sunday School classroom in the basement of Trinity Evangelical Free Church. The room has been turned into a men's homeless shelter. Construction work has begun on a new shelter next to the church.

Sarah Beth Glicksteen/The Christian Science Monitor

 

People making a difference: Batdorj Gongor

In Mongolia, he shows former nomads how working together benefits everyone.

 

Educating South Africa's kids, one by one

José Bright flew in as a consultant, but decided to stay and become a real force for change.

 

The need to feed hungry families cultivates new interest in gleaning

Corinne Almquist wants to restore the biblical tradition of harvesting what farmers leave behind.

 

This Thai crime investigator is no friend to the 'big shots'

Colorful forensic pathologist Porntip Rojanansunan solves human rights cases.

 

Helping orphans, Tibetan and Chinese alike

Tendol Gyalzur returned from exile to provide homes for children in her native Tibet.

 

People making a difference: Chrissie Lam

This New York fashion designer taps the talents of her fellow artists to help the orphans of Rwanda.

 

People making a difference: Gunnar Swanson

An Iraq war veteran has dedicated his life to helping children affected by conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

 

Preventing suicides in the military

The death of Kim Ruocco's husband led her to try to put a stop to others.

 

People making a difference: Aryeh Sufrin

Nearly killed by terrorists, this rabbi dedicated himself to helping drug addicts, including Muslims.

 

People making a difference: Robert Quinn

When scholars face threats, this global networker finds them safer places to do their work.

 

Extreme do-gooders – what makes them tick?

Five extraordinary social entrepreneurs talk about their defining moments - when the urge to change the world gathered such force they couldn't ignore it.

 

People Making a Difference: Dara O'Rourke

This consumer advocate teams up with analysts and rates products to make shoppers smarter.

 

People Making a Difference: Alberto Yanosky

This bridge-building conservationist tries to save forests by lending a hand to Paraguay's government.

 

People Making a Difference: Sheridan Conisbee

This founder of a nonprofit rescue organization finds homes for Bangkok's street dogs.

 

People Making a Difference: Mohammed Salifu

This street-savvy youth counselor helps women and girls who leave home to look for work in Ghana's capital.

 

People Making a Difference: Emily Pozo

Living in the Galápagos, famous for exotic wildlife, this educator turns her attention to the needs of its people.

 

People Making a Difference: Lyndon Harris

During 9/11, this New York clergyman experienced true heroism. But he still had to find his own path to forgiveness.

 

People Making a Difference: Nadia Bitar helps Liberian orphans

The fashion model-turned-philanthropist aims to build a new home for them.

 

People Making a Difference: Garry Delice

He rose up from poverty to earn a college degree. Now this educator roams Haiti's back roads, urging students to live their own dreams.

 

People Making a Difference: Jeremy Gilley

This actor and filmmaker envisions that world peace begins with just one day of peace.

 

People Making a Difference: Visaka Dharmadasa

After her son went missing in action, this Sri Lankan woman launched a nonprofit that helps trace soldiers like him.

 

People Making a Difference: Bob Hildreth and Lisa Ballantine

These two innovators, working independently, provide cheap, effective filters that make polluted water potable.

 

People making a difference: Sheema Kermani

In Pakistan, this women's rights activist stages plays that stir controversy – and thought.

 

People making a difference: Ellington Bell

Drill-team discipline saved his life. Now this one-time school-bus driver drums a sense of purpose into Kansas City youths.

 

People making a difference: Andi Arnovitz

This Israeli fabric artist stitches Jewish and Palestinian themes into 'Garments of Reconciliation.'

 

How to clean up a lake? Floating islands might be the answer.

Man-made islands can remove ammonia, heavy metals, and other chemicals from the water.

 

People making a difference: Anna and Phina Mojapelo

Building an orphanage is a powerful mission of love.

 

People making a difference: Steve Korman

With the US mired in a deep recession, this CEO is challenging fellow business leaders to resist layoffs.

 

Finnish teacher unlocks music for special-needs students

Simplified, accessible music notation lets their talent, not their needs, take center stage.

 

A Thai housewife becomes a human rights activist

Angkhana Neelapaichit works to solve the mystery of her husband's disappearance.

 

People making a difference: Teny Gross

The best way to curb gang violence, says this Providence, R.I., mediator, is to offer help from street workers who've been there themselves.

 

New online dictionary redefines 'look it up'

Lexicographer Erin McKean's interactive 'Wordnik' is projected to be the largest online dictionary ever.

 

Amid 18 percent unemployment, Indiana county finds unity

With one of the highest US jobless rates, Noble County sees a rise in volunteer efforts to help those who are struggling.

 

'Islamic MTV' takes on brash world of Arab pop videos

Cairo's 4Shbab TV offers a music video alternative - with content that its founder says isn't 'haram,' forbidden in Islam.

 

An independent bookseller stars in her own fairy tale

Nancy Traversy took on the big chain-store dragons to rule her own realm - Barefoot Books for children.

 

One man helps the disabled see the world

Craig Grimes broke his back 12 years ago. From Nicaragua, he launches the first online booking engine for disabled travelers.

 

Meet Lula Mae Walker, who’s been foster parent to 300 kids

The Fort Lauderdale woman has also had nine kids of her own and adopted 11 others. Happy holidays ... from a busy household.

 

A chess champion crusades to make the game ‘cool’

Russian Alexandra Kosteniuk, the women’s world title holder with a fashion-model image, wants to broaden the game’s appeal to young people.

 

Borrow a Muslim? A 'living library' to prick stereotypes

In 12 countries, people check out people for a 30-minute conversation to challenge their own prejudices.

 

Basketball's Chris Webber gives a clinic in African-American lore

The Golden State Warriors forward turns a personal passion into a pass-along for the next generation.

 

Dining on a dollar a day

A California couple’s experiment in extreme food budgeting taught them a lot about how the poor eat.

 

Where imagination meets farming

Local-food pioneer Pete Johnson's movable greenhouses have yielded a lettuce harvest in the dead of a Vermont winter.

 

How do you teach third-grade math?

Reconciling diverse languages, experiences, and the playfulness common to all 9-year-olds, Ann Griffith’s job is to get her students to the right answers.

 

In Japan, foster parents blaze an unpopular trail

The government is taking small steps to boost interest. But prejudices remain in a society where the pull of traditional family structures and blood ties is strong.