William Kamkwamba has a dream: to power up his country one windmill at a time.-Wall Street Journal
Kamkwamba is a 20 year-old resident of Malawi a relatively small country in Africa. In the past couple of years he has devised a couple of windmills that power his family's house: three light bulbs, one radio, and one television. At first, his family thought he was crazy with his idea of using a windmill to create electricity, but after studying a windmill in a magazine, he was able to build a 39 foot windmill out of blue-gum trees and used bicycle parts. With no prior education, Kamwamba electrified literally and metaphorically his neighborhood, and now with the publicity that African bloggers have gotten it, nation. What amazes me with this story is that it was because of African bloggers that this story was pushed throw the pipeline. After this news hit the blogosphere, a group of independent investors decided to fund Kamkwamba's education.
Comments (2)
I like this story because it is a perfect example of what Thomas Friedman talks about in The World is Flat. Before the world was flat, this was never possible. Now, however, if you have the smarts and the drive, you have a chance to succeed no matter where you are from.
Posted by D. J. Lingelbach | December 13, 2007 11:08 PM
Posted on December 13, 2007 23:08
William Kamkwamba must be a very determined person to pull of an ambitious mission like that. That is a good story, Matt. No wonder you are always reading the WSJ.
Posted by Albert Chen | December 14, 2007 4:48 AM
Posted on December 14, 2007 04:48