Climbing Mountains

I'm reading Three Cups of Tea by Mortenson and Relin, an amazing story about Greg Mortenson's journey from a failed attempt to summit K2 to building schools for children in poverty stricken villages of Pakistan and Afghanistan.  For approximately $20,000, and, yes, a great deal of work and diligence, Mr. Mortenson builds a school for an entire village.  That's half the cost of what many Americans pay for one of their many household cars.  Mortenson's schools are providing education to all children, including young girls, empowering people, and promoting peace and understanding, through education. 

I recall watching a broadcast on PBS called "Small Fortunes," a program about the impact that microcredit is having in empowering individuals, especially women, and especially in developing countries. The story that stands out in my mind was of a woman from India who borrowed a little less than $100, to purchase trinkets to trade with children for hair that they would gather from the village, so that she could make wigs.  The story goes on to say that her new thriving business has brought not only financial stability to her household, but also a new respect from her husband and her community. 

I know that there are many critics, and that not all such stories have happy endings, or are perfect in their execution. Yet, the truth is that many of these programs are making significant positive impacts on individuals and communities throughout the poorest of areas across the globe.  The simple construction of a well, providing clean water to a village in a non-developed country, can reduce the infant mortality rate by half.

I wonder, how do we make that level of impact in a developed society, or can we?  While poverty, poor education, and oppression certainly exist in our society, is there a diminishing rate of return for making meaningful social impact in societies that are meeting the majority of its inhabitants’ basic needs of food, water, and safety? Or, is there an opportunity for creating new models for truly making a difference?