Mission: Possible – Innovating for the World’s Most Marginalized

Description Clean drinking water should be a basic human right—yet millions of people still rely on unsafe sources every day. In this episode, we explore the story of LifeStraw, the social enterprise behind one of the world’s most recognizable water filtration solutions. Originally developed for emergency response and humanitarian crises, LifeStraw evolved into a globally scaled innovation that de...

Description In the crowded informal settlements of Nairobi, where traditional sewer systems fail and sanitation is often unsafe, Sanergy set out to prove that sanitation can be both dignified and economically viable. This episode explores how Sanergy built an end-to-end sanitation solution—starting with franchised Fresh Life toilets operated by local entrepreneurs, and extending all the way to con...

Description What began as a small call-center coordinating motorcycle taxis in Jakarta has grown into one of Southeast Asia’s most influential technology platforms. In this episode, we explore the rise of GoJek and how it evolved into a socially inclusive “super app” powering transportation, food delivery, payments, and financial access for millions. Designed for a largely unbanked population, GoJ...

Description More than 600 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa still live without access to electricity—but one company is proving that clean energy can be affordable, scalable, and inclusive. In this episode, we explore the story of Azuri Technologies, a pioneer in pay-as-you-go solar solutions that enable low-income, off-grid households to access reliable electricity without the burden of upfron...

Description For millions of households across sub-Saharan Africa, cooking is still done with inefficient charcoal or wood stoves—driving deforestation, indoor air pollution, and preventable health risks for women and children. In this episode, we explore how Toyola Energy Limited set out to change that reality through local innovation and social entrepreneurship. Founded in Ghana, Toyola designs a...

Description What happens when a global consumer goods company applies its R&D muscle to one of the world’s most urgent humanitarian challenges? In this episode, we explore how Procter & Gamble transformed a failed commercial product into one of the most impactful corporate social innovation programs in the world: the Children’s Safe Drinking Water (CSDW) Program. From the invention of a 4-...

Description This episode details the rise of Hydrologic, a Cambodian social enterprise that transitioned from a nonprofit project into a market-driven leader in rural water access. To combat widespread waterborne illness and the environmental toll of boiling water with wood, the company manufactures and distributes ceramic water purifiers. Their strategy combines local production, aspirational bra...

Description Access to safe drinking water remains one of the world’s most urgent public health challenges. In this episode, we examine how Unilever attempted to tackle this crisis through Pureit, a low-cost household water purifier designed for low-income and underserved communities. Originally developed in India, Pureit was engineered to deliver water “as safe as boiled water” without electricity...

Description What happens when a global food giant partners with a Nobel Prize–winning economist to fight child malnutrition? In this episode, we unpack the Grameen Danone case, a pioneering social business launched in Bangladesh by Muhammad Yunus and Danone. Designed as a non-dividend, non-loss enterprise, Grameen Danone Foods Limited set out to address widespread child malnutrition through an aff...

Description Billions of people still lack reliable access to safe drinking water—especially in rural villages and peri-urban settlements where centralized infrastructure has failed to reach. In this episode, we explore how WaterHealth International set out to close that gap using a decentralized, market-based approach. Founded as a mission-driven social enterprise, WaterHealth pioneered community-...

Description More than a billion people worldwide remain excluded from formal financial systems—unable to access credit, savings, or basic banking services. In this episode, we explore how Kiva set out to tackle this challenge by harnessing the power of the internet and everyday lenders. Founded in 2005, Kiva pioneered peer-to-peer micro-lending, allowing anyone to lend as little as $25 to entrepre...

Description This episode examines the evolution of Bboxx, a technology-driven enterprise dedicated to alleviating energy poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa and Pakistan. By leveraging solar home systems and an innovative pay-as-you-go (PAYG) financing model, the company provides affordable electricity to underserved populations living outside traditional power grids. Central to its operations is Bboxx...

Description In rural India, millions of women lacked access to affordable sanitary pads due to cost and cultural stigma, forcing them to use unsafe materials like rags and ash. This episode tells the inspiring story of how social entrepreneur Arunachalam Muruganantham set out to solve this problem by inventing a low-cost sanitary pad-making machine. Through his initiative Jayashree Industries, he...

Description How do you help farmers grow their way out of poverty? In this episode, we dive into the story of KickStart International, a nonprofit social enterprise transforming the lives of smallholder farmers across Africa with a simple but powerful idea: sell affordable irrigation pumps, not give them away. With their iconic “MoneyMaker” pumps, KickStart enables farmers to irrigate year-round,...

Description What if city garbage could feed farms, clean neighborhoods, and create jobs—all at once? This episode tells the story of Waste Concern, a pioneering social enterprise based in Bangladesh that is redefining urban waste management in South Asia. In cities like Dhaka, where up to 80% of municipal solid waste is organic and poorly managed, Waste Concern developed a decentralized composting...

Description This episode details the Tubig Para sa Barangay (TPSB) program, an initiative by Manila Water to provide clean, affordable water to low-income and informal settlements in Metro Manila’s East Zone. Launched in 1998 following the privatization of water services, the program addressed a crisis where the urban poor paid exorbitant prices for unsafe water while the utility suffered from mas...

Description Africa’s 33 million smallholder farms produce the majority of the continent’s food, yet their yields often fall below potential due to limited access to financing, quality inputs, information, and markets. This episode spotlights Farmerline, a Ghanaian agritech social enterprise helping farmers overcome these challenges and build wealth. Discover Farmerline’s innovations – from its Mer...

Description Imagine a healthcare system that delivers world-class surgery to the poorest patients—at no cost—while remaining financially self-sufficient. In this episode, we dive into the extraordinary story of Aravind Eye Care System, a pioneering institution in India that has reimagined how healthcare can be delivered at scale. Founded by Dr. Govindappa Venkataswamy, Aravind has performed millio...

Description Can electric motorcycles drive economic inclusion in Africa? In this episode, we ride along with MAX.ng—Nigeria’s trailblazing mobility startup that’s redefining transportation, employment, and energy access across West Africa. Founded by two MIT graduates, MAX.ng began as a delivery service and evolved into a tech-driven platform offering ride-hailing, vehicle financing, and now a bol...

Description What if the world’s poorest women were seen not as charity cases, but as reliable entrepreneurs? In this episode, we tell the story of Grameen Bank—the revolutionary institution that reimagined credit for the rural poor in Bangladesh. Founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus in the 1970s, Grameen Bank pioneered microloans without collateral, using peer groups and trust instea...

Description How did one of the world’s poorest countries become a hub of development innovation? In this episode, we explore the extraordinary story of BRAC—formerly the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee—founded in 1972 and now the largest NGO in the world. From post-war relief work to nationwide programs in education, health, microfinance, and social enterprise, BRAC has transformed what it...

Description Why do so many promising water and sanitation pilots succeed in small settings yet fail to reach millions? In this episode, we unpack the paradox that “pilots never fail—but also never scale,” drawing on research across 19 organizations working in low-income countries. We explore how early success is built on tightly aligned business model dimensions—value creation, customer engagement...

Description In this episode, we explore how Grameen America successfully adapted the global microfinance model to the United States—proving that poverty, financial exclusion, and entrepreneurial potential exist even in advanced economies . Founded during the 2008 financial crisis, Grameen America set out to empower low-income women with something many had never been offered before: trust-based acc...

Description What if worms could power a green revolution? In this episode, we dive into the inspiring story of Raj Organik, an Indonesian social enterprise that turns organic waste into opportunity. Founder Mr. Adam built a member-based network of thousands of micro-entrepreneurs who raise worms to produce organic fertilizer and high-protein feed for aquaculture. The result? A circular economy mod...

Description How can a drone save a life? In this episode, we uncover the remarkable story of Zipline, a startup that began in California and took flight across the skies of Africa to revolutionize medical logistics. What started as a bold idea to use drones for delivering blood in Rwanda has grown into the world’s largest autonomous delivery network—serving over 49 million people in countries like...