Innovation means different things to different people. For Bridges to Prosperity (B2P), a nonprofit that builds footbridges in the developing world, it’s a way to help people thrive despite limited resources.
By encouraging volunteers to think creatively and incorporating successful ideas into its standard plans, B2P continually improves its ability to help people in remote areas access healthcare, education, and jobs. Learning from failure According to Alex McNeill, B2P’s program manager for Nicaragua, this approach goes back to the organization’s earliest days. “Our founder was reading in the National Geographic about a community in Ethiopia that undertook a dangerous river crossing every day,” he said. “He was an engineer and got some of his friends together, and they went down there and came up with a solution.” Three months later, a new steel bridge was in place.
FULL STORY: With resources scarce, bridge-builders cultivate creativity
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Harvard GSD Executive Education
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