Evans Wadongo | Innovators Under 35

Growing up in Kenya, he strained to read by the dim light of a kerosene lantern. Now hes making solar-charged lanterns and using them to spur economic development.

Kenyas unreliable electric grid doesnt reach Chumvi, a village about two hours southeast of Nairobi, where many of the 500 residents live in mud-walled, grass-roofed homes and eke out a living raising goats and growing kale, maize, and other crops. Yet an economic transformation is taking place, driven by an unlikely sourcesolar-charged LED lanterns. It can be traced to the vision of Evans Wadongo, 27, who grew up in a village much like this one.