When you think of Nairobi's slums, performance art probably isn't the first thing that comes to your mind. But the Sarakasi Trust isn't a normal organization. It's working with impoverished Kenyan youths to train them as dancers and acrobats, a process which gives young people self-belief and helps them fulfill their potential both on the stage and off it.

In Caracas, Venezuela the streets thump with hip-hop, Latin rhythms, and violent crime. But the city is also home to a remarkable youth orchestra system that has helped more than a million kids from poor neighborhoods discover a very different world: that of classical music. Only a few will ever become professional musicians, but many more will have their lives changed for the better.

When there are chores to be done during the day and it's dark in the evening, children find it difficult to learn. But Malian entrepreneur Daniele Dembele is bringing electricity to remote rural areas, so local schools can light their classrooms long into the night.