Jacqueline Novogratz applauds the world's heightened interest in Africa and poverty, but argues persuasively for a new approach.

The debate over foreign aid often pits those who mistrust "charity" against those who mistrust reliance on the markets. Jacqueline Novogratz proposes a middle way she calls patient capital, with promising examples of entrepreneurial innovation driving social change.

Installing public water purification systems in India can create unforeseen benefits, such as reducing the amount of money poor families have to spend each month on expensive medications.

Modern agricultural techniques tend to focus on helping farmers with large fields (and more money to spend), but an innovative, inexpensive drip irrigation system, developed with investment from the Acumen Fund, is helping smallholder farmers in India dramatically increase their crop yields.

An innovative new type of generator that runs on discarded rice husks is bringing power to parts of rural India that were previously thought "economically impossible to reach" with electricity.