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Organized by the BBC with support from Newsweek and Shell, World Challenge '09 seeks to honor "projects or small businesses from around the world that have shown enterprise and innovation at a grass roots level." This year, the fifth that the competition has been held, the finalists represent the greatest diversity yet seen.
From a solar project in India to an emissions control program in the UK, a clothes workshop in Afghanistan to a unique recycling program in Haiti, the projects cover an incredible number of places and a whole range of problems.
Finalists are eligible for a number of grants, the largest of which is $20,000. Second and third place winners will receive grants of $15,000 and $10,000 respectively. In the hands of these programs and individuals, this money has the power to accomplish incredible good. The only question is who deserves to win?
Answering this is not going to be easy. All of the 12 finalists are incredible. An expert panel of judges has pulled them from the mass of entries, and they all clearly deserve to be recognized. In the end, the power to decide the winner is yours.
Head over to World Challenge '09 and choose your favorite program. You only get to choose once, but with such a strong field, you really can't go wrong.
Read more about people making change:
Help Wyclef Jean and Timberland Reforest Haiti
Meet Robyn Nietert of the Women's Microfinance Initiative: Building Businesses, and Lives, One Loan At a Time (Interview)
Ashley Judd on The Last Patch of Green Earth
10 Reasons to Really Love Trees (as if You Didn't Already)
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