Fazle H. Abed's life was transformed when a cyclone hit Bangladesh in 1970 and thousands of people died. He was working for Chevron and decided to take a few days off to help survivors. What he saw made him realize that he needed to change his life, and he launched BRAC to address poverty alleviation through microfinance, health care and education.

BRAC has expanded outside Bangladesh: Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Uganda and Sudan, which is reflected in his advice to fellow social entrepreneurs: "You need to be ambitious! Build an organization to its full capacity and grow it. Don't be satisfied too early, and you will have a bigger impact in your work."