This post originally appeared on Humanosphere.

On the Pacific archipelago nation of Vanuatu, a “digital humanitarian” has been using drones to carry out a detailed assessment of the damage caused by Cyclone Pam last month.

In Rwanda, a young African woman is improving the lives of other young women by the simple act of providing them with locally made sanitary pads so they don’t miss work and school.

And in Kenya, a man who grew up in extreme poverty, without formal education, is building schools and fighting poverty and gender inequality in the worst slums of Nairobi. New York Times Columnist Nicholas Kristof says he might be the next Mandela.

All of these young people are trying to change the world in very different ways. Along with at least 50 others, they will be in Saxapahaw, North Carolina, April 23-24 for the fourth annual SwitchPoint, a global gathering organized by IntraHealth International (which I need to disclose is one of my clients).

It is part TED talk, part World Economic Forum, and part cultural festival.

I hesitate to call Switchpoint a conference because that implies long, boring presentations. SwitchPoint eschews that approach and tries to do the opposite. It brings together the brightest thinkers and entrepreneurs to create new partnerships and brainstorm on solutions to pressing issues.

It is part TED talk, part World Economic Forum, and part cultural festival, set in a former cotton mill on the banks of the Haw River.

Read more at Humanosphere.

Photo courtesy of Humanosphere.