difference maker: one
I would like to introduce you to Dr. Pawan Sinha. He is an incredible man who is committed to doing and rethinking. This man has climbed Mount Everest - literally and figuratively. Pawan identified a problem. We can all identify problems. Most of us like to point them out to others, and even complain about them to our confidants. But let me ask you, how many of us actually do something about it? It's easy to complain about problems, but it's difficult to do something about them. Dr. Pawan Sinha identified a problem AND he's doing something about it. 30% of the world's blind population reside in India. Many children in India are born with congenital eye problems. Over 50% of these cases are treatable, but much of the population has little access to modern medical care. In response, Pawan created Project Prakash - a humanitarian effort to bring medical care to the treatable blind population in India. Importantly, not only did Pawan decide to do something about the problem he identified, but he challenged the status quo and found holes in Nobel Prize winning science.
Neuroscientists, David Hubel and Torsten Weisel were awarded the Nobel Prize in 1981 for their research into processing in the visual system. Hubel and Weisel contended that the brains of patients who received treatment for blindness past age four or five are not able to process the information being transmitted from the eye to the brain. Pawan poked holes in their science and testing, and added a scientific mission to the humanitarian effort of Project Prakash. Pawan is proving the Nobel Prize winners wrong. Project Prakash is not only providing much needed care to the children of India, but Pawan is breaking ground with research into how the brain's visual system develops.
Pawan Sinha's speech at the TEDIndia conference is nearly 20 minutes long. It's incredibly moving and well worth your time. We all have the capability to make change in our worlds. We may not have the same impact Pawan has made, but there is no reason why we can't change the things around us for the better. Make a difference. Challenge today's notions. Have an impact.
Pawan Sinha is changing the world. What's Stopping You?