Little People Big Dreams: William Kamkwamba

Discover the life of William Kamkwamba, the Malawian inventor and engineer, who overcame poverty and famine to build windmills from recycled materials that brought electricity to his village.

Little William grew up in a small village in Malawi. His parents were farmers, so every day after school William and his six sisters helped them tend the corn. One year, it rained so little that the fields dried up and William's family could hardly pick any corn. With not much to eat and unable to afford school, William had to quit studying. But William refused to stop learning. So, whenever he had the chance, he went to the library.

One day, he found a book that gave him a great idea: using the wind to make electricity and pump water for the corn! Of course, building a windmill from scratch was no easy task, but William was determined to make it happen. And he did. As soon as the wind started blowing, the blades began to turn and the tiny light bulb that William held in his hands lit up. It was an invention that would eventually bring water to the corn in his village and transform life for people across Malawi.