During his time in the United States as a participant in the International Visitor Leadership Program, Mark Chilongu of Lusaka, Zambia was struck by the way in which Americans shared their time and resources to care for the poor. He took this spirit of social responsibility back to Zambia, applying it to help kids in one of Lusaka's poorest neighborhoods.

"Young people are a dynamic section of society. They have the potential to change the world, if they are engaged in a positive way." - Mark Chilongu

His organization, Africa Directions "is a youth-led, national, non-governmental, non-profit organization [in Zambia. Its] mission is to build the capacity, skills, and confidence of Zambian youths from childhood so they can make informed decisions about their lives, and to change negative peer pressure into positive peer education."