Curt Beckmann has been a good student and a highly skilled digital problem solver. He joined the high tech game in junior high school several years before Apple introduced its first home computer, and has ridden the tech wave ever since, doing software, hardware, chip design, among others. He cofounded a startup that was acquired by Brocade, where he works today. But somewhere along the way he discovered a fierce streak of social justice that particularly resonates with the idea of ensuring opportunity for those at the bottom of the global pyramid. After sitting on that passion for years, lost for what he could do, an idea came along that managed to get him unstuck, Appropedia.com. He has since co-founded a powerful nonprofit that is making a difference globally.