IDE is presently evaluating new technologies, such as low-wattage solar energy lanterns that can help village retailers extend their shop hours and, thus, their incomes. Such devices can also help improve literacy by giving children and adults the chance to study and read after sundown. Another project under study is production of low-cost bicycles.

IDE plans to expand its irrigation projects to additional countries in Asia and Latin America in the coming years, with the goal of reducing poverty and improving productivity so that poor families can permanently emerge from their cycle of poverty. "With enough income, farmers can begin letting more of their children go to school for more years," says Polak. "They also have a way to begin buying medicines and basic implements that improve their daily lives. It doesn't take much, by Western standards, to make a revolutionary difference."

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