In 1998 Barry Childs returned to Tanzania, where he had spent his childhood as the son of a British agriculturalist. He was about to turn 55 years of age and wondered how things had turned out for the African children he had played with some decades before, only to realize that most of them had died. The shocking gap in life expectancy spurred him to take early retirement and spend the rest of his days developing an economic model that could transform prospects for some of the most deprived people in the world. The result was Africa Bridge, a sustainable and cooperative agricultural business model founded in 2000. Over the two decades of its growth, it has been adopted by 37 villages in western Tanzania, transforming living standards and prospects for thousands of families, confirmed by independent research. This vindicates the vision of Barry and his colleagues who believe that sympathy is not enough to overcome poverty, action is required, and that love is a verb.