Jonty Wareing

In 2009, Jonty Wareing started a small educational community in a room under a pub. It was designed as a big communal shed: a place where people of all ages and backgrounds can share skills, work on projects and learn from each other. Two years later, London Hackspace has 300 members and a huge workshop in East London. It'll soon be registered charity. It holds regular educational workshops: and its members teach everything from complex electronics to building wind turbines from recycled bicycle wheels. Throughout all this, Jonty has been the community's lynchpin; making the decisions that no-one else wanted to. Jonty sets an inspirational example: taking one idea, assembling a group of energetic volunteers, holding them together through obstacles like sudden evictions and rent hikes, and improving the lives of hundreds of people (and the rest of the world) as a result.