FORTUNE’S WORLD’S GREATEST LEADERS: 50 INTREPID GUIDES FOR A MESSY WORLD | Kailash Satyarthi US

These ­extraordinary men and women are transforming business, govern­ment, philanthropy, and so much more.

Though overshadowed by last year’s other recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, Satyarthi has led the global fight against child labor for more than three decades. Founded in 1980, his Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save Childhood Movement) has protected the rights of some 83,000 children around the world. Child labor, he says, is as much an economic issue, perpetuating poverty and illiteracy, as it is about human rights. In any case, no one has done as much to prevent it as he has.