One of the greatest advances of the last century was the Internet. Access to same—particularly high-speed broadband access—exploded during the opening days of the current century. That explosion in connectivity is leading the group Broadband for America to launch its “Faces of Innovation” program, which features a website with profiles of a variety of individuals. The profiles, in turn, describe the effects that high-speed broadband access is having on a variety of industries.

The Faces of Innovation program is looking to focus on a wide range of different fields, from those that might be expected, like app and software developers, to somewhat less immediate considerations, like artists and educators, to perhaps the truly unexpected, like farmers. Former Senator John Sununu, who now serves as co-chair on the Broadband for America group, offered up some explanation as to the group's intent with the project in his remarks: “The proliferation of easily accessible, high-speed connections has enabled what will be seen as a golden era of entrepreneurship and innovation in America. Today, people across the country are transforming and disrupting out-dated business models with new applications, websites, and online services. Faces of Innovation will recognize these visionary leaders that are powering the Internet economy.”

Currently showing at the Faces of Innovation website is the founder of Task Rabbit, Leah Busque, whose program offers an easy way to help people accomplish simple tasks like grocery shopping. Also available is the leader of Cause Matters, Michele Payn-Knoper, whose program is geared toward farmers and nutritionists to raise awareness of healthier lifestyles, as well as Neal Sales-Griffin, who founded The Starter League, a school that offers a three-month program to teach users how to code Web apps. There are several more such profiles available, and likely more to follow from there.

Faces of Innovation will also, in the near-term future, be bringing out a video series focused on companies from Austin, Texas, Des Moines, Iowa, and Silicon Valley, California showing how broadband Internet has made such a difference in bringing out the true spirit of America's entrepreneurial and inventive natures.

There's no denying that the Internet has made more impact on our society than anything since the moon landing, and potentially even farther back to the Industrial Revolution (News - Alert) itself. How many hundreds—even thousands!—of small businesses were started up online? How many of those businesses turned big? Would Amazon be a Borders-style bookstore chain without the Internet? Would Netflix be just another video store chain? How many dozens of products have gone through the Kickstarter program so far, and would same even exist if the only place to hear about such things was certain print magazines? Would 3D printing even exist?

The most impressive part about the whole program is not only considering what wouldn't exist without the Internet, but what never would have existed without someone getting an idea from somewhere and running with it. Start expanding those ripples outward and the whole thing expands to levels that are almost impossible to consider. While high-speed broadband Internet isn't a universally-available proposition—at least, not yet—it's making significant strides, and with those strides offering more and more people the opportunity that only the Internet can really make possible. Broadband of America, meanwhile, is just showing us who these people are that are taking advantage of the opportunity.