Here's a great example of how the Maker Revolution in combination with global economic networks can become an engine of economic growth for resilient communities.

The example is a new "start-up" that is "selling" a product called the Glif. Essentially, it's a small piece of plastic that allows you to mount your iPhone 4 on a tripod. It solves a niche problem quite nicely.

To build it. The team ( Thomas Gerhardt and Dan Provost) did their research and product development on their own (a labor of love). They also printed a 3D plastic prototype. To raise money for low cost per unit (and likely higher quality at this juncture) injection molding ($10 k fixed cost set-up), they turned to Kickstarter for funding.

It has been an unqualified success, selling nearly 4,000 units for about $100 k in revenue.

Some items of note: