If You Build It: Tinkering with the Maker Mind-Set

In his father's used auto parts store in east Los Angeles, Calif., 9-year-old Caine Monroy spent a summer building an elaborate arcade out of cardboard boxes. He bought toys to give out as prizes and manually shuffled tickets through slots when players scored points. He didn't have any customers, though, until a filmmaker showed up one day to buy a door handle for his car.

That chance meeting eventually inspired a short film, led to a flash mob of paying customers, and resulted in a new scholarship fund and national cardboard construction challenge. Caine's story started with "making"—and it was shared at the 2013 Maker Faire, the Maker Movement's flagship event.

Community and Collaboration