Go Big Read Keynote Lecture
Shiza Shahid was a college sophomore when she first met Malala Yousafzai. Today, the two young women are working together to help the 600 million adolescent girls worldwide who are denied a formal education because of social, economic, legal and political factors.
This fall Go Big Read, the University of Wisconsin-Madison's common-reading program, in partnership with the Wisconsin Book Festival, presents Shahid as the keynote speaker, discussing Yousafzai’s book, “I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban,” for the 2014-2015 academic year. Shahid, 25, is now the CEO and co-founder of the Malala Fund, which supports local entrepreneurs who have developed programs to increase educational access for women. After Yousafzai was shot and transported to Great Britain for treatment. Shahid got on a plane to London to offer her help. At the hospital, Yousafzi told her, “I’m OK. Can you ask them to help the other girls?” Shahid quit her job as a business analyst in Dubai to assist Yousafzai and her family with establishing the Malala Fund, which is building on Yousafzi’s experiences to spark global action.
Shiza Shahid
Shiza Shahid is an entrepreneur and social activist of Pakistani origin. She is the CEO and co-founder of the Malala Fund, the organization representing the young Pakistani activist who was shot by the Taliban for her campaign for girls’ education. A graduate of Stanford University, Shiza was previously a business analyst at McKinsey & Company in the Middle East. She is now leading Malala Fund in its work to empower girls through education. Shiza was recently named one of TIME magazine’s “30 Under 30 World Changers” and to Forbes“30 Under 30″ list of social entrepreneurs.
Around the world, over 600 million adolescent girls are denied a formal education because of social, economic, legal and political factors. And in being denied an education, society loses one of its greatest and most powerful resources. The Malala Fund aims to change that. Education empowers girls to raise their voices, to unlock their potential, and to demand change. The Malala Fund’s solutions are grounded in inspired innovation: they are girl-centric approaches to education that support the Fund’s goal of creating a world where every girl reaches her true potential. Shiza currently lives in New York City.