Movers And Makers: Malala Yousafzai
“One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.” —Malala Yousafzai
If there’s a human symbol of courage and unfaltering determination, it’s Malala Yousafzai. The Pakistani-born activist fights for girls’ right to education, and has become a role model for women around the world. Her work in this field has seen her featured by Time magazine as one of the world’s most influential people for three years in a row.
At the age of 17, Malala became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize. She gained international recognition for her resolve and poise in the face of danger.
The Birth Of A Young Legend
Malala was born in northern Swat valley, Mingora, Pakistan 1997. She was the first of three children born to Ziauddin and Tor Pekai Yousafzai. For years, her father, a teacher and an ardent education advocate himself, ran a school in their village.
Due to his influence, Malala developed a thirst for knowledge at a young age and would often waddle into her father’s classes before she could even talk. However, in 2007, when Malala was ten years old, the situation in the Swat Valley drastically changed. Taliban extremists took over the region and imposed retrogressive measures. Girls were banned from attending school, and cultural activities like listening to music and watching television were forbidden. Suicide attacks were widespread, and by the end of 2008, the Taliban had destroyed some 400 schools.
Showing great courage, Malala not only kept attending school, she also directly spoke out against the Taliban and their efforts to repress girls.
In early 2009, Malala started to blog anonymously on the Urdu language site of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) using the pseudonym “Gul Makai.” She wrote about life in the Swat Valley under Taliban rule, and about her desire to go back to school. Her first BBC diary entry entitled, “I Am Afraid,” described her fear of a full-blown war in her hometown[1]. Her nightmares became a reality on May 5, 2009, when Malala and her family were forced to leave her home and seek refuge hundreds of miles away until the Pakistani army was able to push the Taliban out.
This did not stop her from using her voice to fight for educational rights for girls. Over the next few years, she and her father continued their public media campaign and it had become apparent by December 2009 that she was BBC’s anonymous blogger. She began to receive widespread recognition for her activism and in 2011, she was awarded the Pakistan’s National Youth Peace Prize (later renamed the National Malala Peace Prize).
But not everyone welcomed her campaign to bring about change. On the morning of October 9, 2012, 15-year-old Malala was shot by the Taliban as she rode home on a bus from school[2]. A bullet grazed her skull and lodged in her neck. She was airlifted to a Pakistani military hospital in Peshawar and four days later to an intensive care unit in Birmingham, England. Though she would require multiple surgeries, including removing a portion of her skull and blood clots from her brain, she suffered no major brain damage. In March 2013, after weeks of treatment and therapy, Malala was able to begin attending school in Birmingham.
After the shooting, her incredible recovery and return to school, Malala’s story received widespread media attention and triggered an outpouring of support from all over the world. On her 16th birthday, she visited New York and delivered a powerful speech at the United Nations. Later that year, she published her first book, an autobiography entitled I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban[3]. In 2020, she earned a degree in philosophy, politics, and economics from the University of Oxford in England
Works & Advocacy
The Malala Fund
In 2013, Malala and her father established an amazing effort known as the Malala Fund, which was created to expand girls’ access to quality education especially in countries affected by conflict and disaster. The fund is primarily centered on assisting in regions where most girls miss out on secondary education, including India, Brazil, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Turkey, Lebanon, Ethiopia, and Nigeria. They promote education in these countries by supporting youth activists and scaling their efforts to create broader change to make it easier for all girls to learn.
Then in 2015, she celebrated her 18th birthday by inaugurating a secondary school for Syrian refugee girls in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, near Syria’s border—its expenses covered by the Malala Fund. Her major donations in 2021 to Save the Children and other organizations helped repair damaged schools and provide clean water and nutrition services for children and pregnant mothers.
Climate Change Activism
As millions of children lose access to schools due to climate-related events, Malala believes the fight against climate change is also a fight for the right to education of girls[4].
In 2020, she joined environmental campaigners Greta Thunberg and Vanessa Nakate in a climate protest held outside the Swedish parliament. The young activists all stressed how women, especially those in developing countries, were disproportionately affected by the climate crisis and can be part of the solution if they are empowered by education.
Malala has cemented her position as one of the most inspiring and influential people alive today. She demonstrated extraordinary courage and resilience in the midst of violence and never wavered in her commitment to promoting education rights.
Key Takeaways
- Malala’s story offers all of us overarching lessons about our lives: have the courage to speak up and do the right thing, commit wholeheartedly to your purpose, turn adversity into strength, and never give up.
- Activism can start at any age and bring forth a movement. From small diaries to world summits, starting somewhere is the first step in reaching your potential. Listen to the younger generation and what they believe in, their words and beliefs matter for the future of our planet.
- Educate yourself—keep informed on the current climate crisis and the consequences that are following; read Malala’s book and others of like minds to gain a greater understanding of another’s story; and believe that your voice matters, no matter the age.
“One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.” —Malala Yousafzai
If there’s a human symbol of courage and unfaltering determination, it’s Malala Yousafzai. The Pakistani-born activist fights for girls’ right to education, and has become a role model for women around the world. Her work in this field has seen her featured by Time magazine as one of the world’s most influential people for three years in a row.
At the age of 17, Malala became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize. She gained international recognition for her resolve and poise in the face of danger.
The Birth Of A Young Legend
Malala was born in northern Swat valley, Mingora, Pakistan 1997. She was the first of three children born to Ziauddin and Tor Pekai Yousafzai. For years, her father, a teacher and an ardent education advocate himself, ran a school in their village.
Due to his influence, Malala developed a thirst for knowledge at a young age and would often waddle into her father’s classes before she could even talk. However, in 2007, when Malala was ten years old, the situation in the Swat Valley drastically changed. Taliban extremists took over the region and imposed retrogressive measures. Girls were banned from attending school, and cultural activities like listening to music and watching television were forbidden. Suicide attacks were widespread, and by the end of 2008, the Taliban had destroyed some 400 schools.
Showing great courage, Malala not only kept attending school, she also directly spoke out against the Taliban and their efforts to repress girls.
In early 2009, Malala started to blog anonymously on the Urdu language site of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) using the pseudonym “Gul Makai.” She wrote about life in the Swat Valley under Taliban rule, and about her desire to go back to school. Her first BBC diary entry entitled, “I Am Afraid,” described her fear of a full-blown war in her hometown[1]. Her nightmares became a reality on May 5, 2009, when Malala and her family were forced to leave her home and seek refuge hundreds of miles away until the Pakistani army was able to push the Taliban out.
This did not stop her from using her voice to fight for educational rights for girls. Over the next few years, she and her father continued their public media campaign and it had become apparent by December 2009 that she was BBC’s anonymous blogger. She began to receive widespread recognition for her activism and in 2011, she was awarded the Pakistan’s National Youth Peace Prize (later renamed the National Malala Peace Prize).
But not everyone welcomed her campaign to bring about change. On the morning of October 9, 2012, 15-year-old Malala was shot by the Taliban as she rode home on a bus from school[2]. A bullet grazed her skull and lodged in her neck. She was airlifted to a Pakistani military hospital in Peshawar and four days later to an intensive care unit in Birmingham, England. Though she would require multiple surgeries, including removing a portion of her skull and blood clots from her brain, she suffered no major brain damage. In March 2013, after weeks of treatment and therapy, Malala was able to begin attending school in Birmingham.
After the shooting, her incredible recovery and return to school, Malala’s story received widespread media attention and triggered an outpouring of support from all over the world. On her 16th birthday, she visited New York and delivered a powerful speech at the United Nations. Later that year, she published her first book, an autobiography entitled I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban[3]. In 2020, she earned a degree in philosophy, politics, and economics from the University of Oxford in England
Works & Advocacy
The Malala Fund
In 2013, Malala and her father established an amazing effort known as the Malala Fund, which was created to expand girls’ access to quality education especially in countries affected by conflict and disaster. The fund is primarily centered on assisting in regions where most girls miss out on secondary education, including India, Brazil, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Turkey, Lebanon, Ethiopia, and Nigeria. They promote education in these countries by supporting youth activists and scaling their efforts to create broader change to make it easier for all girls to learn.
Then in 2015, she celebrated her 18th birthday by inaugurating a secondary school for Syrian refugee girls in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, near Syria’s border—its expenses covered by the Malala Fund. Her major donations in 2021 to Save the Children and other organizations helped repair damaged schools and provide clean water and nutrition services for children and pregnant mothers.
Climate Change Activism
As millions of children lose access to schools due to climate-related events, Malala believes the fight against climate change is also a fight for the right to education of girls[4].
In 2020, she joined environmental campaigners Greta Thunberg and Vanessa Nakate in a climate protest held outside the Swedish parliament. The young activists all stressed how women, especially those in developing countries, were disproportionately affected by the climate crisis and can be part of the solution if they are empowered by education.
Malala has cemented her position as one of the most inspiring and influential people alive today. She demonstrated extraordinary courage and resilience in the midst of violence and never wavered in her commitment to promoting education rights.
Key Takeaways
- Malala’s story offers all of us overarching lessons about our lives: have the courage to speak up and do the right thing, commit wholeheartedly to your purpose, turn adversity into strength, and never give up.
- Activism can start at any age and bring forth a movement. From small diaries to world summits, starting somewhere is the first step in reaching your potential. Listen to the younger generation and what they believe in, their words and beliefs matter for the future of our planet.
- Educate yourself—keep informed on the current climate crisis and the consequences that are following; read Malala’s book and others of like minds to gain a greater understanding of another’s story; and believe that your voice matters, no matter the age.
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