TYO Recommends: Friday, August 10

 

This week, TYO looks at creative changemakers in the Middle East, evaluates the impact of the economy on social progress, listens to an interview with Saima Wahab and takes advice from an inspiring female entrepreneur!

Making an Impact. Who are the driving forces behind CHANGE in the modern Middle East? It's not politicians or figureheads. Everyday activists, musicians, writers and artists, students and parents from Palestine to Libya are making a difference in their communities, countries, and in the world. Al-Monitor Online provides fifty short biographies on these inspiring changemakers, and their contributions modern advancement.

The Face of Jordanian Feminism? A movement can't be fit into a neat biography, especially not the Jordanian feminist movement, fraught with all its nuances and challenge. But it is also a big changemaker, one making waves in Jordan as its leaders demand recognition, rights and respect. Read more HERE about their struggles and successes.

It's the Economy. Social change can't progress without the economy, CNN correspondant Majid Rafizadeh says, because JOBS are needed to give voice and opportunity to the youth. New incoming governments have a choice, he writes: "help young people to utilize technology in a way that ensures they can earn a decent living, or see some of those same technological tools such as social media turned against them."

A Piece of Advice? It means a lot coming from Erica Dhawan, founder of Galahads, which aids aspiring women entrepreneurs by providing them training and support. Dhawan's made quite a name for herself around the world, and she has a words of ADVICE for those looking to follow in her footsteps; ideas that may surprise you in their simplicity.

In My Father's Country: Afghan-American author, interpreter and translator Saima Wahab talks with Daily Show host Jon Stewart about the nuances of Pashtun culture, exactly where and why it comes into conflict with the West, and her experience working with American troops, as well as how she's been shaped by her childhood as a female refugee in Afghanistan. Truly an INSPIRATIONAL woman!