Shiza Shahid
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Short description|Pakistani entrepreneur}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Shiza Shahid
| birth_date =
| birth_place = Islamabad, Pakistan
| death_date =
| nationality = Pakistani
| education =
| alma_mater = Stanford University
| occupation = Entrepreneur, Investor, Educator
| employer = Our Place
| organization = Malala Fund
| known_for = {{ubl|Co-founder, Former CEO, Malala Fund|Co-founder, Co-CEO, Our Place}}
| spouse = Amir Tehrani
| awards =
}}
Shiza Shahid is a Pakistani entrepreneur, social activist, investor, and educator. She is the co-founder and former CEO of the non-profit Malala Fund, which promotes education for every girl,{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilycanal/2014/09/18/how-shiza-shahid-and-the-malala-fund-are-championing-for-girls-rights/|title=How Shiza Shahid And The Malala Fund Are Championing For Girls' Rights|last=Canal|first=Emily|website=Forbes|language=en|access-date=14 November 2019}} as well as the co-founder and co-CEO of Our Place, a direct-to-consumer brand of cookware. In 2013, she was included in Time{{'s}} "30 Under 30" list of world change-makers, and in 2014, she was listed in Forbes{{'s}} "30 Under 30" list of global social entrepreneurs.{{Cite news|url=https://ideas.time.com/2013/12/06/30-under-30-shiza-shahid-and-the-malala-fund/|title=30 Under 30: Meet Shiza Shahid, Malala's Right-Hand Woman|last=Schweitzer|first=Callie|work=Time|access-date=14 November 2019|language=en-US|issn=0040-781X}} She is also well-known as the personal assistant of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai.{{Cite web|url=https://www.caa.com/caaspeakers/shiza-shahid|title=Shiza Shahid |publisher=www.caa.com|access-date=14 November 2019}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.elle.com/news/culture/may-guest-blogger-shiza-shahid|title=A 16-Year-Old Convinced Me to Change Careers|last=Shahid|first=Shiza|date=25 April 2014|website=ELLE|language=en-US|access-date=14 November 2019}}
Early life
Shiza Shahid was born and raised in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. She spent her early teen years as a volunteer worker and as an activist. At the age of 14 she started working in prisons occupied by women who were convicted of various crimes. She worked as a volunteer at a relief camp following a deadly earthquake which struck Kashmir in 2005, killing nearly 85,000 people.{{Cite web|url=https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/230986|title=You Know Malala. Now, Meet Shiza.|last=Clifford|first=Catherine|date=21 January 2014|website=Entrepreneur|language=en|access-date=14 November 2019}}
Career
At the age of 18, Shahid received a scholarship to pursue higher studies at Stanford University and graduated in 2011. She returned to Pakistan in 2009 after hearing about the Taliban's ban against women's education.{{Cite web|url=https://thedailyaztec.com/93637/artsandculture/womens-education-activist-shiza-shahid-visits-campus/|title=Women's education activist Shiza Shahid visits campus|last=Richardson|first=Nakia|date=13 March 2019|website=The Daily Aztec|access-date=14 November 2019}} After completing her higher studies in 2011, she pursued a career as a business analyst at McKinsey & Company's office in Dubai. In 2017, she co-founded NOW Ventures, which focuses on funding startups.{{Cite web|url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/2023239/after-malala-shiza-shahids-plan-change-world-good|title=After Malala: Shiza Shahid's plan to change the world for good|date=30 September 2016|website=South China Morning Post|language=en|access-date=14 November 2019}}
Shahid has also given lectures and speeches in universities in different countries on the subjects of women's empowerment and the importance of child education.{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailyherald.com/entlife/20190917/entrepreneur-to-discuss-creating-social-change-at-elmhurst-college|title=Entrepreneur to discuss creating social change at Elmhurst College|last=Chen|first=Desiree|date=17 September 2019|website=Daily Herald|language=en-US|access-date=14 November 2019}}{{Cite web|url=https://inlandempire.us/event/shiza-shahid-at-the-university-of-redlands/|title=Shiza Shahid at The University of Redlands|website=inlandempire.us|access-date=14 November 2019}}
= Collaboration with Malala =
While pursuing her higher studies at Stanford University, Shahid reportedly watched a YouTube video of young Malala Yousafzai, who was ambitious and keen on empowering women and child education in Pakistan. She reached out to Malala's father Ziauddin and offered to assist Malala to achieve her dreams.
Shahid flew to Birmingham, where Yousafzai was hospitalized after being shot by Taliban members, to offer assistance to Yousafzai and her family to help them recover.{{Cite web|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/3020828/meet-shiza-shahid-the-woman-powering-the-malala-fund|title=Meet Shiza Shahid, The Woman Powering The Malala Fund|last=Jones|first=Stacy|date=30 October 2013|website=Fast Company|language=en-US|access-date=14 November 2019}} Shahid and Malala co-founded the Malala Fund in 2013 with the aim of creating access to safe and high-quality education among girls in Pakistan and the African countries of Nigeria, Kenya, and Sierra Leone.{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2016/06/23/malala-fund-co-founder-shiza-shahid-angellist-partner-to-back-mission-driven-startups/|title=Malala Fund co-founder Shiza Shahid, AngelList partner to back "mission-driven" startups|website=TechCrunch|language=en-US|access-date=14 November 2019}}
= Our Place =
Along with her husband, Amir Tehrani, and friend Zach Rosner, Shahid launched Our Place, a direct-to-consumer brand of cookware, in 2019. Our Place is known for the Always Pan, a piece of cookware sold in various pastel colors and primarily marketed via social media.{{Cite web |last=Cruickshank |first=Andrew |date=2024-01-04 |title=How Shiza Shahid Launched a Viral Cookware Company |url=https://canadianbusiness.com/people/shiza-shahid-our-place-always-pan/ |access-date=2025-02-09 |website=Canadian Business |language=en-US}}
References
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Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:Pakistani women educators
Category:Pakistani businesspeople
Category:Pakistani women activists