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 SPEAKERS FOR 2017

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DR. FATMA AL-ZAHRAA MOHAMED

technical Agric consultant, trainer, and writer worked at:
lecturer at (faculty of agriculture)
Formal GIZ ( technical farming consultant)
formal training manager (Schaduf) 

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DR. MAI TOLBA 

Dr. Mai Tolba is an assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. She got her Ph.D. in 2013, through a joint supervision scholarship between Ain Shams University and The University of Texas Medical branch, Galveston, Texas, USA. She received a Fulbright Scholar Award in 2015 and L’Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science Fellowship in 2016. She is investigating the mechanisms of resistance of hormone-responsive cancers to chemotherapy. Dr. Tolba is currently starting a project on with the goal of enhancing tumor response to immunotherapy which is the evolving approach in the management of hard to treat cancers. The long-term goal of Dr. Tolba’s research work is to improve the wellbeing of cancer patients.

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HODA RASHAD ​

Hoda Rashad is an Author/Blogger/Vlogger/Educator and mother of 3. She produces online content through her Facebook Channel HC (Honest Conversations) a partner with OutSpeak, the digital storytelling arm of the HuffPost.

Prior to her career in Content Creation, Rashad was a Teacher for over 12 years and ran her own educational consultancy that specialized in supplementary curricula for international schools. Rashad also founded and ran a preschool in the San Francisco Bay Area for 5 years. 

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FATMA ABD ALSALAM ​

صانعة أفلام و أُم .. أخرجت أفلاماً قصيرة عرضت في عدة مهرجانات دولية ، كما عملت كممثلة إلقاء صوتي في العديد من المسلسلات و البرامج التلفزيونية و الألعاب الإلكترونية العالمية. بدأت سلسلة من الفيديوهات بعنوان "كلام بديهي" تناقش مفاهيم إجتماعية بشكل ساخر علي الفيسبوك و اليوتيوب في ابريل ٢٠١٧ ، و في أشهر قليلة إنضم للصفحة ما يزيد عن ٤٠٠ ألف متابع و حصلت الفيديوهات علي أكثر من ١٥ مليون مشاهدة. تعمل حالياً علي تحويل " كلام بديهي" لبرنامج يقدم أسبوعياً بشكل ثابت
www.fatma.tv لمعرفة المزيد زوروا

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​HAÏDI YACOUB

Haïdi studied in a French school and graduated with a B.E from Cairo University. After since she has been moving up the business ladder. She sings with a very prestigious choir, that represents Egypt internationally. She is studying music theory and vocals.
Mom of a 5 years old girl, Manager, Singer, and Flower artist, full of passion for Fashion & styling.
“My life is divided “kind of equally” between all of those. My objective is how to learn the most, keeping the balance “and” staying fit.”

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DR. NOURTAN FATTHY ABDELTAWAB

Dr. Nourtan Abdeltawab is an associate professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University. She is L'Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science Egyptian fellow for 2014 and International Rising Talent fellow 2015. Nourtan's research in the United States focused on the immunogenetics of differential response to sepsis. Currently, she is studying pharmacogenetics of hepatitis C virus treatments in Egypt. Nourtan believes in empowering minds to think in a scientific way and be able to challenge status quo.

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PROF. DR. NAGWA A MEGUID

Dr Meguid holds her Ph.D. in Human Genetics at NRC. She is a Senior Geneticist at the Genetics Institute, California and Yale University; a fellow of Uppsala University, Sweden. She win L’Oreal UNESCO Award for women in Science for Africa & Middle East (2002) and the National State Award of Excellence in Advanced Technology . She is the Founder of Autistic Research group in the NRC. She supervised around 70 Ph. D. &and master theses. She has more than 100 publications. 

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DR. MANAR HASSAN

انا د. منار حسن .. كوتش متخصصه في طرق التحرر و التوازن النفسي ..و أم لطفلين ادركت معني الأم الحقيقيه. وبساعد كل ام تتحرر من كل الافكار و المشاعر و المعتقدات السلبيه المتعلقه بنفسها و اولادها و رحله امومتها علشان تقدر تستمتع بكل يوم مع اولادها رغم كل المسؤوليات و الضغوط 

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GILAN ALAA

ممثلة و كونتنت بروديوسر فى برنامج أسعد الله مساءكم و مقدمة برنامج هشتجة فى اذاعة نغم اف ام

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RUQAYA DARWEESH

رقية درويش سورية ولدت بالكويت عام 1985. متزوجة وعندي 3 اطفال. وصلت مصر 3/2013. ناشطة اجتماعية عملت مع عدة منظمات لدعم اللاجئين بمختلف جنسياتهم منظمة plan. واليونيسيف وحاليا اعمل بمنظمة PSTIC وهي معهد تدريب أخصائيين نفسيين اجتماعيين. ومشتركة مع 6 سيدات سوريات بمبادرة بكرا أحلى ومن مؤسسي رابطة سوريات الإسكندرية لتمكين المرأة السورية و متطوعة بجمعيات خيرية تساعد مصريين وسوريين

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SHERIF MADKOUR

​أنا شريف مدكور، من مواليد حي مصر الجديدة، كنت في مدرسة سان جورج ودخلت كلية تجارة جامعة عين شمس، وبدأت اشتغل وأنا عندي 18 سنة، عملت مصنع ملابس للأطفال الصغيرين وقعدت فاتحه خمس سنين، بعد كده اشتغلت في كذا وظيفة قبل ما أنضم في التليفزيون المصري في قناة اﻷسرة والطفل لمدة 11 سنة. وبعدها اشتغلت في أكثر من قناة خاصة.

يوم لما أخترت أكون مذيع كنت حابب أنشر ثقافة اتربيت عليها في بيتي ومدرستي، وهي ثقافة احترام الأخر، ماليش دعوة اللي قدامى ديانته إيه أو لونه إيه أو جنسه إيه كل اللى يهمني إني اتعامل مع إنسان محترم يحترمني وأحترمه حتى لو كنا مختلفين وبرامجي دايما مهتمة باﻷسرة والمرأة والطفل وده شرف ليا

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ABU

 SPEAKERS FOR 2016

YASMINE MOSTAFA

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​Yasmin is an Egyptian author, motivational speaker, human development trainer and the founder of "Metro life academy". She graduated from faculty of pharmacy Cairo university 2009. She realized that pharmacist is the last thing she was meant to be, her eyes only sparkle and her face only glow talking to people about hope, love and everything that make them feel and do better in life. Ironically she started her youth years with arched back and legs and absolute zero self-Esteem. When finally she figured out the secret of confident happy version of herself, she insisted on NOT keeping the recipe for herself, it took her time to figure that passion (five whole years "2009-2015") but it took her no time to start her (subway motivational speaking project " metro life academy ").

Now she is living the adventure of life to the max, changing lives of strangers, she is a dreamer walking into the most popular public transportation mean (metro) giving people the push they need launching their day and the smile they need ending it and she writes books about it too.

Her favorite quote is " the mirror doesn't reflect your skin , it only reflects how you feel inside your skin".

RASHA ARNEST

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​مصرية من صعيد مصر الأصيل،كاتبة وقاصة، لها منشورات في جريدة السياسة الكويتية، القدس لندن، الحوار المتمدن وغيرها
أثناء دراستها بالجامعة تعرضت لحادث قطار، نتج عنه استخدامها كرسي متحرك أكملت مشوارها مؤمنة بأن "التقدم في الحياة لا يحتاج إلى أقدام، إنما حب للحياة وإيمان بالوجود" عادت بعد رحلة علاج لمدة عام وأكملت دراستها، وتخرجت من كلية الآداب، اللغة الفرنسية جامعة أسيوط في 2003 في عام 2004 أسست مع اثنين من أصدقائها فريق "الراعي الصالح" لخدمة الأسر الفقيرة تحت شعار "تضامن، مشاركة، تنمية" وحتى الآن يعمل هذا الفريق بالتطوع المجاني الكامل بمحافظة أسيوط.
عام 2007 اختيرت عضو بلجنة مناصرة الأشخاص ذوي الإعاقة بمجلس الكنائس العالمي. عام 2008 سافرت إلى إيطاليا لخبرة حياتية جديدة مع جماعة رهبانية Silenziosi oprai della croce لتعود بعد عام أكثر حماسا للعمل في مجال الإعاقة
عام 2010 عملت مديرة حضانة أطفال بأسيوط
عام 2013 إنتقلت للعيش بالقاهرة عند تعيينها مديرة إدارة الثقافة والفنون بالمجلس القومي لشئون الإعاقة الذي تأسس بعد ثورة يناير 2011 وتعتبر واحدة ضمن عدد قليل يعملون في مجال الإدارة الثقافية للأشخاص ذوي الإعاقة.
عام 2014 شاركت في كتابة أحد أجزاء المجلد البحثي (الأقباط بين ثورتين)  تحت عنوان " ذوو الإعاقة الأقباط والكنيسة".
ولأنها مؤمنة بحق كل إنسان أن يعيش حياته باستقلالية كاملة، أسست مع اثنين من أصدقائها بالقاهرة مبادرة "كن صديقي" تهدف إلى مجتمع وبيئة أصدقاء لذوي الإعاقة، وتقوم المبادرة على نشر ثقافة احترام الاختلاف في المجتمع، والحق في الوصول إلى أي مكان باستقلالية وآمان دون حواجز
عام 2015 قررت ان تستكمل مشوارها العلمي بالدراسات العليا فألتحقت بدبلوم التنمية الثقافية بكلية الآداب جامعة القاهرة
في مارس 2015 تم تكريمها في يوم العطاء من المركز الكاثوليكي المصري للسينما
وإيمانا بدور التواصل الإجتماعي عبر الإنترنت وتأثيره على مجريات الحياة، قامت في يناير 2016 بخلق مساحة على الانترنت لتوفير أخبار كافة الفرص (التعليم، العمل، السفر، المنح، التدريب،...الخ) الموجهة للأشخاص ذوي الإعاقة ومنظمات المجتمع المدني العاملة في مجال الإعاقة من خلال مدونة تحت عنوان "في الصورة" لتكون لتكون أول مدونة متخصصة في ذلك.
 
مقال عن رشا

http://albedaiah.com/node/55512

DR. IMAN BIBARS

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​A visionary for social entrepreneurship and an advocate for women's development for more than 30 years, Dr. Iman Bibars is Vice President of Ashoka Global and Regional Director of Ashoka Arab World. She is an outspoken voice for socio-economic justice and the empowerment of underprivileged communities and women, and has worked to heighten national and international awareness of urgent social development issues throughout the Arab World.

Bibars has collaborated with activists, politicians, community leaders and journalists to promote and impart these values, participating in the Obama Presidential Summit on Leadership, serving as a member of the Clinton Global Initiative and working with Amr Moussa both when he was Egyptian Ambassador to the United Nations and during his recent Presidential campaign. She makes frequent media appearances, often speaking about social entrepreneurship or the rights of women on television and writing for the national and international press. 
 
She is also the co-founder and current chairperson of the Association for the Development and Enhancement of Women (ADEW), Egypt’s very first microfinance organization that provides credit and legal aid for impoverished female heads of household.
 
Bibars is the author of several books on gender issues including Victims and Heroines: Women, Welfare and the Egyptian State, and The Women of Tahrir, which details the most recent experiences of women during the Egyptian uprising. Bibars also published one of the first books written in Arabic on US President Barack Obama– Dreams of a Good Fellow.
General Manager of Josaab Foundation for social development since 2011.

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AUC ALUMNI FOLKLORE GROUP

The AUC Alumni Folklore Group was founded in 2014 by AUC Alumna Sara Selim. During her university years Sara was the principal dancer and assistant choreographer for the AUC folklore group. The group was formed so that AUC alumni and anyone who is interested could enjoy the art of folklore dancing. The group performs mainly for AUC related events but they are thrilled to perform at TEDxCairoWomen.

​MAY ABDEL ASIM

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​Founder & Managing Director, Media & More
Founder & Managing Editor, What Women Want…Magazine 

May Abdel Asim looks back on 15 years of work experience of which 10 years as an entrepreneur, founding and managing the boutique creative agency Media & More as well as two respected publications, What Women Want…Magazine and The Travel Mag.

With the launch of “What Women Want…Magazine” in 2006 she entered the field of media and publishing and established Mindfood Publications, and launched the only travel magazine in Egypt in 2010 named THE TRAVEL MAG.

Media & More is now a full service digital media agency and creative boutique serving various reputable clients from different business sectors in terms of social media handling, online marketing, design and development as well as content creation and viral video production since 2009. 

With a degree in Mass Communications specialized in Integrated Marketing Communications, she began her career in marketing research and held various marketing posts ranging from telecommunications to FMCGs at local and multi-national companies until she founded her own business in 2006. In her free time she engages in diverse community work and social projects and is a mother of two girls. She is also a VV Grow MENA Fellow and was selected to participate at VV100 Retreat as part of the Egyptian delegation.

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​EMAD KARIM

Emad Karim is the Regional Coordinator of Empower Women at UN Women. He has more than 10 years of experience and academic background in designing and managing youth programs and technology-based solutions for development.

He obtained an M.A in Educational Communication & Technology from New York University and Microsoft certification as a professional and solution developer. His experiences and skills are drawn from the small villages in Egypt to the UN headquarter in New York in international non-profit organizations, for-profit corporations, as well as academic institutions.

Emad has been working globally as a youth expert for UN Women, the League of Arab States, the World Bank, UNESCO, ILO, the British Council, and the Anna Lindh Foundation. He facilitates regional and global workshops and forums to engage youth in gender equality, global policies, and decision-making process.

​Karim is an awarded photographer and the author of the iSurvive: Disasters, Revolution, and Control 2.0 a book proposing development of an online reporting solution that facilitates information collection, verification, and sharing during natural and human-based crisis.

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​DR. TANDIAR SAMIR

General Manager of Josaab Foundation for social development since 2011.
Dr. Tandiar Samir has obtained several awards:
- Clinton Global Initiative recognition and honor in 2009, from Ex President Bill Clinton.
-  Ann C. Michel International Women in Literacy Award in 2011; United States Conference on Adult Literacy. (USCAL) 

Dr Tandiar is a Gynecologist. She has graduated from the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery at Assiut University.

Dr Tandiar has worked and gained extensive experience in the fields of public health and development for the last 15 years.  She has worked on improving health care in Egypt in the Center for Development Services. Over the years, she played an important role in female empowerment in the Egyptian society through reproductive health education and counseling.
Ashoka Organization Fellow for being an influential social entrepreneur in implanting a program tailored to improve the quality of nursing in Egypt.

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​DR. YASMIN EL SHAZLY

Dr. Yasmin El Shazly currently holds the position of General Supervisor of the International Organizations of Cultural Heritage and International Cooperation Department at the Ministry of Antiquities. She previously held the positions of Assistant to the Minister of Antiquities for Museum Affairs (2015-2016) and Head of the Registration, Collections Management and Documentation Department at the Egyptian Museum, Cairo (2009-2016), in addition to being a member of the Museum's Board of Directors (2010 -2013).

She has also taught courses at the American University in Cairo, Cairo University and AMIDEAST and participated in excavations in Giza, Luxor and Syria. Dr. El Shazly earned her BA from the American University in Cairo in 1998 and her MA (2002) and Ph.D. (2009) from Johns Hopkins University. Her Ph.D. dissertation is entitled Royal Ancestor Worship in Deir el-Medina during the New Kingdom. It was published by Abercromby Press in 2015.

​She has published several academic papers and has appeared in a few documentaries, such as National Geographic's “The Silver Pharaoh: Secrets of the Dead” and “Tutankhamun: The Mystery of the Burnt Mummy” as well as the BBC documentary “The Man Who Discovered Egypt.” 

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MARYEM NOUH

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​‎AMINA KHALIL

Born in Chicago, USA. Raised in Cairo, Egypt. A graduate of AUC, class of 2009. Now, a professional actress.

​Her most recent work was on the hit Ramadan series, "Grand Hotel" but Amina has been on the film scene for almost 6 years now.

Away from work, Amina loves music, dogs, writing, cooking, and all what is art. She is now 32 years old.

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​SALLY BAHGAT

A Physician, social entrepreneur, mother of 3 , founder and manager of Oasis Community Centre; a graduate of the school of medicine, holds a master's degree in community medicine; Alumni of Goldman-Sachs “10,000 Women entrepreneurs”, and Award winner of “pioneers of Egypt”.

Realizing the need for Green education, Sally started Oasis Community Centre as the sustainability education hub for Egypt. The operation extended to cover education for schools, families, and stakeholders in renewable energy, agriculture, and carbon offsetting. To include governmental schools, she launched “Khadra” initiative in cooperation with an international company and various ministries. International contributions included hosting and managing the UN-World Environment Day 2014, and World Earth day 2016. Nationally, she is preparing the launch of a plan to establish OCC satellites, with a view to engage more women as tutors, and deliver green education nation-wide.

Her overall objective is to contribute to the well-being of the Egyptian community by providing wold-class sustainability education, and securing access to knowledge that supports this education. A passion for a greener life, and an obligation towards the community, and the future generations of Egyptian.

​NELLY ELZAYAT

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Nelly has been working in international education, specifically in student advising, scholarship management, admissions, curriculum design and on bridging the gap between education and the job market for the past fifteen years. She has worked in Egypt and Qatar with several organizations including America Mideast Educational and Training Services (AMIDEAST), the International Institute of Education (IIE) and the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar. 

More recently, she co-founded two educational start-ups: Newton Education Services and T21. Newton Education Services offers four main services: student advising, test preparation courses, scholarship management and university recruitment services. T21 aimed at improving career readiness and skills building for youth through an innovative and engaging learning platform. Nelly was also an instructor at the American University in Cairo's Professional Educator Diploma program, whereby she designed the syllabus for, and taught, a class on Resources and Technology for Early Childhood Education to student teachers pursuing the Professional Educator Diploma at the American University in Cairo. Currently, Nelly is the Vice President for Education and Learning Technology at Tatweer International- a pioneering e-learning solutions company specialized in developing programs addressing the skills gap and offering tutorials in essential work skills and management fundamentals. 

Nelly is an alumna of the Graduate School of Education of Harvard University, and the American University in Cairo twice, once with a BA in Economics and then an MA in Middle East Studies.

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​SHAIMAA IBRAHIM

شيماء إبراهيم  - حاصلة على ماجيستير في التسويق الإلكتروني من جامعة نيويورك بالولايات المتحدة. تعمل شيماء حاليا بإحدى الشركات الكبرى في مصر والشرق الأوسط.
كما إنها إحدى سفراء ومتطوعي مؤسسة حلم التي تهدف إلى تمكين ذوي الإعاقة في مصر.
تحلم شيماء بمستقبل أفضل للأشخاص ذوي الإعاقة وتتمنى أن تزور العالم بأكمله لتنفتح على الثقافات الجديدة.

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​CAIRO CELEBRATION CHOIR

يمثل كورال القاهرة الاحتفالي، الذي أسسه المايسترو ناير ناجي المدير الفني للكورال عام 2000، قطاع كبير من مصر في أبهى صورها. فقد جمع أعضاءه الذين يزيد عددهم عن 100 عضو من أكثر من 7 جنسيات و مختلف الخلفيات الثقافية و الخبرات العملية، الشغف بالموسيقى والتكريس للغناء، بغرض نشر وتبادل الثقافات المختلفة على المستويين المحلى والعالمي.
 ظهر كورال القاهرة الاحتفالي لأول مرة عام 2000 عندما قدم أولى احتفالاته بعيد الميلاد بالإشتراك مع المغنيين المحترفين بفرقة أوبرا القاهرة ومصاحبة أوركسترات أوبرا القاهرة. ومنذ ذلك الحين، أصبحت احتفالات كورال القاهرة الاحتفالي بعيد الميلاد تقليدا سنويا ينتظره محبوه و جمهوره. يضم سجل الأعمال الفنية للكورال أشكالًا عديدة من الفن الغنائي، تتنوع ما بين "القداس الجنائزي"لجابرييل فوريه، و"القداس الإلهي الصغير" لروسيني، و"الأم الحزينة" لشوبرت، و "قداس سانتا سيسيليا" لهاندل، و "القداس الكبير في مقام دو الصغير" لموتسارت، و "قداس بيتهوفن في مقام دو الكبير منصف 86" ومجموعة منتقاة من الأغاني الجورجية، والأعمال الغنائية المصرية الشهيرة لسيد درويش وجمال عبد الرحيم من توزيع ناير ناجي. هذا بالإضافة إلى تقديم المؤلفات الأًصلية المنسوجة حول قصيدة شعرية بعنوان "فلسفة الحياة" للشاعر اللبناني الأمريكي إيليا أبو ماضي ومن تلحين المايسترو ناير ناجي، ونسخة آلان أوتو من العمل "قصيدتان".

 SPEAKERS FOR 2015

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GILAN ALAA

Gilan Alaa is a graduate of Mass Communication - Radio and Television - Misr International University in 2010. She has realized her passion for media since she was 4 years old when she used to act and sing at school and she decided to follow her dreams to college and daily life. 
In October 2011 Gilan started as a presenter to a daily show in an online station called "Diab FM”, owned by the superstar Amr Diab. She then joined the popular TV show “Assaad Allah Masaakom” as a content producer and actress in 2014.  At the same time, she participated in “Sahebat El Saada" show presented by the famous actress “Esaad Younis” in its first season. Currently, Gilan is presenting a daily program named “Donya Agmal" on Mega FM while still working in “Assaad Allah Masaakom.  Gilan perceives herself as a lucky person to have worked with so many media stars either in Radio stations or Television shows since the start of her career. She enjoyed the exposure and experience. Yet, she is still longing for more challenges and opportunities. 

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BAKRI KHALED

Bakri Khaled Kabakibi is a Syrian/Egyptian Radio host, actor, script writer and VO for various radio ads and jingles. Now appearing in the hit show Asaad Allah Masaokm on MBC masr and also participating in writing the script, he also hosted an entertainment show that airs on Diab FM.  Prior to that he hosted the first online talent show for Amr Diab Academy, alongside the Egyptian Superstar Amr Diab himself. He also appeared in several Ramadan comic shows such as Shika Bika (2012), Aawdet Alebn Aldar on Negoum FM (2013) and Waseem Hodhod (2013) while also participating in its script writing workshop. He aspires to become a successful TV host in the field of comedy and entertainment, offering amusing and not to mention useful material.

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YASMINE IBRAHIM

Yasmine Ibrahim is a graduate of the Faculty of Law Cairo University.  She obtained a Post graduate Diploma on the status of women and women's rights in the MENA region from Lund University, Sweden and a Diploma in Written translation from the American University in Cairo.
While she was a university student she attended an event in a feminist NGO. She started to read more about feminism and gender issues in Egypt and other countries and liked to join those who want to develop the status of Egyptian women. She chose research and information as her field of work. 
Yasmine founded the Digital Museum of Women to research, highlight and preserve women's history along with providing women with knowledge and tools to be empowered in Egypt and Arab speaking countries.
DGMOW started its first exhibition "Thaera" to visually document women's role in the revolution. The project was elected to be the best project on women's rights and gender issues in Community Solutions Program CSP in 2012 by other fellow colleagues between 62 projects from 38 countries. 
DGMOW is a virtual and factual museum to Currently, DGMOW is preparing to launch its second project and the first funded one "HERCRAFT", supported by MEPI, to revive and document traditional handicrafts and artisan made by women in Egypt, along with provided artists with knowledge and tools to develop their technical, marketing and organizational skills.
Yasmine has been selected lately by the International Research and Exchange Program IREX to be a jury member in its major Program Community Solution CSP and was also selected by Vital Voices organization to participate in their global program Women Lead 2015. 

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AMANI EL TOUNSI

Amani studied Computer Science and worked as an art director for years.  While working as a journalist in a youth magazine he discovered that most of the girls working around her were just looking to get married because they felt pressure from their parents and society to do so.   She also learned that media could be very effective in mind setting.  She was concerned about the young women’s situation in Egypt and also in the middle east and talked a lot to them about how to be successful and thinking about the future and stop looking for a husband and restrict their existence to just being a good wife. She then decided to take a loan and start her own radio station “Banat we bass “ which is the first online radio station in the middle east for girls only. She also founded a publishing house “Shabab books “ to publish books for young writers who were unable to get a chance to publish their books.  Usually such books tell stories about the Middle East and approach social taboos such as homosexuality, social issues and diaries. Amani’s latest project Is a best-selling book entitled A girl's Wishes From Tahrir Square.  It is worthy to note that Amani was awarded the BMW Young Leader world award 2010.

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IBTISAM ABAZA

تخرجت من جامعة القاهرة قسم الدراسات الفلسفية والنفسية وحصلت على دبلوم صحة نفسية عام ودبلوم صحة نفسية خاص.  التحقت بالعمل في وزارة الشئون الإجتماعية كأخصائية نفسية وتدرجت في المناصب حتى وصلت لمنصب مدير عام وكبير أخصائيين.  في عام ١٩٩٠ أنشأت دار الكتاب الناطق لخدمة المكفوفين مع مجموعة من زميلاتها اللائي كن تعملن في الهيئة العامة للكتاب بقسم تحقيق التراث وهي متزوجة ولها ابنتان.

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MONA EL SHIMI

Mona is a psychotherapist (MA Counseling AUC 14', BSc. Psychology UCL 07') and actress. Drama and Psychology have always been her two biggest passions, allowing her to pursue her calling for exploring the human psyche, and practicing the nourishing gift of empathy.
Finding a project that integrates all these elements in one, has meant love at first sight.  By putting true stories on stage the Bussy project has given Mona a great opportunity to enjoy an experience of personal healing, as well as witness the healing of others as they told or heard stories coming from the heart.It has been five years now since Mona joined Bussy, and is still an active member and storyteller.
Mona has  also taken part in some short and feature films most notably; Decor 2014, Rags and Tatters 2013, and Asham 2012. 
Acting aside, Mona practices individual psychotherapy by day, and on occasion has facilitated self-development trainings and workshops in different fields and contexts.

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SONDOS SHABAYEK

Writer, Theatre Director and Storyteller.
Sondos Shabayek  studied mass communication and broadcasting. She started out copy editing for a televised youth show and then moved on to work as a writer and editor for the Arabic youth magazine “E7na” (meaning “Us”). As a writer, Sondos focused on exploring, exposing and discussing social taboos in the Egyptian society. When introduced to the one-year old "Bussy Project" through friends in 2006 at a performance in the American University in Cairo, there was an instant click between her passion to uncover the truth and the project's objectives. Since 2007, Sondos has been one of the main driving forces behind the “Bussy Project”, featuring annual performances telling the real stories of the women in Egypt. In 2010, Sondos finally achieved her dream of taking the project outside the walls of AUC and to the masses, attracting a lot of controversial attention from the public. 
 In 2011, and after being deeply involved in the events of the Egyptian revolution, Sondos felt an urge to again expose the true stories that she, her friends, and fellow protestors had lived. Powered by her Bussy experience, she took the initiative and set up the theatre play “Tahrir Monologues” – an event that recreated the 18 days on the Tahrir square, beginning with Facebook activities and ending when Mubarak stepped down. The play consists of real-life stories on the battle ground and brings out both tears and laughter in the audience whenever performed.
After the "Tahrir Monologues" experience Sondos felt that theatre was a much more powerful channel in communicating stories as they are, "personal, emotional, and subjective", as opposed to "impersonal, objective, and informative" . She took a brave step quitting her journalism career, and dedicating herself full time to her theatre projects "Tahrir Monologues" and "Bussy". Today, Sondos continues to tour with both her plays nationally and internationally, in theatres, subway carriages, bookshops around the corner; wherever an audience may be. In these tours stories are performed, and new stories continue to be collected for future performances, an ongoing cycle of transferring the truth, from people to people. 
She has written & directed ‘Girl’ a 5 minute film about harassment, part of “Women in new Egypt” a collaborative project between the British Embassy and Misr international film to produce 5 films about Women in Egypt.
In the past she has also directed ‘I am not my veil’ a short self portrait video about the conflicting reactions of the Egyptian society towards the veil and  ‘Oh fear’ a short self portrait video about inner fears.

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LOAY EL SERGANY

Loay is 24 years old. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Commerce, English Section. 
He is the Founder and CEO of Fitiology Fitness and is certified in CFT, CPR and Jumping Fitness.

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SHYMAA ADEL

شيماء عادل من مواليد ١٩٨٧ .. تخرجت في كلية اﻵداب قسم الاعلام وعلوم الاتصال عام ٢٠٠٨، وحاصلة على دبلومة التشريعات الإعلامية من جامعة القاهرة ٢٠١٠ ، عملت في المصري اليوم في الفترة ما بين ٢٠٠٧ حتى أبريل ٢٠١٢  ثم انتقلت للعمل في جريدة الوطن من ٢٠١٢ حتى هذه اللحظة . 
وتخصصت في تغطية الأماكن التي تشهد حروبا ًونزاعات مسلحة في غزة وليبيا وسوريا والسودان، وتقوم بجانب  بعملها الصحفي بعقد مجموعة من الدورات التدريبية في مجال السلامة المهنية  للصحفيين في مناطق الصراع والنزاعات المسلحة ، ولها كتاب بعنوان " الكيزان  .. مذكرات صحفية في معتقلات سودانية "  يحكي عن مذاكراتها أثناء فترة اعتقالها في السودان

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RANIA REFAAT

!رانيا رفعت شاهين.. إمرأة مصرية.. عرفت مبكرا أن الحياه ليست الا مسرحية عبثية، فقررت أن تختار دورها بنفسها
محامية و كاتبة مسرح وقصة ومقالولها كتاب بعنوان (بساط الحواديت)، ممثلة ومخرجة مسرح ، عملت بالنجارة لتقديرها العميق  للحرف اليدوية ، حائزة على جائزة (ستات أوورد ).. الشخصية النسائية الاكثر تاثيرا فى مصرعام 2015، قامت بالعديد من الحملات لمواجهه التحرش ودعم حقوق المرأة بالاضافة الى حملات لمنع هدم المعمار الاثرى وذلك بعدة طرق من بينها  ركوبها دراجة معلق عليها يافطة والتحرك بها فى شوارع القاهرة وبعض المحافظات وتهتم بشكل خاص بقضية اطفال الشوارع والتمييز العنصرى ضد المرأة

اشتغلت بالمحاماه ثم درست الفن، مثلت وأخرجت وصممت رقصات وكتبت المسرحية والقصة والمقال، وحصلت على العديد من الجوائز..
 أسست مسرح البرجولا للعرائس وملتقى البرجولا الثقافى.. اعتبرت الحرفة شرف فتعلمت  النقاشة والنجارة.. . ...إنها مجرد انسانة قررت ان تحيا بطريقتها الخاصة فى عالم يحكمه فكر القطيع ....

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EMAN EZAT

Eman Ezzat came up with the idea of raising children's awareness against sexual harassment through music and songs.  She established Protection Campaign.

She is a graduate of the Faculty of Specific Education, Cairo university. In 1997 she became a teacher at the same faculty.  She completed her masters and PhD in Education Philosophy with excellent grade.  And is now teaching methodology  at Cairo university.

She invented an educational program specially for children that raises their awareness against sexual harassment through music, drawing and games, In 2013 she established an awareness campaign for children about the dangers of sexual harassment, In a year and half she was able to bring awareness to more than 40,000 child including children with special needs and disabilities In more than 12 governorates in Egypt.

She wrote and composed an album and named it “Protection in a song" to raise children's awareness and another album named “Children who love Egypt " to implant the values of homeland in the child and the sense of  belonging to their country. Eman writes poems, her hobbies are reading and music.

She plays the flute and participated in various concerts,
She was honoured in the International Woman's Day for her contributions in the field of children's awareness against the dangers of Female Circumcision and child harassment.

Her dream is to present this awareness program to more than one million children.  Her goal is to see every child lives their childhood in a safe community with no harm.

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NOHA KATO

Noha Kato was born and raised in Cairo Egypt, started comedy in 2009 opposite comedian Ronnie Khalil and George Azmy. She had shows with other comedians Ali Quandil, Waleed AboElmad and Ola roshdy. She had shows in different cities such as Frankfurt and Abu Dahbi. Was featured on Nile Fm and ezz elhabab program on TV.

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CAROLINE MAHER

If there is an image for a winning woman, Caroline Maher portrays it. She never quits and always strives to win demanding excellence and never settles for less. In an early age, she chose to enter a combative sport crossing gender and cultural boundaries. After winning her first medal, she experienced the flavor of victory and continued to collect more wins realizing that staying at the top has a cost. She had to put thousands of hours training, faced several injuries and went through harsh diets. Through the years of her athletic career, she represented her country in global contests among finest players worldwide gaining more than 130 trophies in 38 countries for various Regional, Arab, African, International and Francophone World Cup Championships. According to the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF), Maher ranked third in 2009, sixth in 2010 and eleventh in 2011 as worldwide champion. She is also the first African female to be inducted in the Hall of Fame – most prestigious title any athlete could be awarded.
Caroline also won several awards, such as outstanding academic and athletic achievement in school, Honor Scholarship for Sports Achievement in the American University in Cairo (AUC), and the Best Taekwondo Player at the AUC as well as the Best Athlete at AUC. In addition she was selected among Egypt’s top 10 athletes for three successive years by the Ministry of Sports. Earlier last year she has been chosen in the UN global campaign “Women of Achievement” highlighting achievements of outstanding women worldwide. 
Maher success extended to encompass other academic achievements; earning her Bachelor Degree with high honors from the American University in Cairo and ranked first among her MBA intake at Victoria University, Switzerland. Maher is currently employed as an HR Manager at a private company, being the youngest manager on board. Also a member in “Helm”, a nonprofit organization for people with disabilities
Till this day, Maher continues to work very hard, juggling between her career, social work and Taekwondo. All are very demanding pathways, but her determination, self-confidence and strength are inexhaustible. She proposed the idea of developing a Para-taekwondo team and dreams that one day it comes true; coupling her passions in HR, Taekwondo and social work which she has been in for the last three years. 

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MONA ARISHI

30+ years experience, 25+ with IBM within the management career, in the fields of: Executive International Management, Globalization, Technical Pre-sales, Software Engineering and Quality, Business Processes, Business Controls, Corporate Social Responsibility and Project management, with a focus on Diversity, Work Life Balance as extra curriculum activities.

Mona Arishi is currently IBM Egypt & Middle East Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs Manager, responsible for the company’s social responsibilities and relationships. She also holds an honorary position as the Women Leadership Council since 2005, leading the 400+ ladies within IBM Egypt, supporting them to manage their possible concerns, work life balance, motivation and career progress activities.

On another dimension, Mona is the Director of Heya Hayah “L’Eve Institute – LEI”, a social enterprise focused on improving the quality of life for the family in general and the feminine entity in specific. As part of LEI’s community mission, Mona provides volunteer Development Training for various NGOs and Associations on Body, Mind, Heart and Soul topics. L’Eve Institut aims to increase the awareness of Egyptian Women and their capability to play an active role within their zones of influence to lead and manage their lives.

Mona has a Bachelor Degree in Architectural Engineering from Cairo University, an MBA in International Management, and currently finishing her thesis for the DBA in responsible Management – Ain Shams University.

She is a mother of two, a 20 years old young man and an 18 years young lady. 

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NAHLA EL NEMR

Nahla El Nemr was raised in an orphanage since she was two years old. When she was 23 years old, she had to leave the orphanage she was raised in to start facing life independently.

She graduated from The Higher Institute of Social Work, and worked in the same orphanage she was raised in for two years. 

In 2012, hoping to make a positive change in orphans living conditions in Egypt, Nahla joined an Egyptian NGO, Wataneya Society for the Development of Orphanages, that works on developing and applying the Quality Standards for Care within institutional homes for children without parental care. 

Through her work with Wataneya Society as Volunteer Coordinator, Nahla helps volunteers to have a better understanding for orphans' needs and how to effectively communicate with them to support them psychologically and socially. 

To upgrade her career, Nahla acquired an international vocational qualification in promoting childcare, which made her part of Wataneya's assessors who conduct assessments for orphanages and institutional homes. 

Nahla believes that children and youth without parental care are capable of realizing their dreams, if only they were given the right chance.

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HEND SABRY

A Cairo-based Tunisian actress and lawyer. She was born in Tunis on 20th November and received her license in law at the Faculty of Law of Tunis in 2001. Later she completed her masters in law intellectual property and copyright in 2004. Her acting debut was at the age of fourteen in the Tunisian production “Les Silences du Palais” (Silence of Palaces) by director Moufida Tlatli in 1994 who later repeated the experience with Sabry in “La Saison Des Hommes” (The Season of Men) in 2000. After starring a number of Tunisian productions, Hend drew the attention of director Inas Al Degheidy who introduced her to the Egyptian cinema in “Muzakirat Murahiqua” (A Teenager’s Diary) that was considered the most controversial in 2002. Her role in the film gave her immediate stardom across the Arab world and in a short span of time she became one of the most prominent Tunisian actresses in Egypt and the Arab world.  

Sabry is active in social and humanitarian work; since 2009, she has been working closely with the UN World Food Programme on raising awareness about hunger in the region. In 2010, Sabry had officially become a WFP Regional Ambassador against Hunger. Honoring her humanitarian efforts in eradicating poverty and her achievements as one of the most prominent actresses in the Arab film industry.  She was included in the CEO Middle East magazine’s list of The World’s Top 100 Most Powerful Arab Women in 2013.

She is one of the most prominent four women who have contributed in the Facebook campaign inspired by the Arab spring titled “The Uprising of Women in the Arab World” which promotes gender equality in accordance with the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights and calls to grant freedom, independence and security for Arab women. 

 SPEAKERS FOR 2013

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DALIA SAFAAN

Dalia is an international certified trainer and life coach with more than 7 years of full time coaching experience, coaching almost more than 3,500 people. She graduated from the Faculty of commerce, Cairo University, English Section, with a bachelor degree in business administration. Then she got her MBA from the American university and her International Trainer certificate from Florida International University in USA. Dalia is also certified on Cultural Transformation Tools from the Barrett Values center in the USA. She is currently a Partner & Head of coaching department at Edge Consultants, one among the few corporations that it’s mission & sole purpose is to coach people to walk the talk; by reviving ethics and skills of individuals and societies alike.
Dalia has co-developed a very unique coaching program, It’s All About ME, a program that focuses on three main areas of coaching, corporate culture coaching, life coaching for individuals and youth coaching.
Dalia believes in the power of positive change, believing in yourself, being pro-active, being happy, as it will change your perception and good life will follow.

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OMNIA ALI

A young digital illustrator & graphics designer, who has been obsessed with drawing and sketching thing since she was a child. She graduated from the faculty of engineering architecture department. In the same time her interest in digital designing was growing so she decided to follow her passion and shifted her career to the graphics field and with a focus on the world of advertising. She aims to expand her expertise in the graphics and advertising fields and dreams of being unique in her field in Egypt by using her skills to make a difference and impact positive changes.

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HEBA HESHAM

Heba is an Economics major and anthropology and development studies minor at the American University in Cairo and graduated with an International Baccalaureate diploma from the American International School. She is passionate about women’s rights and hopes to one day live in an Egypt that is more a liberating and secure for women to fulfill their untapped potential without reservation. She is the co-founder of Heya: The Women’s Initiative, Egypt’s first student organization to address gender equality and women’s empowerment and a UN Women endorsed youth initiative. She was also a student associate in the Youth Leadership Program at the Gerhart Center for Philanthropy and Civic Engagement at AUC. As a student associate at the Gerhart Center, she worked as the liaison for a collaboration between the Cynthia Nelson Institute for Gender and Women’s Studies and the Egyptian Feminist Coalition to promote gender studies in Arabic at public universities. A few summers ago, she got the opportunity to work at UN Women Egypt and learn about and interact with inspirational local and international women’s rights actors that inspired her to further Heya’s vision and reach. She was also part of the Pembroke-King’s summer program at Cambridge University, where she studied Economics and Gender Studies.

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DINA GALAL

Dina Galal Moussa was born in Egypt during a time when understanding and awareness of intellectually disabled people was virtually non existent. Her parents refused to give up on her and kept looking for ways to support Dina ‘s special development . Through  their love and efforts Dina eventually became active in Music, Arts & Sports and she competed in the Special Needs Olympics from 1995 till 2000. In 2003 she was selected to be the Global Messenger of Special Olympics till 2007.
In 2004 Dina Galal was appointed as the Manager’s Assistant in the Special Olympics  MENA’s Regional Office. Dina is now trained to accomplish many administrative tasks including answering the phone, sending faxes, typing documents into the computer, assisting Special Olympics MENA staff with their administrative responsibilities.

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DANA AL TAJI

Dana is a fashion designer and founder of the Layal line of both couture and affordable abayas as well as well as high fashioned modest eveningwear.
Al Taji first earned a degree in political economy and spent some time as a teacher. She then decided to stay at home with her first child, enrolling in fashion and tailoring courses. After she had this special taste in clothes since she was a child. Unlike most little girls, Dana Al Taji didn’t want to buy new dresses for her Barbie dolls. Instead, Al Taji would eagerly await her mother’s return from visits with the tailor, snatching scraps of fabric. From that cast-off material, she created sundry outfits and ensembles for her dolls. She started her business a few years ago out of her home she now owns a boutique in Cairo, employing retail staff and tailors, and also supplies her products to other shops.
She consults magazines to view what’s in style and considers what colors she can integrate into the abaya. And when she’s out shopping, she observes how clothes are tailored and what new prints, be it stripes or polka dots, could be embraced. In a way, she views her work as countering societal stereotypes and enabling women to live out their choice.

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RANIA BADR EL DIN

A humanitarian, social entrepreneur, mother of 3 and owner & manager of Mother & Child online & printed publications and content.
Rania is a graduate of Business Administration from the American University of Cairo. In 1995 she started her own operation through Mother To Be magazine which few later, had its name changed to Mother & Child to target a wider readership and an Arabic section was added .Along the years and with different editorial mix that is both entertaining and educational, her publications expanded and have been able to captivate a continually growing audience, earning them the number one spot as the highest-circulating parenting publications on the market. Mother & Child has made the decision to distribute all its publications free of charge.
Her goal is to contribute to the well-being of Egyptian families by helping to fulfill their basic human right to access knowledge that supports their welfare. She feels an obligation towards the community and the essential role women play in raising the next generation of Egyptians.

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VIVIAN LABIB

Vivian Labib is an internationally recognised, award-winning artist and social entrepreneur who is a graduate from the Fine Arts College- Helwan University.  She started her career as an interior designer, with big plans to grow her knowledge and gain work experience in the competitive business world.  Soon she faced many obstacles as a woman in  field that was not used to female engineers , yet she continued to find a place for herself and her talents. After few years she decided to combine her skills in marketing and interests in arts in a new venture, and began marketing handmade crafts from Egyptian artisans, locally at exhibitions and internationally on the internet, with the slogan, "100% unique, 100% Egyptian, 100% handmade." Through this work, Vivian met many poor Egyptian families that were financially dependent on the woman in the house. This inspired her to modify her vision from selling "unique gifts" to selling "unique 100% Egyptian handmade gifts, empowering local communities." With this, she began a new journey as a social entrepreneur and set out to help various communities become productive and improve their livelihood. Among the artisans Vivian supports are refugees, prisoners, orphans, families and other marginalised people - especially women who support their families.Vivian Labib believes, "Social responsibility is not an option; it is an obligation."

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MOHAMED WADID

Mohamed is an Associate Member of the American Psychological Association and an expert on marriage counseling, life coaching, parenting counseling and self steam issues.
He obtained his Master's degree in mental health counseling from Rhode Island College, USA in 2005. In 2010 he obtained another MA in Philosophy from Cairo University. Very into the humanistic element in management. He has spent part of his career in the USA where he gained extensive experience in teaching college levels and facilitated the Arabic and middle eastern department in Roger Williams University on 2006. There he  founded, developed curriculum, and taught five Arabic courses comprising an undergraduate minor in Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies.
“Embracing life” is what he has chosen to name his counseling entity in Egypt where many Egyptian individuals and families started to realize the importance of his newly introduced approach in Egypt. This approach is based on the impact of the unconditional love, positive regard, empathy on enhancing both the parenting experience as well as the management one. Multinational companies have also used this approach for special employees well being programs .
He has been hosted by different TV & Radio shows to share his work and efforts with more audience. 

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NADA EL SHAZLY

Nada El Shazly is an actress and singer and a graduate of the Psychology department at the American University of Cairo . She participated in many theatrical plays and also worked with some of her friends on various musical pieces. Recently, she collaborated with Mohamed Shafik in the new musical project Shourba. 

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AMAL KHALIFA

Amal Khalifa Aly, born & raised in Aswan, has dedicated her time and energy to the community development of Aswan and its neighbouring village. She is currently the vice president of Om El Qurra Non governmental organisation that focuses its work in Upper Egypt. She has lead campaigns for equal educational opportunities, raising awareness on Aids, fighting illiteracy, calling for children's rights and supporting better life for disabled children and many more.  Amal would like to see more serious work done in offering better cultural & economic opportunities for women. She is calling from Egyptians in the north to be more involved with their communities in the south.

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GHADA ABD EL AAL

Ghada is a blogger, newspaper and magazine columnist, screenwriter and author of the bestselling Ayza Atgawez (I Want to Get Married). The blog that was out in 2006 is a sociopolitical satire that examines the cultural expectations placed upon women of marriageable age in Egypt. Abdel Al introduces herself on her blog as a representative of 15 million females from 25 to 35 years who are pressured by the society everyday to get married even though this matter is out of their hands.
In 2008 the blog was published in a book that has been translated into five languages Italian, German, English , Dutch & French which brought her international fame. In 2010 the book was turned into a hit TV series. Abdel Aal’s comedic screenplay adaptation won The Golden Pyramid award at the Cairo Arabic Media Festival and the TV series was awarded Silver Pyramid award for the best comedy series. 
She is also the recipient of the 2012 Bauer Prize for promising new writers at Incroci di Civiltà, Venice’s International Literary Festival.

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FATMA EL MEHELMY

Fatma is an Egyptian Canadian. She is a graduate of Civil engineering Cairo University and holds a graduate degree in Statistics and engineering analysis. She emigrated from Egypt to Canada with her husband, Wael Aggan, and their children in 1990. She became an accomplished software consultant, and has celebrated her accomplishment by becoming a generous patron of education, particularly encouraging young Muslim Women to follow their aspirations and dreams. The family established two scholarships for Muslim students at Carleton school of Journalism and Ottawa school of Law. Continuing her advocacy for education and striving to make a difference she founded “The Centre for the Study of Islam” at Carleton University. She is currently a board member of Human Concern International and undertaking development projects in Egypt to alleviate poverty and increase access to education in one of Cairo’s impoverished areas. Here in Ottawa she is working on establishing a “home work club” for unprivileged children.

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FAYROUZ KARAWYA

Fayrouz is an artist, writer, and researcher. She has been writing lyrics, composing, and singing since 2006. She has a bachelor's in medicine and a master's in sociology and anthropology from the American University in Cairo. She wrote her thesis about popular culture and politics in Egypt. Fayrouz has published articles in a variety of Egyptian newspapers and periodicals.

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