DR. ALAA MURABIT
Alaa Murabit is a global expert in health, sustainable development, inclusive security, and girls' education. At age 21, Alaa founded The Voice of Libyan Women, working on inclusive security, peace processes, and faith-supported peacebuilding alongside President Jimmy Carter, Leymah Gbowee, and others. By the age of 25, she had successfully negotiated and passed numerous resolutions through the United Nations Security Council and General Assembly, including Resolutions 2122 (2013), 2242 (2015), 2467 (2019), and 2493 (2019). Alaa's leadership was instrumental in shaping United Nations General Assembly Resolution 70/1 (2015), better known as the Sustainable Development Goals, including ensuring the inclusion of Goal 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions. The Goals have transformed the global agenda, driving policies across government and business, shifting public and private sector budgets in 193 countries, and impacting billions of people. As a result, Alaa was appointed a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Advocate by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and Antonio Guterres, speaking at the first-ever 'SDG Moment' during the United Nations General Assembly. In 2016, she was appointed UN High-Level Commissioner on Health, Employment, and Economic Growth.
Her groundbreaking "Noor Campaign" emphasized the critical role of women's faith leaders in promoting a more accurate understanding of religion and advancing women's rights, particularly in conflict and fragile settings. Her leadership in bringing coalitions of faith actors together to challenge the suppression of women's rights perpetuated by religious text interpretations was cited as a “turning point in women’s rights globally” by Human Rights Watch. Alaa's TED Talk, viewed over seven million times, was selected as “TED Talk of the Day” and one of “4 moving TED Talks you should watch right now” by The New York Times and spurred inclusive security and religious peacebuilding efforts globally.
Alaa is also a medical doctor and a London School of Economics graduate. Alaa was named a prestigious Harvard Radcliffe Fellow in 2021 and currently serves as the Director of Global Programs, Advocacy, and Communications at the Gates Foundation. She is an International Criminal Court Hauge-certified sexual and gender-based violence investigator. She's advised 40+ countries at the Head of State and ministerial levels and held executive leadership roles at Phase Minus 1, IMPACT 2030, and the Omnis Institute. She is a founding member of the International Treaty on Gender-Based Violence at Harvard University's Carr Center.
Alaa is the recipient of more than 100 honors and awards, including the World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, CNN Leader, New York Times TrustWomen Hero, Harvard Law Woman Inspiring Change, Wikipedia Global Leader, BBC Top 100, Forbes 30 Under 30, Global Citizen Awardee, WIRED World Global Thought Leader, 2018 Nelson Mandela International Changemaker, Aspen Institute Spotlight Scholar, Canada's 2021 Woman of Impact, YMCA Distinguished Community Service Awardee, MIT Media Lab Director's Fellow, and one of the 100 Most Influential Women in History by the Canadian government. She has been nominated to the Canadian Senate, received a Canadian Meritorious Service Cross, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, and received the Marisa Bellisario International Humanitarian Award from the President of the Italian Republic and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Her work has been recognized by Forbes, the BBC, CNN, Vanity Fair, Al Jazeera, PBS, NPR, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Times of India, The Guardian, the BBC, Bloomberg, YouTube, Wired, CTV, The Boston Globe, Jon Stewart, and more.
She serves on global non-profit and for-profit boards with projects in 80+ countries, including the boards of the Malala Fund, Gavi (the Vaccine Alliance), and Women for Women International.
In her spare time, Alaa moonlights as a personal assistant to her two toddlers.
For media request and speaking engagements Alaa is represented by Creative Artists Agency. Contact office@alaamurabit.com or Christine Lancman.