This week marks Pakistan's historic elections. It's significant because since the country's birth in 1947, it's the first time there's been a transition from one civilian government to another. Whether Pakistan is under military or democratic rule, the creative culture that exists throughout the country has always been represented through...

Having grown up in Kuwait, Maali Alasousi had the option to travel to the U.S. and Egypt to pursue her education, and then later start her own company. Up to that point in her life, her goal was to promote tourism in Kuwait. But she sold her company and refocused...

Rasha Shehada has been picked by her brother and sister to take over the family business Diamond Line when their father retires next year. In her mid-20's, she currently heads business development for the company her parents started in 1997 that's now grown into a leading hotel supply...

The tale of how Nayla Al Khaja became the United Arab Emirate's first female independent film maker is like the script of a drama itself, filled with hidden ambition, sacrifices and heartbreak.

As a student at Dubai's Women College, Al Khaja graduated with honors and briefly hosted a travel show...

Years before 14-year-old Fawad Mohammadi  became the pride of his native Afghanistan after co-starring in the Oscar-nominated Buzkashi Boys, he was a well known figure to Afghanistan's international community of aid workers. Like many children in Afghanistan, Mohammadi has spent much of his youth working on...

My favorite place in New York City is General Assembly. Since I first started visiting a couple of years ago, they've evolved into a network of campuses for technology, business and design in nine locations around the world. General Assembly does amazing things for entrepreneurs. Tonight...

In How Companies Win, Rick Kash, vice chair of Nielsen along with its chief executive officer David Calhoun, explain how successful companies have switched to a new demand driven strategy. The book highlights examples from corporations such as The Hershey Company, Best Buy, IBM, Hewlett Packard...

Nearly 10 years ago I was a recent college grad living in New York City looking for a summer sublet. My lease was about to end and I still needed the summer to wrap up a project I was working on before moving to...

Breast cancer activism in Saudi Arabia has helped spark a cultural revolution bringing thousands of women together to help raise awareness. Earlier this month, 11 Saudi women climbed Mount Everest as part of a public...

A few days ago I flew to Bahrain to meet Leena Al Olaimy, co-founder and managing director of 3BL Associates. Her firm works with a range of clients in the Middle East helping them incorporate a 'triple bottom line' strategy focusing on social equity, environmental sustainability,...

Figuring out your purpose in life isn't what many people go to business school for, but perhaps it should be, according to Harvard Business School Professor Clayton Christensen. In fact, it's something he believes in so strongly that he's even created a...

Maha Al-Farhan is a pioneer in bringing clinical research to the Middle East. Recently named Entrepreneur of the Year at the third annual Women in Business Forum in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), she founded her company ClinArt International in 2001. Her company conducts medical and clinical research at both...

When May Habib attended her first ArabNet Digital Summit last year, the former investment banker from Manhattan was looking for people and funding to make her startup a reality. At this year's conference, her newly minted translation startup Qordoba won the demo competition. "We're here to...

Michael Horn sees the Internet providing access to a range of products and services that will help improve the way people can learn. While adult education is where on-line learning initially got its start, Horn predicts that half of high school courses in the U.S. will be taken...

Jocelyn Wyatt is the Executive Director and Co-Lead of IDEO.org, the nonprofit organization started by Palo Alto, CA-based design consultancy IDEO to address poverty-related challenges through design and to encourage the use of a "human-centered approach" to innovation in the social sector.

IDEO.org has worked with the Rockefeller...

Philadelphia isn't known for being a healthy city -- on the contrary, it's famous for its cheesesteaks. Initially when I saw the sign for Pure Fare, I didn't make the connection that it was even a restaurant. Just off of Walnut Street, I assumed it was one of...

Seventeen year old inner city high school student Maurice Suggs enjoys learning. A student at University City High School in Philadelphia, he is part of a team of a dozen students led by Wharton Business School Professor Keith Weigelt developing a product that currently doesn't exist, an online business curriculum...

This June, the Funeral Suits will release their debut album 'Lily of the Valley' produced by the legendary Stephen Street. The band chose the title because a lily symbolizes the...

The Stepkids are one of the most eclectic bands in music today with a self described sound of '"a fusion of punk and jazz, West African and 1960s folk, neo and classic soul, classic funk and 20th century classical." The band also perform one of the most unique...

In a desert area in between the Afghan and Pakistan border sits Mirji Village in the Rodat district of the Sheenwar tribal area. Over 250 boys and girls sit on the ground studying together in hopes for a better future. Despite the billions of dollars of donor aid that has...