Malala Yousafzai is a Pakistani education activist born on July 12, 1997, in Mingora, Swat Valley, Pakistan. She became globally known for her advocacy of girls' education, especially in regions where the Pakistani Taliban had banned girls from attending school. At age 11, she wrote a blog under a pseudonym for BBC Urdu about life under Taliban rule. In 2012, at age 15, she survived a gunshot attack by the Taliban that aimed to silence her activism. Malala's courage and efforts made her the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 2014 at age 17. She continues to work internationally to promote education for women and children and has inspired a global movement for girls' education.
