The Equity, Diversity and Belonging (EDB) Annual Lecture: Global Perspectives on Girls' Education

In a globalized world, achieving gender equity, particularly for the most marginalized girls, remains a challenge. Ensuring equal education for all, especially the most vulnerable children, is both a global and local commitment. Although a difficult target, this issue has fostered global and local partnerships, creating stronger connections between practitioners, human rights advocates, academics and policymakers. Thus, the challenge presents an opportunity for dialogue among these stakeholders.

In this spirit, the event brings together a global girls’ education advocate, Mr Ziauddin Yousafzai (Co-founder of the Malala Fund), and a leading scholar of girls’ education, Professor Pauline Rose (Director of the Research for Equitable Access and Learning Centre, Cambridge), in conversation with each other and the audience to discuss experiences and pressing issues in this area.

Mr Ziauddin Yousafzai is a renowned Pakistani education advocate and human rights campaigner. He co-founded the Malala Fund alongside his daughter, Malala Yousafzai, the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate. Born in Swat Valley, Pakistan, Ziauddin was an educator and school owner dedicated to promoting girls’ education in a region where it was often suppressed. His unwavering support for his daughter’s activism has made him a prominent global voice for education and gender equity. Ziauddin continues to travel worldwide, speaking on the importance of education for all children and advocating for the rights of marginalized communities.

Professor Pauline Rose is the Director of the Research for Equitable Access and Learning (REAL) Centre at the University of Cambridge. With extensive expertise in international education, she focuses on issues of equity and inclusion, particularly for marginalized groups. She has authored numerous publications on global education policy and has worked with various international organizations, including UNESCO and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Previously, she directed UNESCO’s Education for All Global Monitoring Report. Professor Rose is committed to improving educational outcomes for all children, advocating for policies that ensure equitable access to quality education globally.