Published 10/27/2025 - The Ford School and the Weiser Diplomacy Center welcomed Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai to Ann Arbor for a conversation about her personal journey as an activist. Ford School Professor Susan D. Page was joined by LSA English professor, and former head of the Center for South Asian Studies, Madhumita Lahiri as Malala read passages from her new book “Finding My Way” and spoke on the hardships, challenges, and successes she has encountered over the years.

The event was co-sponsored by the Year of Life-Changing Education, the Initiative for Democracy & Civic Empowerment, the Marsal Family School of Education, the Center for the Education of Women, and the Institute for Research on Women & Gender. The event also was part of the Josh Rosenthal Education Fund lecture series.

A prominent theme of the conversation was the impact that earning a college education had on her. She shared the many ways college shaped her as a person, well beyond academics. Going to college was more than just earning a degree to her; it meant triumph in her fight against the Taliban to receive an education. She captured that feeling, stating, “I felt like I was living my childhood dream. This is something that I had only dreamed of, to be learning and to complete my studies. So I vividly remembered the times when the Taliban had stopped us from going to school, and the moment when I graduated, it felt like we had won.”

Malala did not shy away from discussing the challenges she faced in college. Struggling with academics and balancing a social life was unfamiliar to her. “I was signing up for every society, every club, even rowing, which I don't know why I did that. I was part of, like every religious society, Christian, Hindu, Muslim, yes, I was everywhere, everywhere. And that was part of the problem… it would be extremely, extremely difficult to manage all of that. So, you know, in the end, I realized that, yes, I need to readjust my priorities a bit and give more time to my studies.” She shared that everyone faces challenges at some point in college, and finding solutions can look different for everyone. Speaking to a relatable struggle, she revealed a moment of vulnerability and her difficulty with seeking help. “I also realized that I need to get academic support as well. I learned that in our college, they had academic support for students who were struggling because of any circumstances… But when I went for my first academic support session, I realized that, you know, sometimes you just need help with very small things and that can help you a lot in your academic performance,” she said.

Influenced by her college experience, Malala explained her motivation for writing her new book, “Finding My Way.” She said, “I think the way we hear the stories of activists are just simplified, where they are shown as resilient and strong people, that they have no fear, that they have no other feelings, that they do not wish for a normal life. And I'm saying this because I became an activist at a young age, and I received the recognition at a young age that I actually internalized those perceptions.”

She stayed motivated, but also had fear while pursuing her activism journey. This fear went beyond herself and was never aligned with concern for her own safety. Malala was more scared of the Taliban “harming the future of girls” and “living under their rule where we (females) have no rights and no future.” She placed her fear of injustice above her personal needs. “I think it's important for us not to feel scared to step up for justice, because what we are witnessing right now is scary… It's important for us to be more scared of the injustices than being scared of speaking out,” argued Yousafzai. She declared, “If we stay still and silent, nothing will change. So speaking out and doing something is important.”

Highlighting her work with the Malala Fund, she explained the importance of focusing on policy in protecting the right to education for girls. “We look at it from the policy point of view, the legislation, and for the resources, we think about ‘how can we advocate that governments actually increase the spending for girls' education?’ We have seen that in every country, the politics is different,” Malala noted. She argued that the best way to make change happen is to work together with local education activists because they have the largest impact on policies. “For us it has to be locally led because the local education activists know the problems best, and they also know the solutions to those problems best.” The activist noted that understanding the specific needs of different countries is crucial while fighting for women’s rights to education globally.

Malala left the audience with an inspiring remark, encouraging the students in the audience to “stay ambitious, stay hopeful, and have fun as well. Don't be too hard on yourself. You will learn so much along the way and believe in yourself. Always believe in yourself.”