It’s a given that some people struggle with more prejudices in life than others. Making it extraordinary when they beat all odds. Sakena Yacoobi is one of these people. An educated Muslim feminist woman who returned to Taliban-led Afghanistan to offer gender-equal education ánd succeeded.

She is now the executive director of the Afghan Institute of Learning (AIL). AIL supported 80 underground home schools for over 3,000 girls (and later also boys) during the Taliban occupation. They now offer education and health services to women and girls in the poor regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Here she is explaining how she beat the odds and stopped the Taliban from shutting down her school.