In Search of the Human Spirit

Shavkat Ali was recruited by the Taliban 17 years old. His village in Pakistan was very poor. The Taliban seemed like a way to get out.

Ali trained in Chechnya. He was fighting in Afghanistan in 2001. Up until 9/11, he believed in the cause. Then the two Towers fell and Ali began to question the policies of the Taliban and their links to terrorism.

Ali came to the conclusion that the Koran did not support those ideals. He left the military battles behind and went into teaching.

He now believes education is the key to alleviating the social ills of this country. He focuses on providing a secular education to girls. He firmly believes that females are the future. According to Ali, “these people who are not going to school that’s the basis of terrorism.” Ali Bee Gees if you’ve educate one female, she will demand an education for her children. He is now part of the solution.

Professors are reaching out to the Internet audience. Video lectures of university level courses are popping up all over the web. UC Berkeley has an agreement with Youtube. The former president of Harvard is an investor in Fora.tv — a site with lectures and debates geared towards the scholar. There is also Big Think with lectures on a variety of topics from educators and prominent individuals.

In the future we may see more universities reaching out to those who might not otherwise benefit from their offerings. In the meantime, check out these web sites:

bigthink.com

FORA.tv

http://youtube.com/user/ucberkeley