Author Talks Series: Farah Pandith: How We Win at Boston Public Library

How We Win’s message is urgent: America and its allies can defeat extremism, but not until we significantly shift our approach. We must counter extremism intellectually. Extremists are preying on a rising generation of nearly one billion Muslim millennials and Gen Z who are in the midst of an identity crisis, vulnerable to extremists’ seductive, intolerant, “us” versus “them” ideology, delivered using the latest technologies and real-life peer-suasion. Drones and special forces operations won’t destroy extremism at its root like a grassroots war of ideas will. In How We Win, Farah Pandith reveals emerging data, on-the-ground stories, and proven solutions.

How We Win offers hope. Farah Pandith explains how government, the private sector, and civil society can help Muslim youth solve their identity crisis and in turn build a safer, more stable world. Her perspective and insights are rare, bold, and important. By focusing on human behavior and cultural influence, she convincingly explains how companies must play a role that has—so far—been absent. She demands more from the governments and multinational organizations. Her positive message is a hopeful chapter for Muslim youth, and the world at large. Pandith’s prescription drowns out the voices of extremists by supporting new concepts, causes, and charismatic leaders for young people.

Farah Pandith is an author, foreign policy strategist, and former diplomat. A world-leading expert and pioneer in countering violent extremism, she is a frequent media commentator and public speaker. She served as a political appointee under Presidents George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, and most recently she was the first-ever Special Representative to Muslim Communities, serving both Secretaries Hillary Clinton and John Kerry. She has served on the National Security Council, at the U.S. Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in various senior roles.

She has also served on the Department of Homeland Security’s Advisory Council, chairing its task force on countering violent extremism. She is a senior fellow with the Future of Diplomacy Project at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School as well as an adjunct senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. Pandith divides her time between Washington, D.C.; London; and Cambridge, Massachusetts.