U.S. Special Representative to Muslim Communities stresses the importance of engaging Muslim Youth in FODP Interview

With over 62 percent of the world’s Muslim population under the age of 30, it is critical for the US to work closely with Muslim youth abroad, Farah Pandith, U.S. Special Representative to Muslim Communities, said in an interview at the Harvard Kennedy School last November.

“[This is a] generation that has the capacity to do amazing things or not be leveraged at all,” Pandith said in the 16-minute Future of Diplomacy Project interview with faculty chair Nicholas Burns. “We want to leverage them—We want to hear what they have to say.”

Pandith called the group “Generation Change” and added that the events of September 11, 2001 may make it difficult for Muslim youth to cultivate their identity.

“Every day since September 12, 2001, this generation has seen the world Islam or Muslims on the front page. How does that shape who they are? How do they think about their identity?” Pandith said.

Following President Obama’s speech in Cairo in June of 2009, Secretary of State Hilary Clinton appointed Pandith as the first Special Representative to Muslim Communities, underscoring the US’s goal to increase dialogue with Muslims abroad. When asked whether the administration’s strategy is working and whether the relationship between the US and the Muslim world has improved, Pandith said that she thinks the approach has worked well and that “the tone” of the relationship has changed for the better.

After traveling to over 30 countries during her first year in office, Pandith said that she does see ways that the relationship could improve. She encouraged a greater emphasis on issues such as health, education, technology and science. But Pandith pointed out that singular issues do not determine the success of her work. Her job, she said, follows an unprecedented goal, which is to direct US policy towards building a long-term relationship with Muslim communities abroad.

The private sector and universities also play an important role in building a relationship between Muslims communities abroad and the US, she said. According to Pandith, universities frame current affairs and create the lexicon that affects how people think around the world. The private sector, she said, has the “can do” attitude and money to engage in international partnerships.  After pointing to the partnership between Coca Cola, the Aspen Institute, and former Secretary of State Albright, she added that the government can be the facilitator and convener of these endeavors.

Pandith concluded by offering support of the administration’s emphasis on diplomacy, and the President’s goal to engage with young people in the region.

“This is a generation that is not going to sit back,” she said. “If we look just at numbers, there are millions of young Muslims who no longer want to be excluded but who want to be part of the conversation. It is our time to tap into them.”