0:00:21.355,0:00:24.123
When you look at women in Saudi Arabia,

0:00:24.123,0:00:26.323
this is what you see:

0:00:28.413,0:00:30.362
black covers,

0:00:30.782,0:00:34.484
just like the black cover[br]of a little black book.

0:00:34.903,0:00:37.033
But don't they say,[br]

0:00:37.033,0:00:40.503
"Don't judge a book by its cover?"

0:00:40.733,0:00:42.955
My name is Sofana Dahlan.

0:00:43.504,0:00:48.514
I'm all for cat-eye glasses,[br]ice-cream and the color purple,

0:00:48.935,0:00:52.304
but mostly, I'm proud to be a Saudi.

0:00:54.725,0:00:57.604
In March 2010,

0:00:57.604,0:01:00.844
hours after my second daughter was born,

0:01:00.844,0:01:03.374
while holding her in my arms,

0:01:04.227,0:01:08.313
my three-years-old daughter[br]looked at me and said, "Mommy."

0:01:09.305,0:01:11.135
She asked me a question,

0:01:11.135,0:01:14.383
and this question[br]made me think about my life,

0:01:14.383,0:01:18.146
my experiences, [br]and my identity as a Saudi.

0:01:18.146,0:01:23.134
She said, "Mommy, what will Huda be[br]when she grows up?"

0:01:23.485,0:01:29.454
At that moment, my new-born opened[br]her eyes for the first time in her life.

0:01:30.055,0:01:33.866
She's looking at me[br]as if she's anticipating my answer.

0:01:35.176,0:01:40.087
Naturally, my answer would be:[br]"Whatever she sets her mind to be."

0:01:40.476,0:01:45.175
But, a more realistic answer would be,[br]"Whatever she's permitted to be."

0:01:45.446,0:01:47.350
Tears were filling my eyes.

0:01:47.350,0:01:52.256
I was feeling breathless,[br]thinking of what would my answer be.

0:01:52.417,0:01:55.994
What are her perspectives?[br]What obstacles will she encounter?

0:01:56.206,0:01:59.106
In her case, she'll be a Saudi woman.

0:01:59.366,0:02:02.575
Will I tell her if she wants to travel,

0:02:02.575,0:02:05.665
or take a job, or study,

0:02:05.665,0:02:08.814
she needs a male guardian consent first?

0:02:09.236,0:02:15.398
Will I tell her that her choices[br]of education and career are limited?

0:02:16.256,0:02:21.705
And will I tell her that she will grow up[br]having limitation on her mobility?

0:02:23.317,0:02:27.646
And will I tell her that no matter[br]how successful she is,

0:02:27.646,0:02:31.926
the world will still view her[br]as oppressed and marginalized

0:02:31.926,0:02:34.079
and look at her with pity[br]

0:02:34.079,0:02:37.859
rather than recognizing her achievement?

0:02:40.429,0:02:41.887
Well,

0:02:42.457,0:02:46.357
we cannot pretend[br]that being a Saudi girl

0:02:46.357,0:02:49.837
does not come with limitations[br]and expectations.

0:02:51.348,0:02:52.698
But,

0:02:53.788,0:02:55.968
wouldn't it be tempting

0:02:55.968,0:02:59.959
that she encounters[br]no problems, no obstacles,

0:02:59.959,0:03:02.889
no injustice and no frustration?

0:03:03.999,0:03:09.348
If we had the power in our hands,[br]wouldn't we grant this wish to our child?

0:03:10.568,0:03:14.717
But it's also unwise to disregard

0:03:14.717,0:03:19.067
that most of our character[br]is formed by the obstacles,

0:03:19.067,0:03:23.157
problems and injustice[br]that we face and overcome.

0:03:24.238,0:03:28.298
If anything, the obstacles faced[br]by my mother and my grandmother

0:03:28.298,0:03:32.261
are perhaps the reason why I'm here today.

0:03:32.737,0:03:36.518
And if anything, I hope[br]that what I've gone through

0:03:36.518,0:03:41.035
would actually help[br]my daughters reach further.

0:03:42.747,0:03:46.746
The path to achievement[br]has not been an easy one for me.

0:03:47.046,0:03:51.065
Throughout the course of my life,[br]I've encountered many problems,

0:03:51.067,0:03:54.056
many obstacles and many social barriers.

0:03:54.937,0:04:00.297
But, it was precisely this[br]that made me adapt,

0:04:00.527,0:04:03.267
made me learn how to be flexible,[br]

0:04:03.267,0:04:06.097
and made me reshape my path.

0:04:07.417,0:04:09.191
I grew up in Saudi.

0:04:09.425,0:04:13.157
I went to a local school.[br]Arabic was the main language.

0:04:13.378,0:04:17.778
But my parents invested[br]in enrichment programs after school.

0:04:18.129,0:04:21.098
I was a very, very curious child,

0:04:21.098,0:04:22.878
asking questions all the time.

0:04:22.878,0:04:26.878
The more they were answered,[br]the more questions I generated.

0:04:28.498,0:04:33.538
"But why?" was a phrase[br]I continuously used.

0:04:35.049,0:04:38.159
By the age of twelve, I was a rebel,

0:04:38.159,0:04:40.498
my mother's worst nightmare.

0:04:41.377,0:04:43.046
I sat her down one day and said,

0:04:43.046,0:04:46.156
"Mom, listen, this needs to stop.

0:04:46.156,0:04:49.278
All my friends don't have[br]classes after school."

0:04:50.109,0:04:52.199
Her response was:

0:04:52.199,0:04:55.120
"The school you go to in the morning[br]is for you to belong

0:04:55.120,0:04:58.339
and then understand your society,

0:04:58.589,0:05:02.591
and the education you get[br]at home is mandatory for you

0:05:02.591,0:05:05.901
to build and develop a personality.

0:05:06.181,0:05:10.549
We will negotiate this no further[br]when you're seventeen."

0:05:11.440,0:05:14.569
And of course I argued, and got punished.

0:05:15.419,0:05:21.239
And it was long past seventeen[br]that I realized that she was right.

0:05:21.759,0:05:26.130
When I was in high school,[br]I wanted to study architecture,

0:05:26.130,0:05:29.470
because it was not allowed in Saudi[br]and was not provided there.

0:05:29.470,0:05:32.519
It was a ticket for me out of there.

0:05:32.946,0:05:34.949
Until one day,

0:05:34.949,0:05:38.299
I heard the story of a woman[br]

0:05:38.299,0:05:40.919
who grew up as an orphan,

0:05:40.919,0:05:43.459
married off to a wealthy man.

0:05:43.688,0:05:48.009
When he passed away,[br]his children from a previous marriage

0:05:48.009,0:05:52.449
forced her out of her house[br]and deprived her from her inheritance.

0:05:53.961,0:05:58.339
When she sought help[br]from a male lawyer,

0:05:58.629,0:06:00.879
it was used against her.

0:06:01.089,0:06:04.830
She was accused that she was[br]having an affair with him,

0:06:04.830,0:06:07.330
a sinful act in my country.

0:06:09.410,0:06:11.522
At that moment,

0:06:11.759,0:06:13.511
I realized

0:06:14.641,0:06:19.391
that having a female legal representation[br]is a necessity in my country.

0:06:19.871,0:06:22.732
Hence, my reason to study law,

0:06:23.400,0:06:26.604
something I really wanted and believed in.

0:06:27.585,0:06:30.205
And so, of course,

0:06:30.205,0:06:32.865
law was not permitted in Saudi.

0:06:33.945,0:06:35.875
I was taking a big risk.

0:06:36.735,0:06:38.936
But my father had a vision

0:06:38.936,0:06:42.396
that things will eventually[br]evolve in Saudi,

0:06:42.396,0:06:47.525
and that women will eventually have[br]the right to be taken in judicial realm.

0:06:48.635,0:06:50.327
And so,

0:06:50.927,0:06:57.267
I applied for a request[br]to the Ministry of Higher Education,

0:06:57.267,0:07:00.078
requesting to study law.

0:07:00.305,0:07:02.256
And I was granted.

0:07:02.556,0:07:04.778
So, I set off to Egypt.

0:07:05.276,0:07:07.037
I enrolled in Cairo University,

0:07:07.037,0:07:10.097
one of the first legal schools[br]in the Arab world.

0:07:10.717,0:07:15.407
And after that, I completed[br]a master in Islamic studies.

0:07:15.707,0:07:18.656
This was such a pivotal point in my life.

0:07:19.616,0:07:25.018
I was introduced to many schools[br]of thoughts, philosophical and religious.

0:07:26.698,0:07:32.157
And I was exploring women's rights[br]in different religions and sects.

0:07:33.118,0:07:34.798
It helped me understand

0:07:34.798,0:07:40.828
the framework of where social justice[br]and value operate in my society.

0:07:44.048,0:07:45.598
(Sighing)

0:07:45.598,0:07:48.913
And of course, after graduation,

0:07:51.152,0:07:53.692
the devastation happened.

0:07:54.382,0:08:00.904
After graduation, I applied to credit[br]my Egyptian certificate in Saudi.

0:08:02.923,0:08:07.013
All my Saudi legal [br]schoolmates received it.

0:08:07.252,0:08:08.774
I didn't,

0:08:09.165,0:08:12.914
because I didn't have a proof[br]of a male guardian companionship

0:08:12.914,0:08:14.994
throughout university.

0:08:15.895,0:08:19.834
And I worked as a legal[br]consultant in the back offices.

0:08:20.064,0:08:22.483
The frustration started building

0:08:22.483,0:08:25.733
because all the people around me[br]got ahead in their careers

0:08:25.733,0:08:28.533
and I was still there, useless.

0:08:29.245,0:08:32.734
I started feeling[br]more and more devastated,

0:08:33.223,0:08:37.875
because I realized that these[br]limitations stopped me

0:08:37.875,0:08:42.095
from defending a very[br]dear person to my heart

0:08:42.095,0:08:46.764
who was convicted falsely[br]for a crime he had never committed

0:08:46.765,0:08:48.913
and sentenced to jail.

0:08:51.095,0:08:54.845
And so, I moved on with my life.

0:08:57.715,0:09:01.525
I moved on with my life,[br]and I decided to get married,

0:09:01.525,0:09:04.706
and on the age of 25, I moved to Kuwait.

0:09:05.054,0:09:08.084
And I also started thinking[br]of opportunities.

0:09:08.084,0:09:10.735
I wanted to go back to legal practice.

0:09:12.795,0:09:19.294
All the legal firms I applied to[br]needed a legal license.

0:09:21.616,0:09:24.824
And, I didn't have one,

0:09:27.395,0:09:30.416
except for one legal firm.

0:09:30.635,0:09:34.414
I was granted, you know, an opportunity[br]to work in corporate law,

0:09:34.414,0:09:37.834
only to learn that I was [br]pregnant with a child

0:09:37.834,0:09:43.154
that had health complications[br]and needed special care and attention.

0:09:43.354,0:09:48.486
So, I decided to put my dream on hold[br]and focus on my child.

0:09:50.124,0:09:54.294
The more I tried to make my marriage[br]work, the worse it became.

0:09:58.486,0:09:59.878
And,

0:10:00.998,0:10:04.878
you know, the hardest moment in life

0:10:04.878,0:10:07.248
is not when people don't understand you.

0:10:07.248,0:10:09.908
It's when you don't understand yourself.

0:10:10.087,0:10:11.658
Who are you?

0:10:11.918,0:10:15.825
Who am I? What am I doing?[br]What do I want?

0:10:16.347,0:10:19.267
And how will I make a difference?

0:10:20.748,0:10:26.158
But the answers to these questions[br]help me identify doors of opportunity.

0:10:30.348,0:10:35.730
The trick was in building the steps[br]to reaching these doors.

0:10:35.730,0:10:40.467
For me, they consist of having faith,

0:10:40.467,0:10:44.227
knowing my strength and ability,

0:10:45.798,0:10:50.818
identifying my weaknesses[br]and finding motivation and inspiration,

0:10:51.078,0:10:53.399
and mastering creativity.

0:10:53.819,0:10:55.719
What is creativity?

0:10:56.139,0:10:59.150
Creativity involves breaking out[br]of established patterns

0:10:59.150,0:11:02.429
in order to look at things[br]in a different way.

0:11:02.779,0:11:07.049
Creativity is redesigning your dream[br]and redefining your mission.

0:11:07.529,0:11:11.440
Today, I'm on a mission[br]of innovation, of newness,

0:11:11.440,0:11:13.650
of multi-faceted dimension.

0:11:13.770,0:11:15.390
I'm engaged in building bridges[br]

0:11:15.390,0:11:18.663
and facilitating the path[br]to achievement and fulfillment.

0:11:18.911,0:11:21.872
In promoting creativity and innovation

0:11:21.872,0:11:25.572
and preserving [br]our artistically rich heritage,

0:11:25.572,0:11:29.941
my goal is to contribute[br]to the social development of my region.

0:11:30.500,0:11:35.233
In 2010, the same year[br]my second daughter was born,

0:11:35.883,0:11:38.652
I decided to be a single mom

0:11:38.652,0:11:40.772
and pursue my dream.

0:11:40.772,0:11:43.710
I opened a legal and business[br]consulting company

0:11:43.710,0:11:46.260
to promote creative entrepreneurs:

0:11:46.260,0:11:49.271
Tashkeil, the first platform[br]in the Middle East

0:11:49.271,0:11:54.781
that promotes creatives by incubating,[br]facilitating and promoting them.

0:11:56.052,0:12:00.180
Tashkeil aims towards reintroducing[br]designers in the Middle East

0:12:00.180,0:12:03.431
as an active stakeholder[br]in the global arena.

0:12:08.289,0:12:14.290
With that said, I never stopped seeking[br]my right to be recognized as a lawyer.

0:12:15.112,0:12:17.960
In 2012, I applied

0:12:17.960,0:12:22.440
and on November 24, 2013,

0:12:22.440,0:12:26.130
I'm proud to say that I am one[br]of the ten female lawyers

0:12:26.130,0:12:29.291
that have ever been granted[br]the right to practice law

0:12:29.291,0:12:31.861
in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

0:12:32.071,0:12:34.901
(Cheers and applause)

0:12:39.222,0:12:40.932
Because...

0:12:45.921,0:12:48.413
Because I believed in my dream,

0:12:48.413,0:12:50.911
because I believed in my choices,

0:12:50.911,0:12:54.002
and because I never gave up on my rights.

0:12:54.573,0:12:59.111
I believe that this is what my parents saw[br]when they looked at my eyes.

0:12:59.312,0:13:01.742
It was reflected on the name[br]they chose for me,

0:13:01.742,0:13:05.003
Sofana, which means "the rare pearl."

0:13:05.262,0:13:10.872
It's also an attribute to a daughter[br]of a famous fable character in Arabia,

0:13:11.132,0:13:12.790
Hatim al-Ta'i,

0:13:12.790,0:13:15.510
who is known for his generosity.

0:13:16.040,0:13:20.104
Long after his death, she was among[br]the first captives in Islam.

0:13:20.193,0:13:22.212
She was held a hostage.

0:13:22.473,0:13:26.773
But because of her keen[br]sense of negotiation,

0:13:26.773,0:13:30.542
she managed with dialogue[br]to free herself and her people

0:13:30.542,0:13:33.392
and submit to Islam willingly.

0:13:35.951,0:13:40.314
You see, my culture is embodied[br]in every aspect of me.

0:13:41.683,0:13:46.713
And so is resilience,[br]perseverance and challenge.

0:13:49.583,0:13:51.326
This is my story,

0:13:51.326,0:13:54.806
the story of many other Saudi women[br]who are not recognized

0:13:54.813,0:14:00.064
because of the general wrong perception[br]and judgment people have about them.

0:14:00.351,0:14:03.814
Today, women in Saudia are leading change.

0:14:05.423,0:14:07.633
They're making choices.

0:14:10.533,0:14:14.082
There, you see breakthrough[br]in medicine, in science, in art,

0:14:14.082,0:14:17.943
in finance and in entrepreneurship.

0:14:20.750,0:14:22.450
And today,

0:14:23.220,0:14:24.990
looking at my daughters' eyes,[br]

0:14:24.990,0:14:28.770
those curious big eyes[br]looking straight back at me,

0:14:29.360,0:14:32.460
asking me to make[br]the right choices for them,

0:14:32.460,0:14:35.948
until, one day, they can[br]make their choices.

0:14:36.768,0:14:39.842
I can say that it was all worth it.

0:14:42.160,0:14:48.070
Do you think I grew out of my habit[br]of asking questions?

0:14:49.880,0:14:51.290
Of course not.

0:14:51.290,0:14:52.790
(Laughter)

0:14:52.790,0:14:54.600
What about you?

0:14:55.319,0:14:56.830
Do you have the strength?[br]

0:14:56.830,0:14:59.260
Do you have the perseverance,[br]the challenge?

0:14:59.260,0:15:02.390
And do you have the resilience[br]of the spirit of a Saudi woman?

0:15:02.390,0:15:05.182
What do you do to fight injustice?

0:15:06.612,0:15:10.160
How do you change laws in your country?

0:15:11.819,0:15:15.521
What obstacles are on your path today?

0:15:16.721,0:15:20.448
If we can outsmart

0:15:20.448,0:15:23.918
the tight rules of a country[br]like Saudia Arabia,

0:15:24.438,0:15:28.170
if we can function[br]in a male-dominant system,

0:15:28.170,0:15:30.390
work with it and challenge it,

0:15:30.390,0:15:32.960
I think you can do it here.

0:15:35.041,0:15:36.480
Thank you.

0:15:36.480,0:15:38.920
(Cheers) (Applause)