Houston event the last in a series of five inspiring youth empowerment events across the US
Speakers included Americans, Saudis and an Emirati
Talks by inventors, entrepreneurs, students and social activists 

Houston- Le Méridien Houston Downtown hotel was the venue for the fifth and final Misk Talk event arranged by the Misk Foundation during H.R.H. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the United States. Misk Talks are arranged by the Misk Foundation, the Crown Prince’s non-profit youth empowerment foundation. At the events in Washington D.C., New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Houston, young Saudis living in the US, as well as people from the Arabian Gulf and the U.S., shared inspiring stories about how to succeed in the knowledge economy.

Audiences across the U.S. heard from a wide range of speakers: entrepreneurs gave tips for a successful mindset, researchers showed how knowledge can solve many world problems, inventors spoke of their world-beating innovations, social activists set out measures for to improve society. They gave different perspectives but were united in showing how young people are shaping the future of the world.

The Houston audience enjoyed examples from each category. 19-year-old Karan Jerath opened the event by telling the audience of being inspired by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to invent a subsea wellhead cap that could help clean up future spills. He urged the audience to “find what you are passionate about and figure out how you can make a lasting and impactful difference. You can start small but start now.”

U.S. citizen Alexis Taylor, director at 3 Day Startup, spoke about her work activating the entrepreneurial capabilities of students around the world, enabling them to succeed during the ‘Great Acceleration’ of economic change. “In a rapidly changing world, entrepreneurial thinking is key to owning the future you want to create”, she said.

Rami Alsakran, a Saudi doctoral researcher into higher education leadership at Sam Houston State University, spoke of the experiences of expat, noting the contribution they make to the economy of their host country. He asked the audience to use skills developed abroad when they return home, saying: “you will take everything you’ve learned, your degree, the new good ideas that you have and import them from the U.S. and export them into Saudi Arabia because we need these ideas and we need people like you, the change-makers.”

Petroleum engineer, Mohammed Abu Alreesh, who describes himself as “the Saudi Max Steineke” talked of those who inspired him, including Max Steinke, the American oil engineer from the California-Arabian Standard Oil Company whose 1930s work led to the first discovery of large quantities of Saudi oil,  Khamees Bin Ramthan, the former Chief Guide of Saudi Aramco and current Saudi oil minister Khaled Al-Falih. Alreesh said his tips for success are “persistence, satisfaction and optimistic ambition” and concluded by quoting the Saudi Crown Prince, H.R.H. Mohammed bin Salman who has said that “the sky is the limit for our people”.

Saudi Mohammed Faris, founder and CEO of Productivemuslim.com, inspired the audience with a talk on how the spiritual concept of ‘Barakah’ – the attachment of divine goodness to a thing – can be applied to all aspects of life, including business. “Barakah is doing more with less”, he told the audience. He noted that “if modern productivity is about maximizing your output, then Barakah is about maximizing the impact of that output.”

Fatma Mahmood, who is from Dubai in the U.A.E. and is a Columbia University graduate, spoke about the need to be “very accepting and tolerant to other cultures and lifestyles”. Drawing on her own experiences, she added that unfamiliar things are “an opportunity to see things from a completely different perspective”. Ms Mahmood now plans to return to the region to give back to the community. “Embrace your talents, nourish your soul and a whole new world will open up to you”, she added.

Norah Alswaleh, a Saudi undergraduate at Texas Southern University, spoke about living in Houston, a city that both has a great jobs market, and is also very diverse, with many “different temples, churches and mosques”. She reflected on her own passion for meeting people from different cultures, advising the audience to “open yourselves up to new possibilities, to be positive, to learn new skills and prepare yourself for many possibilities by asking the question: what if?”

Mohammed Khallaf, a Saudi student at the University of Houston, spoke about how now is the “time for involved Saudis”. His drew on his own involvement in the community as president of the Saudis in Houston Organization and as an intern at the Mayor of Houston’s office.  “You just need to go with your passion, see what you like, try to find events in your community and then you will be able to lead and be successful in your professional life”, he said an added that “involved Saudis” will help tackle stereotypes about Saudi Arabia.

Master of Ceremonies, Zain Verjee, praised the speakers as the “innovators, the disruptors and the leaders of tomorrow”. She concluded the Houston Misk Talk, and the series of events across the US, by saying: “We’ve heard powerful and important messages from the young people tonight. They are the ones that are building bridges across civilizations, enhancing and enriching cultural understanding. They are committed to healing the scars from the past and strengthening ties for the future”.