This profile is part of the 2016 Global Citizen March Madness Challenge. The challenge asks you to vote for your favorite global citizens, as we match them up “tournament style” from a “Sweet 16” starting round, all the way down to a champion on April 4th.
Vote now in the Sweet 16 Round for all of your favorites HERE
Name: Michelle Obama
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois, US
Profession: First Lady of the United States of America
Issue division: Girls & Women
Quick facts:
- Spearheaded US school nutrition overhaul
- Law degree from Harvard, undergraduate in Sociology from Princeton
- She writes her own speeches
- Her Secret Service codename is “Renaissance”
Michelle Obama has been an active and effective political figure during her time in the White House. She’s launched numerous campaigns and has lent her voice and support to many other causes. One of her most noteworthy campaigns has been “Let’s Move,” a nationwide effort to end childhood obesity by focusing on exercise and nutrition.
Another one of her hallmark campaigns is the #LetGirlsLearn initiative and its related campaign #62MillionGirls that she launched during the 2015 Global Citizen Festival. The campaign aims to raise awareness for the 62 million girls around the world who are denied the opportunity for a full education. So far, more than 100,000 people have pledged to take action to end this injustice.
As the campaign notes, “when a girl receives a quality education, she is more likely to earn a decent living, raise a healthy, educated family, and improve the quality of life for herself, her family, and her community.”
Michelle Obama knows the importance of education first-hand, having earned degrees at some of the top institutions in the world. Now, she wants to make sure every girl has the same opportunities she had.
This emphasis on teamwork will help Michelle make her way through the tough competition.
First round match-up
