Sheikh

Sheikh

Not to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...

a Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani (born 1983) is the 14th child of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the current Emir of Qatar, and the eldest daughter of the Emir with his second wife, Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al-Missned.

Education and career

Sheikha Al-Mayassa graduated with a B.A.

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in Political Science

Political science

Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...

 and Literature

Literature

Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...

 from Duke University

Duke University

Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...

 (Durham

Durham

Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...

, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

, USA) in 2005. While at Duke, she was Vice President of the International Association, Vice President of Hiwar (an organization to promote political dialogue), and a delegate to the 2001-2002 Model United Nations

Model United Nations

Model United Nations is an academic simulation of the United Nations that aims to educate participants about current events, topics in international relations, diplomacy and the United Nations agenda....

.

During the 2003-2004 school year, she studied at the University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne, and the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris

Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris

The Institut d'études politiques de Paris , simply referred to as Sciences Po , is a public research and higher education institution in Paris, France, specialised in the social sciences. It has the status of grand établissement, which allows its admissions process to be highly selective...

 (known as Sciences Po). She spent the summer of 2002 working in the Paris headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Al-Mayassa is fluent in Arabic, English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 and French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

.

Sheikha Al-Mayassa currently serves as the Chair of the Qatari Foundation Reach Out To Asia

Reach Out To Asia

Reach Out To Asia is a Qatari-based non-profit organization that empowers local communities by providing access to quality primary and secondary education to children affected by crisis across Asia...

 (ROTA), a philanthropic effort inspired by the desire to help the victims of recent natural disasters in Asia. She also serves as the Chair of the Qatari National Foundation of Museums and the Council of Trustees of Qatar Museums Authority

Qatar Museums Authority

The Qatar Museums Authority is the peak body of museums in Qatar. The QMA was founded in late 2005, its CEO is Abdullah Al-Najjar. and since 2008 its director is Roger Mandle. The QMA was the bid leader for Qatar's successful candidature to join the UNESCO heritage panel in 2011...

 (QMA). and as an Assistant to the Chief of Staff of Qatar’s Emiri Diwan. Further, she is Director of Fitch Qatar since 2006.

Al-Mayassa has been engaged in humanitarian efforts for many years and strongly believes that every individual has the opportunity to make a difference in their community and the world. She has recently increased her involvement and become a leader in this arena.
Her latest project, Reach Out To Asia, has raised 30 million dollars in just 5 months to help those people who lost homes, livelihoods and loved ones in last year’s tsunami and the recent earthquake in Pakistan, Afghanistan and India. This initiative is also intended to develop primary and secondary education in the Asian least developed countries - with the aim of reaching the Millennium Development Goals

Millennium Development Goals

The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...

 in 2015.

Prior to her current work, Al-Mayassa was actively engaged in several humanitarian projects in the Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

 and Asia regions. In 2003, she worked with Qatari Red Crescent organization (a partner of the Red Cross) to raise money for clothing and school equipment for the children of Iraq. Between 2000 and 2001, she managed a charitable organization to raise money for Cambodian schools and traveled to that country to convey the proceeds. Earlier, she raised funds for the cause of Palestine and organized a Diabetes Camp for students in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

Marriage and children

Sheikha Al-Mayassa married at Al-Wajbah Palace, Doha, on 6 January 2006, with Sheikh Jassim bin Abdul Aziz Al-Thani, an elder son of Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Jassim bin Hamad Al-Thani. Together they have two sons:

• Sheikh Mohammed
• Sheikh Hamad

External links

• Muslim Women: Past and Present