I don't just help people understand Islam. I'm passionate about empowering them through and with Islam. I've spent twenty years teaching at mosques, universities, libraries, churches, and more. Leading Friday Prayers. Empowering Islamic Centers, Muslim student groups, and Sunday schools to up their programming, more effectively tell their stories and create more welcoming spaces. I've even led Islamic tours of Spain, Turkey, and Bosnia. Raised in New England by a family of scholars, I played a key role in launching the Islamic Center at New York University; after completing my undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Middle Eastern Studies with a minor in Arabic, I specialized in Islamic thought, philosophy and politics at Columbia University. I supplemented that with extensive research and learning in Egypt and Pakistan. With that background, and especially my academic focus on the philosophy of Allama Muhammad Iqbal, I turn to philosophy to help people help themselves. My approach is never to tell people what to do, but to help us understand who we want to be, who we have the potential to be, and how a more thoughtful, creative approach can help us flourish in all that we (can) do. My passion for learning and educating has led me to write five books, including How to be a Muslim: An American Story and, most recently, Two Billion Caliphs: A Vision of a Muslim Future. I've appeared on all major US news networks as an expert commentator on Islam, which means I'm comfortable with very diverse audiences, including engaging hard questions about our faith and our communities. I write for CNN, The New York Times, The Washington Post, NPR's Fresh Air, Al Jazeera, The Guardian, and many other magazines, websites, and newspapers. I carry that experience to the clients I work with, helping people understand media, tell gripping stories, and become more effective communicators. I'm especially passionate about teaching young Muslims, especially middle and high school students, about Islam in ways that also help them become better thinkers, better communicators, better readers, and better community leaders. In all that I do, I am eager to help people see just how incredible our faith is and inspire all kinds of people to see Islam not only as spiritually profound but immensely relevant to our lives.