Speakers

Carla Power
Contributor, TIME Magazine

Carla Power is a journalist specializing in Islamic social issues. She has been writing on the subject since the early 1990s, first as a Junior Research Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, then as a correspondent for Newsweek Magazine, and more recently, writing for Time Magazine, The Times of London, The New York Times Magazine, and other publications.

Her work on the Islamic halal and financial industries has appeared in Time Magazine, Forbes, New Statesman and Foreign Policy. She graduated from Yale University cum laude in 1988, and went on to receive a degree from the Journalism School at Columbia University, and an M.Phil. from St. Antony's College, Oxford University in Modern Middle Eastern Studies. As a journalist, she has reported widely from Central and South Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. Married, with two young daughters, she lives in North London and is currently writing a book on the global Muslim women's movement.
 

Mohamed El-Fatatry
Founder and CEO, Muxlim.com

 

 Mohamed is the founder and CEO of Muxlim Inc., the world's largest Muslim lifestyle network. Created in 2006, Muxlim has already achieved a massive following with tens of millions of visitors each year from over 190 countries.

Mohamed’s vision is to connect the world's Muslim communities to each other, and to the wider world, through shared online experiences. Muxlim is focused on the Muslim lifestyle as part of a diverse, all-inclusive world which which recognizes and welcomes people of all faiths and backgrounds who want to share, learn and have fun. In 2008, Muxlim.com was cited as one of the top 100 technology start-ups in Europe by leading U.S. technology magazine Red Herring, and was included in the top 100 high growth success stories in Finland by Helsingin Sanomat, Finland’s largest newspaper. In 2009, the company was named "Grand One Best Startup 2009", one of the most prestigious digital media awards in Europe. In the same year the company became the official Finland nominee to the "World Summit Awards 2009", and has been recognized as one of Finland's top high-tech companies by the Finnish National Fund for Research & Innovation (TEKES). Furthermore, a case study about Muxlim is currently being written for INSEAD “Blue Ocean Strategy Institute”.
Mohamed, an Egyptian now based in Finland, is an entrepreneur with an impressive track record for tailoring technology to the Muslim Lifestyle in innovative ways. More than a decade before popular photo-sharing websites such as Flickr, he was creating personal web pages where he and his friends could publish and comment on photographs and by the time he was 16, he was a web development instructor at the Emirates Institute of Technology. Coming from a Computer Science background, he has already been called in some circles the "Linus Torvalds" of the Muslim world.

Mohamed studied Computer Science at the American University in Sharjah and Media Technology at Metropolia University of Applied Sciences in Helsinki. He is also a regular speaker at events and conferences such as the New Media Event (UAE), Scandinavian Interactive Media Event (Sweden), Live from the New York Public Library (US), TechCrunch (UK), Multi-Cultural Communication (UK), and Social Media Power (UAE), as well as an expert contributor to Al Jazeera English, New Media Age, United Nations, Wilton Park, among others.

Paul Barrett
Assistant Managing Editor, Investigative Projects
BusinessWeek

Paul Barrett is an Assistant Managing Editor at BusinessWeek, a position he assumed in September 2005. He is responsible for overseeing investigative projects. The magazine has won a series of national awards for articles he has supervised.

Prior to joining BusinessWeek, Mr. Barrett was an editor and legal affairs reporter for The Wall Street Journal. At various times, he held the positions of Supreme Court correspondent, page one special projects editor, and page one news editor at the Journal. Prior to that, he was a staff writer and editor for The Washington Monthly.

Mr. Barrett is the author of American Islam: The Struggle for the Soul of a Religion (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2007; Picador, 2008), which was named to best books of 2007 lists by the Washington Post, Christian Monitor, and Publishers Weekly. he is also the author of The Good Black: A True Story of Race in America (Dutton, 1999; Plume, 2000)

Mr. Barrett is a graduate of Harvard Law School and holds an A.B. from Harvard College.

Shahed Amanullah
Founder,  Halalfire Media

 
Mr. Amanullah is a technology professional and veteran of several Silicon Valley startups, including Relatia Networks, a telecommunications software company where he served as CEO. He is the founder of Halalfire Media (http://www.halalfire.com), the leading network of Islamic-themed websites with over 6.5 million annual visitors and 22 million annual page views. Halalfire Media Group is considered the go to “think tank” for proprietary insights into the dynamic and growing American and UK Muslim communities. Halalfire’s flagship product is zabihah.com, the world's largest database of Halal restaurants and markets, which stands at the heart of the fast-growing global marketplace. Zabihah.com was the recipient of the Halal Journal Award, presented by the Malaysian Prime Minister at the 2008 World Halal Forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Other signature properties include altmuslim.com, the largest online newsmagazine focusing on issues related to Islam in the West, salatomatic.com, an extensive list of user-reviewed mosques and schools, and halalapalooza.com, a comprehensive guide to Islamic e-commerce. As editor-in-chief of altmuslim.com, Amanullah writes and speaks regularly about the challenges and opportunities facing Islam in America. His work and writings have been featured in Newsweek, Time Magazine, New York Times, Washington Post, BBC News, and many other major publications. His television appearances include "Nightline with Ted Koppel", CNN, the "Today Show", and "Hannity & Colmes".

Shahed has over a decade of experience in using cutting edge online mediums to successfully mobilizing internet traffic and driving click through customers into halal brands, stores and physical retail outlets. Users of zabihah.com and other Halalfire properties represent some of the most active and affluent segments of the global Muslim population, and are considered a key target demographic for marketing during the coming decade, with web properties that attract consumers with proven disposable income and intent to spend.
Halalfire dynamically serves the online needs of an increasingly media-savvy Muslim community, and is sought by advertisers eager to tap into a purchasing power estimated to be $170 billion annually in the US alone. Zabihah.com was the first halal product to be featured by Apple’s iPhone. Halalfire Media is also regularly asked to advise government agencies, educational institutions, TV/film producers, multinational corporations, non-profit groups, conventions and conferences, major Muslim organizations, and think tanks for our extensive insight into the dynamic and growing global Muslim community.

Shahed is also a general partner in Zakat Community Ventures (http://www.zakatventurefund.com), the first "venture philanthropy" fund dedicated to promoting Islamic charitable values.

Lubna Khalid 
Founder, Real Cosmetics
The founder of Real Cosmetics, Lubna Khalid, has channeled her personal quest for the importance of cultural diversity and real beauty, into a hot, contemporary and socially conscious make-up brand that truly delivers “mind, beauty, soul.”

The 35-year-old social activist, filmmaker and marketing marvel began her business out of personal frustration. Lubna, a Pakistani-American, was unable to find foundations and powders to match her skin tone. There were no appropriate products at retail, and even professional make-up artists had difficulty mixing realistic skin shades. In an increasingly multi-cultural world, Lubna noted a conspicuous lack of cosmetics designed for women who did not fit the typical categories of “beauty” and skin color. She also felt that beauty should be represented in a way that was not only attainable, but empowering.

A well-traveled, high-energy entrepreneur who speaks seven languages, Lubna took her degrees from U. C. Berkeley to jobs at Proctor & Gamble and L’oreal.  Her own analysis of demographic shifts in the cosmetic marketplace, confirmed the need for an “all-encompassing” product line that broke barriers and offered expansive, “real” representations of beauty.  She started Real Cosmetics in 1999, with a vision to create more than just another prestige beauty company. Real Cosmetics has become a platform to promote self-esteem and empowerment, to women all over the world.

Real Cosmetics is a company for and about real women. And its' products are designed for all women, regardless of their age, skin color or ethnicity, with images that represent 'real beauty' in all its diversity.  It's a company that treats beauty products for what they truly are --an accessory --not a necessity, addressing women in their entirety. And it's a company that promulgates social change, through its' non-profit foundation, fighting for women’s rights, around the world.

Real Cosmetics creates naturally based products, using less chemicals and more organics. And these come packaged in Eco-friendly, environmentally conscious, containers, that are often refillable.  The line has sold through prestige retailers such as Sephora and Nordstorm and re-launch plans include international, free-standing, Real Cosmetics Stores. 

“Our vision has remained to both recognize and celebrate the diversity of genuine, global beauty,” asserts Lubna. “Often, it is these very images that shape our reality as women.

And that reality must become all encompassing. Our company's goal is to revolutionize the beauty ideal.  And for us all to begin to see beauty in a new way…..holistic, attainable, real. Mind. Beauty. And Soul.” 

Co-author of “The Business of Fashion, Beauty and Style,” Lubna has spoken to women’s groups, corporations, universities, and cultural groups.

Adnan Durrani
Chief Halal Officer, American Halal Co. Inc.



 
Currently, Adnan is Chief Halal Officer of American Halal Co., Inc., a socially conscious food brand , which from the “sustainable farm to the halal table “ is committed to super-premium organic halal foods that are ethnically authentic, with a mission to promote interfaith dialogue, understanding, and harmony between Muslims, Jews, Christians, and all faiths. He previously served on the Board, and as Finance Chair of Social Venture Network (www.svn.org).  Adnan has been a pioneer in establishing quantitative proof that socially conscious and economically just business models can yield exponential triple bottom line profits for consumer product companies and has delivered such exceptional returns for his shareholders. He has been recognized by BBMG, SRB (Socially Responsible Business Organization), and SVN as one of the entrepreneurs and venture investors who engineered “20 Ideas That Changed The Way The World Does Business”.  The select list of these inductees include: Ben Cohen (Ben & Jerry’s), Gary Hirshberg (Stoneyfield Farms), Eileen Fisher, Yvonne Chovinard (Patagonia), Muhammad Yunus (Nobel Peace Prize, Grameen Bank), Horst Rechelbacher (Aveda), and Steve Case (AOL, Revolution Ventures).

Adnan is also president of Condor Ventures, Inc., a venture firm devoted to strategic investing in natural food companies, as well as a Venture Partner of Blue Chip Venture Co. Adnan is a serial entrepreneur. He was the founder of Vermont Pure Holdings, the second largest bottled water company in the Northeast and the parent company of Crystal Rock Water Co. Adnan was also a financial partner of Stonyfield Farms Inc, whose private sale he led to Dannone. He was also a principal of Delicious Brands, Inc., a struggling regional brand whose growth he led, with the financial backing of Carl Icahn, through a strategic roll up strategy to become the fifth largest cookie brand in US.
Adnan is also a director, treasurer, and finance chair of READ Nepal (Rural Education and Development Enterprise, www.readglobal.org  ), a non-profit devoted to building community libraries in rural communities in Nepal & India and which is primarily funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He is also a Director OPEN, NY (Organization of Pakistani Entrepreneurs of North America of NY).  Adnan received his BS in electrical engineering and economics from Columbia's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and serves on SEAS Board of Directors. He is a frequent lecturer at Columbia University and is Chairman of Columbia’s Entrepreneurship Advisory Board,   where he leads the Columbia Green Agenda program, a new "Socially Engaged Entrepreneurship" program ,which promotes a green collar curriculum using community-based organizations in Harlem, NY.

Midhat H. Syed
Partner, Murtha Cullina



Midhat advises clients in corporate and cross border transactions, particularly in emerging markets of the Middle East and South Asia. He serves as co-chair of the firm's Islamic Finance and Investment Group. Mr. Syed's Islamic Finance practice involves assisting and advising institutions and entities with respect to Shari'ah (Islamic Law) compliant transactions in the realm of private equity investments, real estate finance, mergers & acquisitions, strategic investments and joint ventures, and investment funds.

His domestic corporate practice includes advising and assisting small to mid size companies with entrepreneurial spirit. In this realm, he focuses on company formations, private equity, venture capital and angel funding, private placements, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, corporate restructuring, business planning, asset transfers and corporate and operational compliance matters. He has closely worked with clients in the food, franchising, media and retail industries.

Mr. Syed has extensive experience in advising and assisting IT companies, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) service providers and customers specifically with respect to Master Services Agreements (MSA), emerging technology companies, and business consulting firms. With a diversified cultural background, attorney Syed has developed a keen understanding and sensitivity for servicing the needs of Muslim clients. 


Rafi-uddin Shikoh,
Managing Director/ Founder, DinarStandard™



Rafi-uddin Shikoh is leading the development of DinarStandard™--a growth strategy and market intelligence consultancy, focused on the OIC markets (The Organization of the Islamic Conference*) and the global Muslim Lifestyle Market™.  The vision is to empower businesses in Muslim markets to become global leaders with recognized brands and services while leveraging their unique identity.

Rafi-uddin has led the research, analysis and writing of the DS100™ ranking of Top 100 Businesses in the Muslim World, the Top 10 Opportunity Trends, and various Muslim Lifestyle Market™ reports and features.  He has helped develop DinarStandard's global media recognition which includes coverage in the Economist, Forbes, MSNBC and most of the major Muslim world based media.

Rafi-uddin has a marketing, technology, and business strategy consulting background with major Fortune 500 company as well as small business experiences.  He has an MBA from UNC-Charlotte , North Carolina, USA and a BSc. in Marketing from Southwest State University, Minnesotta , USA .  He was born in Pakistan and spent 14 years of his early schooling in the Sultanate of Oman.

Michael Hastings-Black
Co-Founder, Desedo Advertising Agency


Michael Hastings-Black is the co-founder of Desedo, an advertising agency that specializes in New Media + Minority Markets. Desedo works with brands and agencies to craft strategy, tell stories and reach these often overlooked markets. They have produced content for Sony Pictures, Panasonic and HBO's True Blood and consulted for F500 brands.

Michael's white paper American-Muslim Identity: Advertising, Mass Media + New Media has been presented at academic conferences and he is currently working with The Muslim Ad Network to help brands engage the Muslim consumer space.  

His essays have been published in Ad Age and The Huffington Post and he was recently featured on MSNBC's 'Your Business'. Prior to Desedo, Michael worked as an urban planner and has a B.A. from Bowdoin College.

Farrukh Siddiqui
EVP and COO, Zayan Finance LLC

Farrukh Siddiqui is EVP and COO at Zayan Finance. His professional experience extends to over fifteen years in the insurance/financial services and technology industries.
Prior to establishing Zayan Finance, Farrukh served as regional manager for the North East United States for Guidance Financial Group, a Shariah compliant start-up financial services firm. As regional manager he was responsible for all aspects of sales and production within the region. Shortly after joining the firm, Farrukhs contributions to creating efficiencies in the company's sales operations prompted Guidance's senior management to assign him with the additional title of Sales Operations Manager. In this role, he successfully overhauled the company's mortgage origination and processing methodologies and helped launch many useful best practices to the underwriting and closing departments.

Tayyibah Taylor
Founding Editor-in-Chief and Publisher, Azizah Magazine

Tayyibah Taylor is the founding editor-in-chief and publisher of Azizah magazine, an award winning publication. Through Azizah, Tayyibah Taylor realized her vision of providing a vehicle for the voice of Muslim American women - a vehicle that portrays their perspectives and experiences, and shatters commonly help stereotypes. She presently works on the steering committee of WISE, an organization that convenes global Muslim women leaders and fosters Muslim women's participation in Islamic law and contemporary debates. Tayyibah blends her passion for spritiuality, women's issues and communication to further the causes of Muslim women

Tayyibah has visited 30 countries and has travelled in the capacity of a public diplomacy envoy. She has presented lectures on Islam and Muslim women at national and international conferences, including the Harvard Divinity School’s Islam in America Conference; the International Islamic University of Malaysia’s Islam and Muslims in the 21st Century Conference, the Belgian -US Muslim Dialogue, the Lecture Series at the women’s college of Shariah and Law of the International Islamic University of Islamabad, Pakistan, and the Fulbright Symposium in Perth, Australia. Tayyibah Taylor has worked on several interfaith initiatives and traveled to Turkey, Spain, Morocco, Jerusalem, Greece and Jordan with various groups of Jews, Christians and Muslims. 

Born on the island of Trinidad in the Caribbean, Tayyibah Taylor grew up in Toronto, Canada and studied biology and philosophy at the University of Toronto.  She lived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for several years and attended classes at King Abdul-Aziz University for Arabic and Islamic Studies. 

She presently sits on the board of the Faith Alliance of Metro Atlanta and the board of directors of Atlanta Interfaith Broadcasters and she has also served on the board of trustees for the Georgia Council for International Visitors. Tayyibah Taylor received the 2008 Community Service Award from Muslim Alliance of North America, the 2005 Media Award from the Concerned Black Clergy of Atlanta, the 2003 Honoring Women in the Media Award from the Muslim Women’s League and the 2002 Hagar Achievement through Sacrifice Award from Sisters United in Human Service. She attended the 2008 Leadership Institute for Women Journalists, is a graduate of Leadership Atlanta, Class 2005 and the Diversity Leadership Academy, Atlanta Class 2003. Tayyibah Taylor is the mother of five children.

Bob Burg
Coauthor of the Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek Bestseller, The Go-Giver


Bob Burg shares information on topics vital to the success of today’s business person. He speaks for corporations and associations internationally, including fortune 500 companies, franchises, and numerous direct sales organizations.
Bob regularly addresses audiences ranging in size from 50 to 16,000 – sharing  the platform with notables including today’s top thought leaders, broadcast personalities Olympic athletes and political leaders including cabinet secretaries and a former United States President.

He is perhaps best-known for his book Endless Referrals: Network Your Everyday Contacts Into Sales which has thus far sold well over 175,000 copies and is still going strong.

His newest book (coauthored with John David Mann), is entitled, The Go-Giver. A business parable that both touches hearts and build bigger bank accounts, it shot to number 6 on the Wall Street Journal Business Bestsellers list just three weeks after its release. It’s also Bob’s fourth book to top the 100,000 mark in sales.

Bob is a staunch advocate, supporter and defender of the Free Enterprise system, believing that the amount of money one makes is directly proportional to how many people they serve. An animal advocate, he is a past member of the Board of Directors for Safe Harbor, which is the Humane Society of Jupiter, Florida.

Kamran Pasha
ScreenWriter and Director
Kamran Pasha is a screenwriter and director.  He recently partnered with Wonderland Sound and Vision, producers of TERMINATATOR: SALVATION, CHARLIE’S ANGELS, THE O.C., CHUCK and SUPERNATURAL, to sell his first television pilot to Warner Brothers.  Previously he served as a writer and producer for NBC’s television series KINGS.  His other credits include serving as writer and producer on NBC’s remake of BIONIC WOMAN, and on Showtime Network’s Golden Globe nominated series SLEEPER CELL, about a Muslim FBI agent who infiltrates a terrorist group.  Kamran directed the short film MIRIAM, which won the Gaia Award at the Moondance Film Festival in 2008.  He is represented by William Morris Endeavor Entertainment and Untitled Entertainment.

Kamran is a published novelist as well.  Simon & Schuster recently published MOTHER OF THE BELIEVERS, a novel showing the rise of Islam from the eyes of Prophet Muhammad’s wife Aisha.  His next novel, SHADOW OF THE SWORDS, follows the conflict between Richard the Lionheart and the Muslim leader Saladin for control of Jerusalem during the Crusades.  And Kamran has also made strides in the video game world.  He recently wrote BLOOD ON THE SAND for Vivendi Universal, the sequel to hip-hop mogul 50 Cent’s bestselling game BULLETPROOF.

Kamran’s career launched when he sold his first feature script to Warner Brothers Pictures, an historical epic on the love story behind the building of the TAJ MAHAL.  He has also adapted the Japanese anime KITE, about a teenage girl who works as an assassin, into an action thriller for Rob Cohen, the director of THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS and THE MUMMY 3.

He is currently writing an epic film entitled THE VOYAGE OF IBN BATTUTA, which follows the adventures of the famous Arab traveler who journeyed to China in the 14th century.  This feature is being financed by the Moroccan government and produced by French production company Forecast Pictures.

Kamran holds a BA and an MBA from Dartmouth, a JD from Cornell Law School, and an MFA from UCLA Film School.  He spent three years as a journalist in New York City, interviewing prominent international figures such as Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres, Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori, and Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.

 
Janet Meiners Thaeler
Online PR and Social Media Specialist

Janet Meiners Thaeler has been in the online marketing industry for four years. Her expertise is online PR and blogging. She has coached individuals and businesses of all sizes in social media. She writes for sites including Marketing Pilgrim, Small Business Trends, American Express OPEN Forum® and her own blog Newspapergrl.  She is employed at OrangeSoda as a social media specialist and is an independent consultant. Her book: "I Need a Killer Press Release, Now What? A Guide to Online PR" will be out this Fall.

Janet worked as a web developer for four years until she determined her true passion is marketing – specifically Internet marketing. She is a professional writer and blogger whose work has been published in both offline and online magazines including City Search. She has presented to the PRSSA, the Social Media Club of Salt Lake and at conferences for entrepreneurs.

Janet has been employed as a business-to-business tech marketer, a web-marketing manager, and a brand strategist. In addition to her own consulting, she writes SEO press releases and specializes in Social Media at OrangeSoda.

She has helped many businesses of all sizes start blogs and take advantage of social media and online PR tools.

She blogs on Marketing Pilgrim (www.marketingpilgrim.com) and is a guest blogger at Small Business Trends (www.smallbiztrends.com/blog). Her blog can be found at www.newspapergrl.com

Monem Salam
President, Saturna Brokerage Services

Monem Salam, President, Saturna Brokerage Services, was born in Pakistan in 1972. Raised in Texas, Mr. Salam received his degrees from the University of Texas: BA (Austin) and MBA (Dallas).  He worked as Chief Investment Officer for ITG & Associates (Dallas) until 1999, then as a representative with Morgan Stanley (suburban Dallas) until joining Saturna Capital in June 2003. 
Monem is active with the Muslim community in North America through ISNA, as there WZ rep, Boardmember of the Muslim Public Service Network, Boardmember of CAIR-WA and current Chairman of Peaceful Communications, a non-profit organization which completed a documentary called “On A Wing and A Prayer”. In 2008, Monem received the “20 Rising Stars” Award from Institutional Investor News.  The award is given to 20 leaders in the mutual fund industry, under 40, who the magazine feels will change in the industry in a positive way in the next 10 years. 

Monem is also the co-author of a new book called “A Muslim’s Guide to Investing And Personal Finance”.  Monem has been quoted on all major newspapers and magazines, featured in BusinessWeek and SmartMoney and appeared on such TV stations as CNBC, Fox News, and Marketwatch.com

Syed Rasheduddin Ahmed
Founder and President, Muslim Consumer Group

Syed Rasheduddin Ahmed is a senior food scientist consultant. He is the founder and president of  Muslim Consumer Group For Food Products. Muslim Consumer Group For Food Products is educating Muslims throughout the world about Halal food ingredients and products and has been providing service in Halal food certification since 1993. Mr. Ahmed has started writing the Halal food book "A Comprehensive List of Halal Food Products in US Supermarkets" since 1991. He is now working on publishing its eight edition in 2009. MCG has established two well known Halal food websites. The www.muslimconsumergroup.com website was established in 2000 and logged in over 110 countries with a million hits in June 2009. The www.Canadianhalalfoods.com website was established in 2006. Mr. Ahmed answered questions from Muslim consumers throughout the world via the websites, toll free phone number, and emails about food ingredients and food products.

Mr. Ahmed earned a M.Sc (Agriculture) degree in Horticulture from AP Agriculture University Hyderabad, India and a MS degree in Cereal Chemistry and Technology from North Dakota State University Fargo, North Dakota. He gave a presentation about the role of US food industry experience in Halal food education and Halal certification at a Halal Foods Conference conducted by KUIM at Futrajaya Marriott in Futrajaya, Malaysia on September 29, 2004. The International Association for Food Protection Organization Des Moines, Iowa has invited him to give a presentation on food protection of Halal Foods in USA  for Food Protection  seminar at Orlando, Florida  in July 2007. Several masajid in USA has invited him to give lectures on Halal foods.

He established the non- profit MCG organization while working for US food industries. He developed 18 new retail food products for supermarkets for various food companies including 10 new Bagel products for Kraft Foods USA under Lender's Bagel bakery brand. He developed number one selling frozen Big N Crusty bagels which brought 50 million dollars per year in sale for Kraft Foods USA. He also developed two Biscotti and one cookie products for Nabisco. Four new nutritional bars were developed by him in 2003 for MLO Products. Besides retail supermarket food products, he also developed 22 stuffing crumbs products for food service markets for the Newly Wed Food company in Chicago. Recently he developed a healthy Halal Orchard Fruits Nuts bars  for Starbucks coffee company in 2007 through working as a senior food scientist consultant for Eli's Cheesecake company in Chicago. He has over 27 years of food industry experience including  product development, quality assurance, nutritional analysis and hands on experience in food plants.

Ahmad Adam
President/CEO, Crescent Foods

Ahmad Adam is the President and founder of Crescent Foods in Chicago and founder of the American Halal Association. With an engineering degree and extensive experience of building businesses from the ground up, he founded Crescent Foods in 1995 to supply the highest quality 100% grain fed Halal chicken products to the US market:  www.crescenthalal.com. 

Continuous innovation and attention to detail has resulted in an extensive production process that exceeds USDA, HACCP, SSOP, SOP and GMP standards. This has earned Mr. Adam a wealth of experience, and has put Crescent at the forefront of Halal chicken production in terms of quality and technological applications such as SAP platform. Crescent Halal products are available at select WalMart Supercenters, Shop Rite/Giant supermarkets, local multi-unit stores and many community grocers nationwide.

An active member of the Muslim community in Chicago, Ahmad is well-known and respected for his work for Islam, both in the Mosque and in the community.

With a clear commitment to the mission of developing Halal as a socio-economic force, Ahmad has been the driving force behind the formation of the American Halal Association, a not-for-profit trade association to protect, strengthen and serve the Halal industry in North America www.americanhalalassociation.org.  The American Halal Association seeks to serve as a focal point to represent the collective interests of the Halal industry as well as to protect the integrity of Halal products by encouraging the highest levels of ethical and professional expertise.  He is also the Executive Director of Halalconnect , a new consumer-Halal-Industry magazine:  www.halalconnect.com.

Hajj Abdalhamid Evans - Moderator
Founder Imarat Consultants 

Hajj Abdalhamid David Evans was born in New York and has been widely educated in both the UK and Europe. He accepted Islam in 1978 in Norwich, UK and served and studied under Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi in the UK and Spain for many years, and assisted in many community-based projects throughout the 1980’s and 90’s.
He has experience working in the UK, USA, Europe, the Middle East, South Africa and South East Asia, and has been highly effective in the fields of fund-raising and project development. A seasoned researcher, writer and consultant over the last thirty years, Abdalhamid has participated in a wide variety of projects in the fields of psychology, health, education, social welfare and political economy.
A resident for many years in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, he joined KasehDia Sdn Bhd in February 2004 to develop their Research & Intelligence capability, and played a major role in the creation, content development and promotion of The Halal Journal magazine. During his time at KasehDia, Hajj Abdalhamid was also instrumental in the creation and development of The World Halal Forum to stimulate the growth and strength of the global Halal industry. He also developed the content for the Halal Journal Workshop series to assist SME’s involved in the Halal sector, and delivered the first series of these Workshops. He has also provided Halal sector consulting services with KasehDia, whose clients included the Malaysian Government with respect to the strategic development of the Halal industry as an integral part of their Global Halal Hub programme, and to position Halal as an engine of growth for the local economy from agriculture through to exports.

He has also advised the Malaysian Ministry of International Trade and Industry, and drafted the majority of the Halal chapter of the Malaysian Third Industrial Master Plan in 2006. He was also instrumental is drafting the proposal to the Prime Minister’s Office for the creation of the Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC), as the primary agency to develop Malaysia’s Halal industry. He later provided consulting services to the newly-formed HDC in Kuala Lumpur to assist the CEO in establishing priorities and strategic directions for their Halal Industry Master Plan.

Hajj Abdalhamid established Imarat Consultants Sdn Bhd in 2006 to provide consulting services and domain expertise to clients outside Malaysia, and left KasehDia in April 2007 to further develop the international consulting projects of Imarat Consultants.
He maintains ongoing good relations with the Directors of KasehDia, and continues to participate in the World Halal Forum and to support the work of the International Halal Integrity Alliance that was born out of the first WHF in 2006.
Imarat Consultants also runs the specialist news portal www.halalfocus.com, providing free Halal market news and commentary for Halal sector stakeholders, and they continue to develop and interact with a growing network of committed Halal industry specialists around the world. Imarat Consultants current clients include the Government of Brunei Darussalam and the American Halal Association.

Rima AbdelKader - Moderator

Rima Abdelkader is a Time, Inc. scholar currently pursuing a Master’s degree at the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism.  She previously worked as a print journalist at the United Nations covering the U.N. and international affairs, and interned for NBC, CNN’s Diplomatic License with Richard Roth, MediaGlobal Newswire, and with Al Jazeera English.  She covered the recovery effort in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.  She is also a blogger for The Huffington Post World section, Arabisto, and is the co-founder and blogger of NewYorkIraqis.com, a multimedia Web site that covers the underreported social, economic, professional, and personal lives of Iraqis living in New York City. 
Rima is an active member of the student affairs committee of the New York Women in Communications and a student liaison officer of the Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association.  She received her BBA in Marketing with a specialization in Management and Political Science at Pace University magna cum laude and gave the commencement address at her graduation.  In her spare time, Rima mentors students find the tools necessary to succeed in college and in their internships.

Arif Zaman - Moderator

Arif Zaman is a Principal Consultant in the Reputational Risk Practice at the Reputation Institute (HQ’d in NYC: www.reputationinstitute.com) which advises companies on their reputational risks through a focus on value creation and governance. He is an advisor to the Commonwealth Business Council (www.cbcglobal.org) on Corporate Governance and South Asia which includes the South Asia Trade and Investment Network (SATIN), a joint programme between the Commonwealth and the South Asian Business Chamber. He is also a Visiting Tutor in Reputation and Board Effectiveness at Henley Business School (www.henley.reading.ac.uk), UK and author of Reputational Risk (Financial Times Executive Briefing, 2004) a bestseller, published in Russian in 2008 and being adapted and updated for the South Asian and Gulf markets. He is on the Board of the UK-based Strategic Planning Society and the Editorial Board of the US-based Journal of Business Strategy. He also serves on the Advisory Panel of the Dinar Standard.

Global Market and Industry Analyst at British Airways (1996-2005), Arif won several company and industry awards including for his contribution to BA’s Business Principles and Sustainability Policy. Arif was a Member, European Stakeholder Panel, Mitsubishi Corporation Sustainability Report (2006); Visiting Researcher, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry at the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (2004); and Consultant to the Asian Productivity Organisation on CSR, Risk and Governance (2004-6). 

He is active in community and not for profit organisations: as an Associate Director of Mosaic (www.mosaicnetwork.co.uk) and a founder member of its Steering Group; a member of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI)’s Standing Committee on CSR; a Vice Chair of the Muslim Council of Britain Business and Economics Committee (www.mcb.org.uk/committee/business/Main.php); and a Steering Group member of the recently launched British Pakistani Foundation. He was on the Advisory Committee for the first Pakistani Film, Media and Arts Festival in Europe (www.pakistanifilmfest.com) held in Scotland in 2005-06, produced by Heer Productions on which he is on the Board.

Arif has been a key member of the UK delegation to each meeting of the World Islamic Economic Forum since 2006 and is working with others to build a stronger delegation from Europe and North America for the 6th Forum in Malaysia in May 2010 (www.wief.org.my/6th-wief-2010-kuala-lumpur.html).

Farah Ahmed - Moderator



The Personal Care Products Council (formerly the Cosmetics Toiletry and Fragrance Association) is comprised of over 600 member companies including L'Oreal, Estee Lauder, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, and others.  On behalf of Council members, Farah develops strategy and represents the industry on issues pertaining to the advertising and marketing of cosmetics in the U.S. and foreign markets. She leads the industry's Sunscreen, Anti-aging, and Organic/Natural/Green Task Forces.  Most recently, ISO (Organization for International Standardization) appointed Farah Convenor of the Cosmetic Marketing Group.  She is a recognized expert in the aforementioned matters and has been interviewed by a number of news sources including the New York Times, the Washington Post, Oprah Magazine, Politico, WebMD, CBS News, ABC News, Womens Wear Daily and several cosmetic industry trade publications.  Farah is a graduate of the University of Virginia, School of Law. Farah is also a Co-Founder and Board Member of SAMMA (South Asians in Media Marketing and Entertainment).

Dr. Khaled Elraie - Moderator



Khaled is a practicing physician currently based in Charlotte, NC. He is also an entrepreneur with an enormous desire to start and grow businesses. He is fascinated by the possibilities and unhindered by the challenges and has great admiration for successful business leaders. He has come to experience first hand how hard things can be for burgeoning entrepreneurs. His interest mainly lies in e-business and he has started some projects in this area. He is always looking for people with business experience who have a proven track record in establishing, growing and running e-businesses to partner with and gain insight from. Current projects include: 1PhotoStreet.com and Globe411.com.

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