BIO
Shariq Ghani was born in Houston, Texas in 1981. He was born into an immigrant Pakistani family and has two siblings. He attended Houston Community College and worked as a network engineer. Later, he returned to college to pursue a degree in History at the University of Houston and attended Columbia University for a degree in Conflict Resolution and Negotiation. Ghani is currently an Executive Director at the Minaret Foundation, an organization dedicated to fostering the coexistence of different faith communities through community and civic engagement. This interview covers Ghani’s experience growing up and how he negotiated between his American, Pakistani, and Muslim identities. He talks about his educational trajectory from high school and how he originally intended to attend the Marine Corps but decided against enlistment due to his faith beliefs. Ghani also talks about how his passion in interfaith relations developed and his work at the Minaret Foundation. In addition, this interview covers how Ghani is involved in both national and international interfaith advocacy. Ghani ends the interview by emphasizing the importance of sharing life and having conversations with individuals people disagree with for the sake of peace and non-violent coexistence.