Introduction

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AWARDS
September 1, 2010: Selected to serve n the Texas Commission on the Arts Touring Artist Roster.
May 2009: Accepted into Sandra Cisneros' Macondo Writers' Workshop, San Antonio, USA.
Jan 2009: Honored by Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
Nov 2008: Honored by Houston's First Lady Andrea White at her We Are All Neighbors luncheon, Houston, USA.
Jun 2007: Featured Poet on Border Senses, El Paso, USA.
Feb 2007: Honoree for community service and writing at Living Smart’s Annual conference, Channel 8, Houston PBS, Houston, USA
Dec 2006: Recipient of Houston Arts Alliance’s Creative Artist Award for excellence as an artist, Houston, USA.
Mar  2005: Conversationalist at Table-Talk, Annual luncheon hosted by Friends of Women’s Studies, University of Houston, Houston, USA.
Oct 2003: Honorary poet, Houston Poetry Fest, University of Houston-Downtown, Houston, USA.
Jan 2002: Creative Writing Award by Houstons Cultural Ats Council of Houston/ Houston County, Houston, USA.
Mar 1996: Creative Writing Award by Houstons Cultural Ats Council of Houston/ Houston County, Houston, USA.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS
"For Choice"."in an on-line roundtable Pens and Swords. The Mantle, January 26, 2010.
"Education is the key to peace"." Houston Chronicle, October 17, 2009, B-15.
"Sisters in Struggle: Karachi & Houston." CITE Magazine. Rice Design Alliance, 79 Summer 2009: 9.
“Heartbeat.” Callaloo Salutes Texas Writers. 32.1 (2009): 235-240.
"Why I Can’t/ Don’t Write About the War” and “Tearing Wires, Building Bridges.” ASIA: Magazine of Asian Literature 3.4 (2008): 94-103.
“Soot.” And the World Changed: Anthology of Short Stories by Pakistani Women Writers. Ed. Muneeza Shamsie. New York: Feminist Press, 2008.
“Lives: Karachi’s Winter Days".” New York Times Sunday Magazine, 30 March 2008.
Street Signs: Karachi Graffiti.” Words Without Borders blog,
" A Sandstone Past"” in Neither Day nor Night: Pakistani Women Writers. Ed. Rakshanda Jalil. New Delhi: Harper Collins, 2007.
“Calling All Asia.” ASIA: Magazine of Asian Literature 2.2 (2007): 375-379.
“Jamshed Road” and “For René.” Alhamra Literary Magazine 2:2, (2007): 18-19.
“The Forgotten Earthquake: Kashmir 2005.” Ellipsis 1:10, 42-43 (2006).

RECENT PERFORMANCES, READINGS, INSTALLATIONS
Mar 2010: Readings and Panel at Karachi Literature Festival, Carlton Hotel, Karachi, Defense Housing Society, Phase 5.
Mar 2010: International Women's Day Creative Writing Workshop and Reading with Michelle Otero at El Paso Community College, Valle Verde Campus.
Nov 2009: Curated and produced Voices Breaking Boundaries living room art show,Honoring Dissent / Descent, and created an audio-image installation, Houston, TX.
Jul 2009: Reading at Cafe Luna, Macondo Writers' Workshop's Cafe Nostalgia, San Antonio, TX.
May 2009: Screened a short video at Voices Breaking Boundaries' East End Live Art production Artists / MothersHouston, TX.
Mar 2009: Reading at Callaloo conference Callaloo Salutes Texas Writers, Texas A& M University, College Station, TX.
Jan 2009: Screening of video collage "Why Are You Looking At Me Like That?" at the jaipur International Film Festival, Jaipur, India..
Jan 2009: Reading and panel discussion at T2F for And the World Changed book launch, Oxford University Press, Pakistan, T2F, Karachi, Pakistan.
Jan 2009: Reading and discussion at Islamabad Club, Pakistan (presented by the US Embassy).
Dec 2008: Reading and panel discussion for And the World Changed book launch, Feminist Press, New York, NY.
Nov 2008: Screened a video collage at Voices Breaking Boundaries Pakistan Live Broadcast show.
Oct 2008: Reading for the Duke University’s Women’s Center, Durham, NC.
Oct 2008: Reading to launch And the World Changed at Art League Houston, Houston, TX.
Sep 2008: Created and installed a video collage at Voices Breaking Boundaries living room art production, Brown in the Third Ward.
May 2008: Reading and performance at BookWoman, Austin, TX.
Apr 2008: Reading at Indie Book Festival, Houston, TX.
Jan 2008: Reading at Second Floor Coffee Shop, Karachi, Pakistan.
Nov 2007: Reading at University of Texas, Austin, TX.
Aug 2007: Reading at Karachi, Pakistan.
Aug 2007: Reading at Second Floor Coffee Shop, Karachi, Pakistan.
Jun 2007: Featured author at Space125 Gallery hosted by Houston Arts Alliance, Houston, TX.
Mar 2007: Featured artist at “Howls in the Desert: A Reading by Mujeres Escritoras in Honor of Women's History Month at El Paso Community College’s Spring 2007 Arts Festival.
Mar 2007: Reading and panel on “The Imagination of Displacement” at Association for Writers and Writing Programs, Atlanta, GA.

RECENT WORKSHOPS
Aug 2009:Express Yourself: A Writing | Blogging | Video workshop for Pakistani college and high school women, Houston, TX. This project was run through Voices Breaking Boundaries and funded by St. Luke's Episcopal Health Charities.
Mar 2009: Pakistani Literature: A workshop for Houston educators, World Affairs Council of Houston, Houston, TX.
Jan 2009: Reading and talk at Fatima Jinnah Women’s University, Rawalpindi and Government College University, Lahore, Pakistan. (Organized by the US Embassy)
Oct 2008: Women’s empowerment workshop, Duke University’s Women’s Center, Durham, NC.
Fall 2008: Instructor, Daytime Essay Writing Class, Houston, TX.
Aug 2007: Week-long teacher training-writing workshop: “Writing from Memory” for Society for Professional English Language Teachers (SPELT), Karachi, Pakistan.
Jul 2007: Reading and talk at University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan.
Spring 2007: VBB literary instructor for Showcase of Poetry/Prose, Art and Music (SPAM!), Lee High School, Houston, TX.
Fall 2005: VBB literary instructor for Showcase of Poetry/Prose, Art and Music (SPAM!), Lee High School, Houston, TX.

COMMUNITY SERVICE
Sep 2009 – present: Serve on Board for Planned Parenthood of Houston and Southeast Texas.
Jul 2007 – present: Serve on Advisory Board for Artists Rescue Mission, a non-profit arts organization created to assist artists in distress.
May 2007 –  present: Serve on Advisory Board for Houston Palestine Film Festival.
June 2001 –  present: Serve on Board for Voices Breaking Boundaries.
Feb 2004 – Sep 06: Served on Advisory Board for National Association of Arts Organizations (NAAO), an advocacy group for artists and arts organizations.
Sep 2005 –Oct 2006: Served on Board for Friends of Women’s Studies, University of Houston.
Sep 2003 –May 2006: Served on Advisory Board for Daya., a support service that addresses domestic violence in Houston’s South Asian community.
Mar 2004: Emceed a protest rally against the US invasion of Iraq.
May 02 – Dec 04: Radio Co-Host and co-producer for LivingArt on KPFT 90.1 FM Pacifica Radio.
Sep 2000 – May 03: Served on Artist Board forDiverseWorks Artspace.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Nov 2009: Pakistan Paindabad Blog, Mayank Soofi Austen.
Feb 2009: “Alternative Perspectives.” By Syed Hussain, The Friday Times.
Aug 2005: Authors: Citizen of the World By Sumera Naqvi, Dawn, Books & Authors.
Sep 2007: Authors: Writing With Passion by Saima Shakil, Dawn, Books & Authors.
May 2003: Teacher-Activist Provides Forums for Writers, Performers.” by Barbara Karkabi, Houston Chronicle.