Muhammad Yunus

Muhammad Yunus is a Bangladeshi banker, economist and Nobel Peace Prize recipient. He previously was a professor of economics where he developed the concepts of microcredit and microfinance. These loans are given to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. In 2006 Yunus and Grameen received the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts through microcredit to create economic and social development from below. Yunus himself has received several other national and international honors. He is a member of advisory board at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology. Previously, he was a professor of economics at Chittagong University where he developed the concepts of microcredit and microfinance. These loans are given to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. He is the author of Banker to the Poor and two books on Social Business Models, and a founding board member of Grameen America and Grameen Foundation. Grameen Intel is just one of hundreds of public and private partnerships now mediated through Youth amp; Yunus. In early 2007 Yunus showed interest in launching a political party in Bangladesh named Nagorik Shakti (Citizen Power), but later discarded the plan. He is one of the founding members of Global Elders. Yunus also serves on the board of directors of the United Nations Foundation, a public charity created in 1998 with entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner’s historic $1 billion gift to support UN causes. The UN Foundation builds and implements public-private partnerships to address the world’s most pressing problems, and broadens support for the UN. In March 2011, after months of government attack, the Bangladesh government controversially fired Yunus from his position at Grameen Bank, citing legal violations and an age limit on his position. Bangladesh's High Court affirmed the removal on 8 March. Yunus and Grameen Bank are appealing the decision, claiming Yunus' removal was politically motivated. Professor Yunus was chosen by Wharton School of Business for PBS documentary, as one of 'The 25 Most Influential Business Persons of the Past 25 Years'. In 2006, Time magazine listed him under 60 years of Asian Heroes as one of the top 12 business leaders. In 2008, in an open online poll, Yunus was voted the 2nd topmost intellectual person in the world on the list of Top 100 Public Intellectuals by Prospect Magazine and Foreign Policy.