Jahanara Huq when she was a girl of seven or eight in her yesteryears were asked by her father what will she be when she grew up. Her immediate answer was "Florence Nightingale", because few days back she was enthused by Florence Nightingales story of rescuing a dog from an accident and treating her well. But soon with the death of her father her dreams fizzled out and she never became a Florence. But at her mothers insistence she carried her studies and became a master of Economics from University of Dhaka, Bangladesh.

She started her career as a Viqarunnessa Noon School teacher, soon she switched over as lecturer then Assistant Professor and eventually a teaching Professor of Economics, she taught for 33 years and retired as a Principal. Meanwhile she developed an urge to do meaningful things (other than teaching only) for the downtrodden specially women. She then joined various organizations but particularly chose research. In 1976 she organized the first ever national convention by women and for women. That was perhaps the beginning of a new movement when women in Bangladesh from all walks of life became motivated and enthused for empowerment and started networking.

After her retirement Jahanara Huq is a full freelancer engaged in research on various issues specially pertaining to women. Her favorite subjects are - women in local government, empowerment of women, HIV/AIDS the pandemics. rural poverty alleviation. She is intimately involved in the Beijing Process and attended the Nairobi, Beijing and various Commission on the Status of Women conferences, but she is a bit skeptical  about how the Beijing Platform for Action (PFA), Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), and Millennium Development GoalsMDG's are going to be implemented without the needed political commitment and mass social mobilization. She wishes all the best for Adhunika.

New York, USA - April 2005