On Thursday night at the Women in the World Summit 2013, actress, director, and human rights activist Angelina Jolie pledged $200,000 to The Malala Fund.  The organization was established by 15-year-old Malala Yousafzai, an education activist and the youngest person ever nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.  Jolie's donation will help educate young girls in Pakistan.  The teenager, who is recovering from an assassination attempt by the Taliban, accepted the donation via video feed at the event. 



“Today I’m going to announce the happiest moment of my life and that is the first grant of the Malala fund," said Yousafzai. " We are going to educate 40 girls, and I want all of you to support the Malala fund and let us turn 40 girls into 40 million girls." 



Jolie's donation will be set aside for girls, ages five to 12, who are currently forced into domestic work rather than attending school. 



Before announcing her pledge to the teenager's organization, Jolie gave a passionate speech about Yousafzai's courageous decision speak her mind and pursue an education at all costs.  After publicly sharing her desire to attend school and speaking out on behalf of young girls, she was hunted down by militant Taliban forces and shot in front of her classmates. 



"Here's what they accomplished," Jolie said of Malala's attackers. " They shot her point-blank range in the head – and made her stronger.  The brutal attempt to silence her voice made it stronger." 

Jolie's speech kicked off this year's Women in the World Summit, a star-powered conference on global women's issues.  On Thursday night, Jolie shared the stage at Lincoln Center with fellow speaker Meryl Streep. 



Other big name panelists and performers involved in the summit, which runs through Friday, include Hillary Clinton, Tom Hanks, Dr. Hawa Abdi, Oprah Winfrey.  Topics range from fighting the scourge of human trafficking to inspiring girls to become world leaders to celebrating female pioneers in the tech sector. 

Women in the World Summit 2013: Watch it Live!