Lizzie Velasquez

Lizzie Velasquez is a motivational speaker, YouTube personality, anti-bullying activist and author. In December 2013, she took the stage at the inaugural TEDxAustinWomen event and gave a talk titled “How Do You Define Yourself?” that has garnered over 13 million views across the Web. Her story has been featured on prominent media outlets including Katie Couric, The Today Show, The View, Huffington Post, Associated Press, AOL, MSN, and Yahoo!.

Ever since she was dubbed the "World's Ugliest Woman" in a video posted on YouTube in 2006, when she was 17, Velásquez has spoken out against bullying. In January 2014 she gave a TEDxAustinWomen Talk titled "How Do YOU Define Yourself" and her YouTube videos have received over 54 million views.S he is an executive producer of the award-winning documentary based on her life, A Brave Heart: The Lizzie Velasquez Story, which chronicles her journey from cyber-bullying victim to global anti-bullying activist. The film was released by Cinedigm in the U.S. in Fall 2015 and began its international release in 2016.

In 2017, Velasquez starred as the host of the Fullscreen series "Unzipped," where she explores the concept of beauty standards — which have played a major role in her own life — through the experiences of others. Velasquez released her fourth book, "Dare To Be Kind," in 2017. In this daring, revelatory book, Velasquez reveals the hidden forces that give rise to self-doubt, shame, and cruelty, and empowers us to redirect them to unlock empathy and kindness for ourselves and others.