Ishaq Shahryar

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Ishaq Shahryar (born 1936) was the Afghan ambassador to the United States from 2002 to 2003.

Shahryar who was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, came to the United States in 1956 on a scholarship to study at the University of California Berkeley and the University of California Santa Barbara. He received his bachelors degree in Physical Chemistry and his masters in International Relations. He worked as a solar engineer for aerospace companies. Known as the "Sun King," Ishaq Shahryar invented the low-cost solar (photovoltaic) cells in 1972 and developed the process for modern day screen-printing (or mass-producing) of cells used in solar energy panels. He was instrumental in the development of ultraviolet sensitive solar cells for the Jupiter Project for NASA ( news - web sites). In 1993, he was awarded U.S. patent rights for a 20 percent efficient silicon solar cell. His latest patent is pending for a new solar cell that will reduce the cost of solar cells by 50 percent.

The photovoltaic cell allowed solar panels to be used on Earth. Shahryar founded Solec International, one of the world's leading manufacturers of solar electric technology, and Solar Utility Company, a solar cell engineering, design, marketing and installation company. He also ran a prominent solar energy company in the Los Angeles area, Solar Utility.

While working in solar energy, in 1994, [Shahryar] was named to the U.S. Presidential Mission on Sustainable Energy and Trade to India and has acted as an advisor to numerous trade and environmental groups in the United States and abroad.

Ambassador Shahryar's belief in the American dream was fully realized when he brought 60 members of his family to this country following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan society. Today all are contributing members of American society.

A longtime associate of former Afghan King Mohammad Zahir Shah, Shahryar represented the government of Hamid Karzai, who became Afghanistan's new president in the summer of 2002. He and his family moved to Washington, D.C. for him to take his position as the first Afghan Ambassador to the United States since 1978. He worked pro-bono (for free) and invested much of his own money in the embassy. In 2003, Shahryar resigned due to "corruption" and major "road blocks" in the Afghan government. He felt that he could help his country more without the government's restrictions.

Ambassador Shahryar's proud Afghan heritage, coupled with his treasured American experience, place him in a unique position to shepherd and shape the political and economic future of his country. Since he resigned, Shahryar has been working to boost Afghanistan's private sector economy, due to his experience in business, and is working in solar energy again. He is on the board of directors of the Afghanistan Technical and Vocational Institute in Kabul. The school now has 800 students, men and women, who learn about the sciences and are given the opportunity to work on technological devices in order to receive a salary.

Shahryar is an inspiration to people around the world and truly exemplifies the "American Dream." His intelligence, generosity, and charisma have made him an idol. "My role is to help Afghanistan enter the 21st Century," Ambassador Shahryar says. "It's my mission to take my business skills and help revolutionize the Afghan economy."

He and his wife, Hafizah, have a son, Alexander, and a daughter, Jahan.