(HuffPost) — On Thursday, March 8, Facebook users around the world will be celebrating International Women's Day and its 2012 theme, "Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures."

It's a fitting outlet in which to celebrate, because the story of Facebook exemplifies precisely why the global community needs to invest in young minds and young leaders — especially girls.

Imagine if Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, had been born one of the 600 million girls who live in the developing world. Imagine if his inventive mind -- rather than being given the opportunity to create, flourish, and ultimately change the world -- had been squandered by poor health and inadequate education… Continue reading