How have you impacted your community?

I am a lawyer by professional calling currently exploring the private sector. I am also Director of Society, Policy and Laws at the Knowledge Factory, a community learning space operating in Lahore, and also a part of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers community. I have practiced, taught, trained, and researched international humanitarian law and human rights. My participation in the 2002 Seeds of Peace Camp in Maine representing Pakistan shaped my interest in law, international relations, human rights, diversity, and inclusivity.

Belonging to a minority community in Pakistan propelled me to volunteer with several human rights organizations, critically engaging with the construction of identity faced by marginalized communities, especially women and religious minorities. Inspired by technology and innovation in social enterprises, where I witnessed the power of taking scholarship out of the books and sharing stories, I began scripting short videos highlighting the diversity of minorities in Pakistan.

I believe in the power of the youth and millennials, rule of law, structures and solid institutions paving the way forward for Pakistan. My travels, in pursuit of these beliefs, have led me across Pakistan as well as to Nairobi, Paris, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Geneva, New York, Bombay, Amman, Lisbon, Madrid, Almaty, Kanchanaburi, and Bangkok, places where I have presented papers, led panel discussions, and contributed by sharing my perspectives.

I recently resigned from a high-level corporate position with Coca Cola, and used the tools learned through the Fellowship to start a consulting company focusing on offering mentoring, education, and legal services to women in Pakistan and abroad, while still working to implement my original GATHER venture.