Trainers - GNMI

Welcome to the “Trainers” page which showcases the subject matter experts, trainers, mentors, and consultants that GNMI has engaged with over the last five years. These individuals bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise in a variety of areas, including media innovation, digital media, journalism, communication, and peace building. Our trainers come from diverse backgrounds and have extensive experience working with media organizations, NGOs, and governments around the world. They have helped us to deliver high-quality training programs, workshops, and consulting services to our beneficiaries, and have played a critical role in our success. On this page, you can learn more about our trainers and their areas of expertise, and get a sense of the depth and breadth of our network of experts. We are proud to work with such talented and dedicated professionals, and are committed to continuing to engage with the best and brightest in the field of media innovation.

Entrepreneurial Journalism

Badar Khushnood brings with him more than 18 years of rich and diverse experience. He is the Co-founder and Vice President of Growth at bramerz.pk, a leading full-service digital media & marketing agency in Pakistan. He primarily focuses on Growth Hacking two of Bramerz product ventures, Fish-ry.com (e-commerce + performance marketing) & Publishrr.com content publishing + monetization. He has also worked as Country Representative for Twitter and Google.brings with him more than 18 years of rich and diverse experience. He is the Co-founder and Vice President of Growth at bramerz.pk, a leading full-service digital media & marketing agency in Pakistan. He primarily focuses on Growth Hacking two of Bramerz product ventures, Fishry.com (e-commerce + performance marketing) & Publishrr.com content publishing + monetization.

Beatrice Motamedi is founder & executive director at Global Student Square which is a student-led nonprofit organization that offers a digital platform for journalism aspiring journalists around the world to connect, collaborate and produce multimedia journalism. Ms. Beatrice is an award-winning staff reporter. She is also the director of Newsroom by the Bay, where she overlooks aspects of the online and on campus digital journalism program with students in the U.S. and overseas. Ms. Beatrice was a curriculum leader for journalism education association where, as a usability editor to improve how JEA’s hundreds of lessons can be used in a variety of classrooms with students of all levels and to better integrate these resources into a more user-friendly curriculum for members. She has also created newspaper, magazine and digital media programs at Urban and at Oakland. Ms. Beatrice was a 2015 John S. Knight fellow at Stanford University.

Marjan Arbab Marjan Arbab is a versatile and accomplished professional with a unique blend of academic and entrepreneurial experience. She is an expert in the field of digital media, with a particular focus on blog monetization, email marketing, affiliate marketing, and online course creation strategies. Her deep understanding of these subjects, coupled with her experience as a consultant, has made her an invaluable asset to various businesses. Marjan’s career has been marked by a commitment to innovation and a desire to help others achieve success. She has worked with the National Incubation Center Karachi, a leading organization focused on fostering entrepreneurship and innovation in Pakistan. She is currently managing projects for 10Pearls University, leveraging her expertise in digital media and business strategy to help students and faculty develop their skills and achieve their goals.

Jeremy Caplan is the Director of Teaching, Learning, and Assessment at the Craig Newark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York (CUNY). Currently he is focused in helping the Newmark J-School train an emerging generation of creative, entrepreneurial journalists. Previously, as a reporter for Time Magazine, Mr. Caplan extensively wrote about new approaches to business and about the impact of new technology on the way we live. In his free time, he delivers lectures, gives talks, and lead workshops about digital media where he shares tips, tools and techniques for making effective use of digital tools to streamline and professional and personal life. He is an experienced educator and journalist, having served as the director of education for the schools of Tow-Knight Center for Entrepreneurial Journalism. Mr. Caplan was Wiegers Fellow at Columbia Journalism School, where he earned an M.S. in Journalism. He has written on business, culture, and technology of Time Magazine.

Ahmer Naqvi is a freelance writer and creative consultant from Karachi, Pakistan. Mr. Naqvi did his master’s in film making and news media from the University of East London School of Arts and Digital Industries. He has worked as Chief Operating Officer of music startup Patari; digital head for the cricket tournaments PSL season 1 and 5; creative head at web video platform Teeli; and a columnist for cricket website ESPNCricinfo. Ahmer worked in Pakistani films and television as a scriptwriter, including Laal Kabootar and Burka Avenger. Mr. Naqvi also has a decade of experience in broadcast media as well as entertainment and has written for a broad range of foreign and local publications. He is on social media as @karachikhatmal.

Nuno Vargas is a Designer, Innovation and Digital Product Strategist, and Design Thinking specialist. He has co-built and led digital projects all over the world with clients including Facebook, Bill Melinda Gates Foundation, Google News Lab, the ICFJ, IOM-United Nations, Gillette Grupo Clarin, Deutsche Well, MDIF, Fraunhofer Institute, and the WHO-United Nations. He was the first Portuguese to be chosen as John S. Knight Fellow at Stanford University where he was also a guest lecturer at the Graduate School of Education and a coach at the school – Stanford Institute of Design. Nuno is currently a John S. Knight – European Ambassador Nuno founder News Story an open-source data gathering tool for media and scholars (now deactivated), selected as one of the top 10 News startups at EBU/CNN NewsX – change in 2013 and was CPO and co-founder of playnews.io. a news games startup, based in Argentina.

Adeel Durvesh is the principal & founder of PACE College Karachi, which is the 1st Entrepreneurship college of Pakistan. He is a seasoned corporate trainer with special focus on finance and accounting. Mr. Durvesh is also an entrepreneurship mentor for British Council and National Incubation Center (Karachi). He has been an RJ on FM 88. Mr. Durvesh is Lead Facilitator for Entrepreneurship, Social Change Agent (for UNICEF, UKAID & USAID projects) and Corporate Trainer who have mentored / trained over 50,000 executives in communication, leadership management including critical thinking, problem solving, change management, MS Office and performance excellence. He is serving as a consultant for communication and project reporting to AKU EB for a UNICEF capacity building project whose grant was also written by him. Mr. Durvesh is a certified trainer, a member of “Training Association of Pakistan” Training Wing and Lead for Social Entrepreneurship Program – British Council affiliated with Institute of Academy Scotland, UK.

Hira Saeed is the founder and CEO of CaterpillHERs, a social enterprise that works on startups which are women-led. She is also a consultant for copy writing and personal branding. Moreover, she provides services to digital media organizations on social media strategy, copywriting, email marketing through coaching and consulting. Previously, through the Atlas Corps fellowship, she had worked with Miller Center, a leading social enterprise accelerator in Bay Area helping women’s economic empowerment initiative. Being a community builder in Pakistan’s tech and startup ecosystem, she leads Pakistan’s leading tech community called Tech Geeks with 15k members. She is a public speaker and delivered keynote speeches on marketing strategy, content strategy, messaging, women leadership, and pitching.

Mobile Journalism

Zena Barakat is a highly accomplished professional with a wealth of experience in storytelling, filmmaking, and design. With over 20 years of experience in innovation, communications, and storytelling, she has established herself as a leading practitioner of equitable and inclusive design. Prior to joining IDEO, a global design and innovation company, she spent 12 years working in journalism, during which she produced videos for some of the most reputable news organizations in the world, including The New York Times, ABC News, National Public Radio, Bloomberg News, National Geographic, and the Independent Film Channel. Her impressive career also includes a fellowship at Stanford University’s John S. Knight Journalism Program, which further solidified her expertise in storytelling and communications. With her vast experience and unique skill set, Zena is well-equipped to help organizations and individuals create compelling stories that resonate with audiences and inspire action.

Ayaz Imtiaz Ahmed Khan is a multimedia trainer, researcher, and technology specialist. Since 2016, Ayaz has led the development of mobile journalism (mojo) in Pakistan to harness the potential of smartphones for content creation and storytelling. Ayaz has conducted Mobile Journalism and digitalization trainings and trained hundreds of national and international journalists, passionate filmmakers, media professionals, activists and students. He has worked with Express News, CEJ IBA, and Global Neighborhood for Media Innovation (G.N.M.I), WWF, SIE, Lahore Press Club, Karachi Press Club, Virtual University, Deutsche Welle (DW), DIMFF -Dhakka International Mobile Film Festival, etc. Khan also led a research program for MoJo (Mobile Journalism) in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad regions. This program was based on hands-on testing with professional mobile gadgets, journalist reviews, discussions, and collaboration with national and international journalists, speakers and instructors.

Media Literacy

Najia Ashar is a senior journalist & development professional with more than 20 years of experience in Pakistan’s mainstream media. She is the Founder & President of Global Neighbourhood for Media Innovation (GNMI), a nonprofit organization working for media literacy, peacebuilding, and criminal justice system capacity building in Pakistan. She has empowered thousands of media workers to report on human rights, CVE, gender-based violence and safety and security through diverse digital tools and entrepreneurial journalism. As a media professional, she has hosted a number of programs on sensitive human rights issues which included influential stakeholders of the society and worked as a host of a news morning show at GNN TV and served as Editor News Strategy and Planning at Aaj News. She is the recipient of three international fellowship awards, John S. Knight Journalism at Stanford 2015, East West Center 2013 and Poynter Women Leadership Academy 2022.

Haroon Rashid is an accomplished journalist and media professional with a career spanning three decades. As the Managing Editor at Independent Urdu, he brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the role. He has a deep understanding of both print and digital media, and has a proven track record of producing high-quality content that resonates with audiences. Before joining Independent Urdu, Haroon Rashid was the editor at BBC Urdu, one of the most respected news organizations in Pakistan. During his tenure there, he built a reputation for producing in-depth and insightful coverage of some of the most pressing issues facing the country, particularly in the realm of militancy in the tribal regions. His work earned him recognition from his peers, with the BBC World Service honoring him with the award for the best reporter in 2007.

Usama Khilji is the co-founder at Bolo Bhi, an advocacy and policy initiative, and works on issues related to digital safety and security. Mr. Khilji is a writer, researcher, and activist with an interest in democracy, youth, refugee rights, civic education, FATA, and regional peace. He has appeared in Pakistani and international media such as the BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera, Dawn News, etc. as an activist and commentator. He is currently a Chevening Scholar at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in the United Kingdom pursuing a Masters in Comparative Politics. Khilji has been on the executive committee of Future Leaders of Pakistan (FLP), promoting community service. He has also led the FLP flood relief effort, and worked on Picking up the Pieces, a documentary highlighting the state of education in post-flood Pakistan in 2011. In 2014, he worked as consultant with the United Nations Information Center Islamabad on a communication system to encourage care and maintenance of school campuses in Swat valley post-flood reconstruction.

Peacebuilding and Conflict Resolution

Afia Salam is a Masters in Geography and a career journalist having 4 decades of experience of print, electronic and web journalism. She is a LEAD, FNF’s International Academy of Leadership & Australia Awards Fellow, member of IUCN Commission on Education & Communications and Commission on Economic & Social Policy. She has been highlighting the water issues through her writings, and advocacy through seminars and moderation of panel discussions and round tables. She is also a development practitioner, and current elected President of ‘Baanhn Beli’ and Chair Board of Trustees Indus Earth Trust. Ms. Salam is the Media training expert on Climate Change and Environment, Gender issues, Media Ethics and Social Media outreach Digital Security. She can be reached on Twitter @afiasalam

Wesley Hedden is a Ph.D. student in Peace Studies and Sociology at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame in the United States, where he is exploring social media’s impact on interethnic and inter-religious conflict in Southeast Asia. From 2006-2020, Wesley lived in Southeast Asia and founded Sarus, a peacebuilding organization that has run 15 exchange programs between Cambodia and Vietnam, and Bangladesh and Myanmar with over 200 youth leaders. Mr. Hedden speaks Spanish, Vietnamese, Khmer, Tagalog, and Burmese. He was a Princeton-in-Asia fellow in 2006, a Rotary Peace Fellow in 2016, and an EWC Asia-Pacific Leadership Fellow in 2016. He earned a BA from Tulane University and an MA in Applied Conflict Transformation Studies from the Paññasastra University of Cambodia.

Sonal Dhanani is a creative professional, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) practitioner and facilitator keen on promoting education, mental health initiatives and social action in Pakistan. Ms. Dhanani is currently doing her diploma in Gender Equality from the University of Iceland with the final project focusing on militarization, extremism, and gender. Sonal is a Harvard Graduate of Public Narrative Executive Leadership program. She has participated in organizing literary seminars and events celebrating the work of artists and writers in promoting peace and harmony by harnessing the positive energies of expressive arts. In 2015, she started an initiative called Parindey which focuses on countering and preventing violent extremism in Pakistan through the soft approach of introducing mental health and peacebuilding programs.

Gender Inclusion

Lubna Jerar Naqvi is a journalist, social media expert, social media security for journalists trainer, women rights activist, gender and harassment trainer, and media trainer. With a career spanning over 25 years, she has experience working in print, electronic and social media and is an advocate of human rights with a focus on women’s and children’s rights. She is currently IFJ’s Pakistan Gender Coordinator and Trainer, the social media and gender safety trainer for the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), and IFJ Council Member for Gender 2022-2025. She also serves as the Vice President of the Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ) and is a member of the Pakistan Federal Union for Journalists (PFUJ). She has also been a researcher for UNESCO-IFJ Gender Report ‘Asia-Pacific: Media through gender lens’ 2014-15. For her contributions to the media industry, she is also the first woman from Pakistan to receive the South Asia Laadli Media & Advertising Award for Gender Sensitivity in 2015.

Aliya Khan has over 13 years of experience working in the development sector on gender-related projects. She currently works as a Technical Consultant for the JICA GBV Initiative in Punjab. In the past, she has worked with the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women and UNFPA, on projects to enhance women’s representation and leadership in the public sector. Additionally, she has worked on laws for women’s protection and redress mechanisms for survivors of gender-based violence, international human rights law, gender-based planning, budgeting and mainstreaming. In the past, she has also worked on legal and policy review, management of projects related to women’s empowerment, and gender sensitivity trainings. Before joining the Commission in 2016, Aliya worked with Shirkatgah Women’s Resource Centre, the American Bar Association’s rule of law initiative, GIZ and Rahnuma

Communication Development

Palwasha Yahya is a highly educated and accomplished professional with a background in media science. She graduated from SZABIST (Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology), a prestigious institution in Pakistan, with a degree in Media Science. With her deep understanding of the media industry, Palwasha has established herself as a respected figure in the field. Palwasha is also a Co-Founder of Global Entertainment Movement, an organization dedicated to promoting entertainment and culture on a global scale. Through her work with this organization, she has demonstrated a strong commitment to fostering cross-cultural understanding and promoting the arts. Additionally, Palwasha is a talented TV host and anchor, known for her ability to connect with audiences and deliver engaging and informative content. Her skills as a host and anchor, combined with her knowledge of media science, have made her a valuable asset to the entertainment

Jawad Ghouri, with diverse experience in project design and implementation, training design and delivery, monitoring and evaluation, proposal writing, and business development, has left no stone unturned when it comes to understanding the nitty-gritty of community development. Mr. Ghouri has established himself as a manager, coordinator, trainer, and team lead over the past 10 years while working with the most prestigious pillars of the development sector including DAI-USAID, Oxfam, ILO, RDF, BAT, ECI, IFJ and many more. Currently, in a leadership role, he is managing the regional office of a reputable private sector training and consultancy firm in Karachi. He has been engaged in capacity building of over 8000+ youth across Sindh, Baluchistan, and Punjab with focused efforts on economic empowerment, enterprise development, media-based advocacy, good governance, violence & extremism, and promoting peace and harmony to bring communities together.

Saqib Niaz has been a part of the training industry for 15 years. He specializes in entrepreneurship and soft skills (primarily leadership, communication skills, and emotional intelligence, conflict management). He has also done special courses in coaching from Coaching Academy, London. Along with his name, Mr. Niaz has managed to tag some well-known national and international organizations; to name a few, Willows International (funded by Warren Buffett), CLICK Project (funded by World Bank), Azcorp International (funded by Malala Fund), British Council, IBA Karachi. Having spent his career as a ‘people developer,’ he is passionate about helping others to achieve their potential and aspirations – His coaching style enables individuals to focus on their strengths, eliminate weaknesses, and build confidence.

Burhan Allah Saiyed is a seasoned education and non-profit marketer with a wide variety of experience gathered from working with organizations across two different continents. Burhan graduated from IBA Karachi in 2010 and relocated to New York to complete his Masters. His 1st experience in the US was working for a technology startup called Under30CEO, a magazine capturing and highlighting accomplishments of young founders, and following said experience he also gained experience working with Sony Electronics USA and Mattel (the world’s largest toy manufacturers) working for their Global Apptivity Brand as well as the Thomas the Tank Engine’s Wooden Toy category. Over the past 3 years, Burhan has actively been involved with startups as well both teaching entrepreneurship at PAF KIET and establishing his own food and technology startups.

Digital Content Creation

Ali Raza is a Google & Microsoft Advertising Professional with years of experience in internet marketing, social media and blogging. Mr. Raza has been listed in the Top ten bloggers of Pakistan. He is an internet entrepreneur who converts visitors into customers. Mr. Raza is a Google certified trainer and an owner of Google Partner Firm. He is also a Vlogger and has attained quite a great following in such short span of time. Currently, Mr. Raza is engaged with various national and international companies over the globe, providing different type of Web Marketing Services including campaign setup, monthly management, campaign auditing, and re-marketing. He has also been giving lectures as Guest Speaker in different universities in Pakistan. Mr. Raza completed his bachelor’s in marketing from Lahore School of Economics.

Farieha Aziz is Karachi based APNS award winning journalist. She is a co-founder and director of Bolo Bhi. She has a masters in English Literature. She has worked with Newsline from July 2007 – January 2012. She served as an amicus curia in a case filed in Lahore High Court in 2013, which challenged the ban of YouTube, and is currently a petitioner of behalf of Bolo Bhi in a case filed in the Islamabad High Court. Since the passage of the law—through articles, policy briefs, and presentations before parliamentary committees—she regularly raises issues regarding the implementation of the cybercrime law, especially the misuse of the law and excesses by the investigation agency. When she is not ranging over Internet censorship or poor-internet connectivity, she chooses to turn to cricket, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and qawwalis for her sanity. She monitors cases under the cybercrime law and assists with the defense of those charged under it. She regularly contributes articles to Dawn, the Express Tribune, Aurora, and Newsline.

Talha Ahad is the founder and CEO of The Centrum Media which is Pakistan’s first and fastest growing digital news network specializing in visual storytelling with a total viewership of 650 million. Mr. Ahad is also the CEO of Centrum Communications which is a sister company of The Centrum Media (TCM) providing communications services to diverse clients. He is a multi-media journalist, storyteller, and documentary filmmaker with years of experience in documenting conflict, crisis, and key social issues. He highlights social issues through high interest perspectives and innovative formats. His work has been published in Vice News, Guardian, and Sky News. Mr. Talha graduated from the University of Hertfordshire with a BA(Hons) Mass Communications in 2014 and with a post-graduate MA Film and Television in 2015. He tweets @Talhaahad

Haris Nadeem is Community Manager at Google and Chief Editor at TeamAndroid.com. He is an entrepreneur, growth specialist, Google and web developer, a blogger as well as a motivational speaker. He has extensive experience of working in the tech sector, especially mobile technologies. For the past 7 years he has managed to run several high-traffic technology focused blogs that generate more than 70% of traffic from search engines. He is highly experienced with monetizing content for users with different ad-networks for various platforms. Mr. Nadeem has spoken at several events and seminars on the topics of making money online, freelancing, blogging and content monetizing tips, Google tips and tools for businesses etc. He has also successfully developed and managed an entire community of Google enthusiasts and Android developers in Pakistan.

Self Efficacy

Syed Salman Shah is a communications professional with over a decade in international journalism with Reuters. He is a US-trained expert to train audience for confidence building, positive thinking, emotional intelligence, active listening, brainstorming, prioritization, paradigm of negotiation, learn to GROW method, SWOT analysis, learning how to go into specificity or level of abstraction, force field analysis, and Six Thinking Hats. Mr. Shah is also a counsellor with the strong grip on curing variety of phobias and neutralizing different kinds of anomalies that arise in human subconscious mind. Mr. Shah is experienced Head of Human Resources with a demonstrated history of working in the information technology, from programming to system securities, and services industry. He is highly Skilled in News Writing, Breaking News, Journalism, Television, and Broadcast Journalism. Mr. Shah possess strong marketing skills, especially for digital media.

Dr. Syed Ejaz Hussain Shah (PSP) joined as Assistant Superintendent of Police in March in 1986 and achieved the highest rank of Inspector General of Police in March 2019 and retired in January 2021. He is a PhD scholar in Criminology from University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Shah is a veteran of police force with master’s in management with years of training and teaching experience. Mr. Shah has also served as the 1 year as a judge in lower courts early in his career. He has supervised Joint Headquarters of 15 police organizations in Pakistan, including Secretariat of National Public Safety Commission (NPSC), National Police Management Board (NPMB) and National Forensic Science Agency. Mr. Shah has served as provincial head of Anti-Corruption Establishment Punjab with the mission to proactively detect, professionally investigate, and vigorously prosecute corruption in all its manifestations.

Sarmad Saeed Khan (PSP) 8th common officer who served the Police department for 34 years, joined the department as ASP in 1980 and retired in 2014. Mr. Saeed was promoted to the rank of SP in 1986. During his service, he served on key position in different districts of the Punjab province including Lahore, Bahawalnagar, Gujrat, Sheikhupra and Rahim Yar Khan and also served in various districts in Sindh as well. He was promoted to the rank of DIG in 2005. He also served as Deputy Inspector General and Inspector General of Police Northern Areas at Gilgit, Deputy Director Intelligence Bereau , National Police Academy Islamabad and DIG Security Division, Lahore as well. He was promoted to the rank of Addl. IGP in 2010. Mr. Saeed worked as Addl. IGP Punjab, Training and Welfare & Finance. Mr. Saeed has been teaching human rights and community policing to international police officers serving in the UN missions in Bosnia and Liberia.

Countering Disinformation

Masroor Gilani entered into the world of journalism in 1988 as Campus Correspondent for The Muslim newspaper in Islamabad. Later the same year joined the newspaper and worked as a Sub-Editor, City Page Editor and then reporter till November 1990. He then Joined Associated Press of Pakistan, Islamabad, and worked as a Sub-Editor, Reporter, Feature writer and coordinator, Special Assistant Editorial Coordination, Monitoring and Evaluation and Legal Correspondent. In February 2003 Mr. Gilani got affiliated with the Agency France Press, Islamabad as Correspondent for Pakistan-Afghanistan, where he covered major breaking news during the reporting on the war on terror across Pakistan. Currently, he is associated with AFP Fact Check and Digital Investigation Service.

Aoun Abbas Sahi is an Islamabad-based award-winning journalist, researcher, media trainer, and development communication specialist. Mr. Sahi is associated with The Los Angeles Times, as a special correspondent and is an editor/bureau chief of 24 News HD. In 2016, he shared the Pulit- zer Prize awarded to LA Times staff for coverage of the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California. For consecutive two years, he won ILO Pakistan’s “Excellence in Labour Journalism Award”. Mr. Sahi has conducted several trainings for journalists on right to information, safety & security of journalists, conflict sensitive journalism, labour and gender issues, also conducted training of the teachers of departments of Mass Communication of public sector universities of Balochistan and KP. Mr. Sahi has been associated with media outlets such as LA Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Telegraph (UK), The Sunday Times, The Times of London, Time Magazine, AFP, NRK TV & The News on Sunday.

Husnain Jamal is a published author with over one thousand blogs, columns and news features to his credit. During last two years he had the privilege to bring two Urdu Books comprising his selective writeups. He is currently associated as a Multimedia Producer with Independent Urdu, a wholly owned subsidiary of the prestigious Independent UK. His job entails providing editorial guidance to field reporters and maintain highest standards of journalistic integrity and quality. Mr. Jamal is also a regular contributor and one of the most read feature writers for the Independent, primarily highlighting issues in arts, culture and social issues. Husnain previously worked on the editorial board of the world’s leading Urdu blogging website Humsub for two years where he looked after data driven news stories and literary pieces. Before that, he was the editor of Adb-e-Lateef for two years. For a period spanning nearly a decade, he wrote over one thousand pieces in order to prove his journalistic versatility.

Crisis Negotiations

Dr. Syed Kaleem Imam is an officer of police Service of Pakistan, with 33 years of service. He is one of the most decorated and professional police officers having served in high profile appointments nationally and internationally. He is PhD in Politics and International Relations, with an LLM in Human Rights Law from UK, LLB and Master’s in Philosophy. He has to his credit National and International publications. In his illustrious career, Mr. Imam has distinctly served as IGP Islamabad, Punjab, Sindh, and twice in National Highways and Motorways Police. At International Level he has served in three UN Missions. He has been conferred three UN Peace Medals, two gallantry awards including the “Tamgah-i-Imtiaz” for his distinct National Service. His leadership and motivation have systemized police working and has left indelible marks especially in community policing, raising organization proficiency for better service delivery.

Saqib Sultan has been serving police for over 20 years on various senior positions including DPO Ghotki, DPO Vehari, DPO Sanghar and SSP Operations Gujranwala. In addition to his skills as a successful policeman, Mr. Sultan bagged extensive experience in Policy Making, Police Reforms, Project Management and Capacity Building. He also served as a Police Advise in UN Mission in Kosovo, Project Director National Forensic Science Agency, Director National Police Bureau and Director Federal Investigation Agency. Mr. Saqib also compiled a Handbook of Criminal Investigation in Pakistan which is the 1^st National SOP in Criminal Investigation in 2021. Drawing the National Road Map of Police Reforms in Pakistan in 2022 is another feather in his cap. He has been awarded various national and international awards including QPM, PPM and UN Police Medal. Currently Mr. Saqib is serving as DIG Director FIA.

Arif Rao (PSP) is an experienced and accomplished law enforcement officer in Pakistan. He has over a decade of experience in the police service, having joined in 2010. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated a deep commitment to protecting the community and upholding the law. Currently, Mr. Rao is serving as the Superintendent of Police (SSP) in charge of Investigation District West, a position that requires a high level of expertise, responsibility, and leadership skills. He is responsible for overseeing all investigations and criminal cases within his district and ensuring that justice is served. He is also in charge of ensuring the safety and security of the people in his jurisdiction. Mr. Rao’s extensive experience in the police service, coupled with his leadership skills, have made him a valuable asset to the law enforcement community in Pakistan. His dedication to protecting the community and upholding the law, together with his experience, will ensure that the people in his district are safe and justice is served.

Leadership

Gretchen Alther with over 15 years of experience as an international educator and humanitarian, infuses her program design with a commitment to equity and to grassroot communities. Previously, Ms. Alther designed and managed multimillion-dollar programs to support disaster relief, conflict zone aid, and resilience in marginalized communities in the US, Myanmar, Pakistan, Nepal, Gaza, Colombia, Haiti and beyond. She serves on the advisory committee of the Institute for Climate and Peace and is a founding board member of the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security. She earned an M.A. from Brandeis University, postgraduate certificates in leadership and peacebuilding from the East-West Center and Chulalongkorn University, respectively, and a B.A. from Texas A&M University.

Sarah Ahmed is a development professional with around 7 years of experience in human rights, peacebuilding and post-conflict transformation. She holds a master’s in development studies from the University of Melbourne and is also a Rotary Positive Peace Activator. Sarah has worked mainly on youth-focused programs across Pakistan particularly focusing on vulnerable and underserved subgroups. Currently, she works with GIZ as a Technical Advisor in a refugee-focused program in Sindh and Balochistan. Previously, she was involved with numerous programs centered around youth empowerment, peacebuilding and CVE with both local and international organizations including USAID, Sindh Youth and Sports Affairs Department, British Council, Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom and NOWPDP.

Maria Taimur (PSP) is a highly accomplished and experienced law enforcement officer in Pakistan. Currently, she is serving as the Director of the National Police Academy, one of the most prestigious and respected institutions in the country’s law enforcement community. She joined the Pakistani police force as the country’s first female commissioned officer 13 years ago and has been working tirelessly to change criminal justice institutions to create more accepting and inclusive environments for women. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated a deep commitment to promoting gender equality and has worked to break down barriers that have historically limited the participation of women in law enforcement. In addition to her work as a law enforcement officer, Ms. Mehmood is also an accomplished trainer. She has extensive experience of training other officers and has a proven track record of developing and delivering effective training programs that help officers especially women officers develop the skills they need to succeed in their roles.