Introducing…The Borrowed Earth Project’s Pakistan Summer Youth Programme
This summer The Borrowed Earth Project has launched several new exciting initiatives in Pakistan - a new Pakistan Summer Internship programme and two new climate research grants awarded to talented young researchers to explore climate change issues in their communities in Pakistan. After a highly competitive process - over 150 applications! - we are delighted to share more about the talented young Pakistanis who will be working with us in these roles this summer.
Borrowed Earth Pakistan Summer Intern: Zainab Zahid
Zainab Zahid…
…is a community organizer, researcher, and climate action advocate. She is a seasoned youth engagement specialist and has been supporting initiatives in this regard in the national and international spaces. She has also participated at the previous COPs and has represented Pakistan at different other international forums. Her latest publication includes the Water and Climate Youth Development Plan and Agenda (YDPA), for the UN 2023 Water Conference, mandated by the co-host Tajik and Dutch Governments.
Zainab is supporting The Borrowed Earth Project as the Pakistan Summer Intern. She is developing a documentary on biodiversity, organising climate-related resources to develop a dashboard with one click information for all and support the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training with their pre-COP28 preparations.
Borrowed Earth Climate Research Grantee: Nouman Alam
Nouman Alam…
…is a researcher with a Bachelor's in Disaster Management and an MPhil in Environmental Science from Quaid-I-Azam University, Islamabad and a former Teach for Pakistan Fellow. His passion lies in understanding climate change impacts and community-based flood solutions.
With the Borrowed Earth Climate Research Grant Nouman will conduct a case study - 'Navigating Climate Extremes: Flood and Extreme Weather Events Frequency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.’. In this study he will capture local perceptions, identify adaptive strategies, and raise awareness through a blog and short documentary. His methods will include field visits, interviews with locals and climate experts, and collecting climate data from Meteorological Department and World Bank regarding extreme events and average temperature and precipitation drift.
Borrowed Earth Climate Research Grantee: Maria Samiwala
Maria Samiwala…
…is a Karachi-based urban researcher with a Bachelor of Science (Honors) in Social Development & Policy from Habib University, Karachi. She is extremely passionate about understanding climate change through an urban development lens, specifically through sustainable city planning and design i.e. SDG 11.
For her research study with The Borrowed Earth Project, she will seek to understand the climate threat posed by Karachi's mismanaged waste sector and identify modern solutions to the problem. The paper aims to interview local initiatives tackling the city's waste problem and hopes to use their insights to identify both individual-level and policy-level recommendations.