Alight Pakistan Strategy

Who We Are | We are the people who listen.

We are the people who act - doing the doable while we We have been at the forefront of humanitarian work for
figure out what else can be done, and what can be done forty years, and are present in Pakistan since 2002.
better.

We are humanitarians dedicated to serving humanity in

all its beautiful diversity.

We build a meaningful life for and with the people

affected by displacement, committed to the principles
of human-centered design. We opt for collaboration,
not competition.

We are Alight - an organization that exists to inspire and

unleash the abundance in every person.

We're the ones who see possibility instead of scarcity,

and provide services truly worthy of human beings
instead of just 'good enough’.
 When what they used to call their home, their world –
suddenly turns against them, they don't think twice
(Un)natural
about escaping the mouth of a shark.
disasters caused by
climate change Creating a home out of the home is difficult. Yet they
Earthquakes hold on to hope. They have no choice. They have lost
War, and other and other
conflicts their past, and the present is precarious, but they have
calamities
a future to look forward to, and at Alight we are
committed to helping displaced people make sense of
that future and rebuild a meaningful life for
Displacement themselves.

We're the ones who see possibility instead of scarcity,

All of these can break the delicate thread of belonging, and provide services truly worthy of human beings
forcing people to flee their homes and abandon the instead of just 'good enough.’
villages and towns they considered their own.
We have been at the forefront of humanitarian work for
Displacement is one of the key challenges of our times, forty years, and are present in Pakistan since 2002.
with an average of one person being displaced every
two seconds.
In Pakistan

Pakistan hosts more than 1.5 million registered Afghans It is hard to say how many people were driven out of
who have been forced to flee their homes. That's the their homes by the clashes along the Line of Control
official number. Many Afghans are unregistered. Many separating Pakistan from India, but all the major cities
suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and other of the Gilgit Baltistan region have displaced people
mental health problems. The children born to Afghan settlements.
refugee parents inherit their status. They are born
refugees. In the former Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA)
thousands of people have been living in internal
Another official statistic tells us that in 2021 in Pakistan displacement since 2014 as a result of military
there were 700,000 internally displaced people. Most operations.
of the displacements were triggered by disasters:
earthquakes, droughts, and floods. The displaced people we meet all over the country, in
urban, suburban, and rural settings, share the common
Due to the flood on an unprecedented scale in 2022 goal of securing their family's future. They want to make
some 8 million people lost their homes. Approximately sure their children are protected from violence and safe
one million people in Sindh and Baluchistan are still from hunger; they want their children to grow healthy
sleeping under the open sky... and get educated.
Here…
Pakistan's location on the world map, its diverse
geography, and its climate makes it highly susceptible
to natural disasters. It is also one of the top countries
mostly affected by climate change. Political instability
and a precocious economic situation, as well as a high
risk of internal violence, make matters even worse for
many. There are millions of displaced people living in
Pakistani cities and villages, and the risk of further
displacement is high at all times.
But displacement affects not only displaced people.
Host communities play a key role in humanitarian
responses providing in-kind support that often
surpasses assistance from official aid agencies. But
hosts' ability and willingness to help come under
pressure as displacement becomes protracted.
Pakistan has been hosting millions of refugees, while its That is why supporting refugees and displaced
citizens have been fighting their own battles.
The climate change is already here. And every changing
season may prove to be catastrophically different from
the past as a consequence of climate change affecting
Pakistan on a huge scale. The melting glacier might
trigger an out-of-proportion catastrophe for Pakistan
and the whole region.
The earthquakes are a common occurrence in the area,
as are droughts and floods.
The political polarization, and the risk of terrorism,
negatively impact the country's economy.
People in Pakistan experience it all: conflict-related
mass displacement, mass social and economic
exclusion, and climate-related mass displacement.
communities must go hand-in-hand with
complementary development interventions, climate
change adaptation strategies, and area-based
approaches, that will work for all.

We should see displaced people in the context of a

larger local population, rather than as a separate group,
and recognize their interconnectedness and the
similarities they share with their hosts, who are often
similarly vulnerable.

Building social cohesion starts with building a positive

narrative, using human-centered language that
conveys respect, upholds dignity, values diversity and
empowers every human.
Our Strategy
We work with people labeled as refugees, displaced, identities. We listen-striving to get to know the deeper
poor, marginalized… But we do not see them this way. backgrounds and circumstances of people who are
For us, every human being is full, whole, complex, and more prone to vulnerability and suffering, advantage
worthy of being truly seen and truly heard. and disadvantage. We believe that each individual is
unique and brings valuable knowledge into the
We work for, and with, people affected by displacement, conversation: every voice matter.
poverty, and discrimination.
We consider the rich diversity of people we serve in
Committed to the principles of social justice, diversity, Pakistan and across borders as an asset.
and inclusion, we choose to walk alongside those who
by sheer luck and circumstance ended up on the long The humans that we work for and that we work with
and arduous journey of displacement. And with those, come from different backgrounds, carry different
whose life has been affected by displacement even baggage of experience and speak different languages.
though they weren't forced to move. They vary in abilities, customs, and traditions, in
expectations of success. What they have in common is
We serve humans, regardless of their race, class, a set of core essential needs, that we all share:
ge n d e r, sex u a l o r i e n ta t i o n , fa m i l y sta t u s ,
socioeconomic situation, age, and disability, but we are
mindful of the intersectionality of overlapping
Alight’s Essential Human Experiences & their connection to SDGs

The experience The care of

of loving human body, mind, and
connection spirit

The dignity of The experience

work and of being and
financial feeling safe
security

The peace of
The pursuit of
house and
education
home
How those needs can be fulfilled differs from person to action and climate change education in all our
person, from community to community, and we know that programming. CLIMATE ACTION
one-size-fits-all solutions won't work. Committed to the
principles of human-centered design we invite the people
we work for, to work with us, co-designing solutions to
address their specific needs, playing an active role in the
implementation of the programs, and providing essential
feedback that lets us constantly improve our services.
HUMAN-CENTERED DESIGN

Empowering local people and partnering with the local

community and grassroots organizations, we help co-
create resilient communities that offer inclusivity and
protection, in which people enjoy their rights and have a say
in decisions that shape their lives and futures. We endeavor
for social, environmental, and economic sustainability on a
local and global level. LOCALIZATION

Recognizing climate change as the greatest challenge of

our time, and understanding how it can go hand in hand with
other forms of inequity and intensify social injustice, we
assume the responsibility to integrate climate change