Hira Fatima

Dr. Hira Fatima is currently serving as Assistant Professor at University of Education (Attock Campus). Her research interests include conservation biology, spatial ecology, species distribution modelling applying non-invasive genetic sampling to understand meso-carnivore ecology. She is graduated from PMAS Arid Agriculture University studying meso-carnivores of Margalla Hills, Pakistan. During PhD for non-invasive genetic research work she got training scholarship in advanced molecular techniques for University of California, Davis. This project strengthened her research skillsets, and while at UC Davis she collaborated with graduate student (Dr. Lauren Hennelly) and devised project on “Assessing the status and distribution of wolves in Pakistan using genetics”. She was awarded a Rufford grant and successfully completed that project by actively managing team from Northern areas of Pakistan through on-the-ground training in non-invasive genetic sampling of carnivores. Later on, in the continuation of that project she also successfully secured IDEA WILD project. After her PhD., she was a Postdoctoral fellow at University of Okara which enhanced her professional expertise of research and academic experience. She has experience of overcoming challenges of conducting research in a developing country and aims to apply genetic tools to help conserve wildlife in Pakistan

Lauren Hennelly

Dr. Lauren Hennelly is a postdoctoral scientist at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and a Research Associate at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Washington D.C. She uses genomic tools to study the evolutionary history and ecology of various species and applies this knowledge to conservation. She has led and participated in multiple scientific studies on wolves in India and Pakistan, where she has conducted field research and has been working with collaborators for the last ten years. She is a team member of the IUCN Red List Assessment of the Himalayan wolf and Indian wolf, and a member of the IUCN Canid Specialist Group’s Taxonomy Task Force. She has received multiple prestigious awards, including a Fulbright fellowship to India and two National Science Foundation fellowships. She is passionate about building long-term, equitable partnerships and scientific outreach to better conserve endangered species.

Rubab Zahra Naqvi

Dr. Rubab Zahra Naqvi is a senior scientist (http://www.nibge.org/profile.aspx?PID=116) at National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE), College of Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (PIEAS), Faisalabad, Pakistan. Her area of interest is Agricultural Biotechnology with a major focus on Molecular Biology, Genomics and Bioinformatics. She holds a PhD Biotechnology Degree and has overall more than 12 years of thriving research experience. She is the winner of prestigious “Norman E Borlaug” Fellowship from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and she worked at the Institute for Genomics, Biocomputing, & Biotechnology, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, United States. She also enriched her expertise by working at the Boyce Thompson Institute of Plant Research, Cornell University, New York, United States.

She is motivated to pursue her research as a creative and knowledgeable resource in the field of biotechnology and genomics for the betterment of agriculture and the climate of Pakistan. Hailing from Faisalabad, the textile hub of Punjab, Pakistan, Dr. Naqvi is not only a dedicated scientist but also a versatile individual with interests in traveling, cooking, counseling, painting, and hiking.

Rabbya Shoaib

With an academic background in international human rights law, Rabbya possesses a decade-long experience in designing and implementing development initiatives across Pakistan. She is a successful fundraiser and government engagement specialist, having played a pivotal role in the introduction of more than 10 transformative laws and policies. Additionally, she has secured partnerships with contracts and MOUs for landscape restoration and species conservation in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit-Baltistan.

Rabbya’s experience includes collaborations with provincial and federal ministries, co-developing and implementing projects with NGOs, INGOs (such as the European Union and UNDP), and conservation organizations (The Aspinall Foundation, NTNC Nepal, Global Rewilding Alliance, etc). Rabbya will ensure the timely implementation and eventual scale-up of the proposed project while sharing research results with government departments to advocate for the integration of successful strategies into official conservation planning. She also oversees the deployment and monitoring of funds to guarantee transparent and effective project execution.