Pakistonomy

Uzair talks to Ambareen Baig about the state of Pakistan's startup ecosystem based on the findings of Invest2Innovate's recently released Pakistan Startup Ecosystem Report 2021. Ambareen Baig is a research professional well acquainted with the startup ecosystem in Pakistan. After starting out her career as an educator, she moved on as a Fulbright scholar for a masters in Educational Psychology from the University of Arizona (UofA). Other than teaching research methodologies at the undergraduate level at her alma mater, she also served as a Global Ambassador for international students at the UofA. She has worked on youth development projects in Pakistan through the School of Leadership (SoL) where she brought two UNICEF projects to fruition while spearheading SoL’s community space, the Hangout Space. Currently, she is working at invest2innovate (i2i) as Head of Insights where she gets to do what she loves inherently - data and research. In addition to coauthoring i2i's bimonthly data driven newsletter, she has authored/co-authored several publications at i2i including Pakistan Startup Ecosystem Report (2019), COVID & its Impact on Pakistani Startups (2020), KP Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Report (2021), and more. She loves to make an impact on the startup ecosystem in the country by bringing equity to the use and dissemination of data and information. You can find the complete report here: https://www.insightsi2i.com/pser-21 Reading Recommendations: - Kartography by Kamila Shamsie - Being Pakistani by Raza Rumi - Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado-Perez

Uzair talks to Asanga Abeyagoonasekara about the ongoing political and economic crisis in Sri Lanka. Things have gone from bad to worse in the island nation, which is now suffering shortages of essential goods. Asanga explains how things spiralled out of control and the way out. Asanga Abeyagoonasekera is Senior Fellow at the Millennium Project and an international security analyst from Sri Lanka. He has led two government think tanks providing strategic advocacy in Sri Lanka and was the Founding Director General of the National Security Think Tank under the Ministry of Defence in the country. He is the author of Sri Lanka at Crossroads. Reading Recommendations: - The Long Game by Rush Doshi - On Thermonuclear War by Herman Kahn - The Fateful Triangle by Tanvi Madan

Uzair talks to Dr. Margarita Konaev about Russia's invasion of Ukraine, what prompted Putin to invade now, and the risks of urban warfare in the heart of Europe. Dr. Margarita Konaev is a Research Fellow at Georgetown’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) interested in military applications of AI and Russian military innovation. Previously, she was a Non-Resident Fellow with the Modern War Institute at West Point, a post-doctoral fellow at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perry World House. Her research on international security, armed conflict, non-state actors and urban warfare in the Middle East, Russia and Eurasia has been published by a whole host of publications, including the Journal of Strategic Studies, the Journal of Global Security Studies. Reading Recommendations: - A Small Corner of Hell: Dispatches from Chechnya by Anna Politkovskaya

Uzair speaks with Musadaq Zulqarnain, Chairman of Interloop Limited, the largest Textile on the Pakistan Stock Exchange. Musadaq also serves on the board of Karandaaz, a not for profit organization promoting financial inclusion, sponsored by DFID(UKAid) and Bill Melinda Gates Foundation. He is also the President of Interloop Welfare Trust and Lyallpur Literary council. An ardent supporter of quality affordable education, Musadaq is actively associated with The Citizens Foundation (TCF), the largest not-for-profit organization providing education to underprivileged children in Pakistan. He has served on the Board of Faisalabad Industrial Estate Development & Management Company (FIEDMC) for 6 years and also held the position of its CEO. Musadaq has also been a Member of the Board of Port Qasim Authority. This episode is a major milestone for the podcast, so thank you to all of you for supporting and joining us in this journey. Reading Recommendations: - How China Became Capitalist by Ning Wang and Ronald Coase - Mr and Mrs Jinnah, the Marriage that Shook India by Sheela Reddy - Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age by Sanjay Gupta

Uzair talks to Dr. Asfandyar Mir about rising cases of terrorism in Pakistan, the emerging threat on the Afghan border, and what risks he is concerned about during this ongoing second war on terror. Dr. Asfandyar Mir is a senior expert in the Asia Center at USIP. Previously, Dr. Mir held various fellowships at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. His research interests include the international relations of South Asia, U.S. counterterrorism policy and political violence — with a regional focus on Afghanistan and Pakistan. Dr. Mir’s research has appeared in peer-reviewed journals, such as International Security, International Studies Quarterly and Security Studies. He received his doctorate in political science from the University of Chicago and a master’s and bachelor’s from Stanford University. Reading Recommendations: - Rise and Kill First by Ronen Bergman - Ordering Violence: Explaining Armed Group-State Relations from Conflict to Cooperation by Paul Staniland

Uzair talks to Aiman Bashir about her startup and the emerging edtech ecosystem in Pakistan. Aiman is co-founder and CEO of the business and has worked at the World Bank, Nestle and Coca-Cola. In 2020. Out-Class is a world-class EdTech platform, whose instructors hail from the world’s best institutions and have a deep-rooted passion for educating the country’s youth. Aiman won the coveted Standard Chartered Women In Tech competition in Pakistan and became the Pakistan winner for the largest tech competition in the world, She Loves Tech Global. Reading Recommendations: - Change Your Questions, Change Your Life: 10 Powerful Tools for Life and Work by Marilee Adams - Amy Cuddy's TED Talk - Fake it Till You Make it - Happiness Is a Choice by Barry Neil Kaufman

Uzair talks to Dr. Miftah Ismail, former finance minister and senior member of the PML-N, about the path ahead for Pakistan's economy. The conversation explores reform priorities, export promotion, and improving the fiscal and external sector outlook for the economy.

Uzair talks to Pramit Pal Chaudhuri about domestic and foreign policy developments in India. The conversation focuses on state elections in the country, Yogi's bid to become a national leader, India's relations with China and Russia, and Modi's outreach to Nawaz. Pramit Pal Chaudhuri is Foreign Editor of the Hindustan Times and a Distinguished Fellow, Ananta Aspen Centre, and Foreign Editor of the Hindustan Times, the primary newspaper of the Indian capital New Delhi. Among India’s most prominent commentators on the country’s political and economic relations with the rest of the world, Mr. Pal Chaudhuri combines this with extensive insight into the intricacies of the domestic situation in India. Reading Recommendations: - The New BJP: Modi and the Making of the World's Largest Political Party by Nalin Mehta - The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World by Dr. S. Jaishankar

Uzair talks to Randy Bell about ongoing volatility in the energy markets, how countries like Saudi Arabia are preparing for the future, and ways in which energy importing countries like Pakistan should develop long-term strategies that enhance their energy security. Randy Bell is the senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Center (GEC), where he oversees the center’s research and programs in Washington and elsewhere, including the annual Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi. He also serves as the co-director of the Atlantic Council’s Task Force on US Nuclear Energy Leadership and is the Richard Morningstar chair for global energy security. Reading Recommendations: - Sculpting in Time by Andrei Tarkovsky - The New Map: Energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations by Daniel Yergin - Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

Uzair talks to Dr. Vali Nasr about ongoing developments in the Middle East, where tensions between Iran and Gulf countries, especially the UAE and Saudi Arabia, continue to escalate. This podcast also touches on how the US should engage with the region and the ways in which Pakistan ought to navigate this quagmire. Vali Nasr is the Majid Khadduri Professor of International Affairs and Middle East Studies at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center. He served as the eighth Dean of Johns Hopkins SAIS between 2012 and 2019 and served as Senior Advisor to U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke between 2009 and 2011. Nasr is the author of The Dispensable Nation: American Foreign Policy in Retreat; Forces of Fortune: The Rise of a New Middle Class and How it Will Change Our World; The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam will Shape the Future; Democracy in Iran: History and the Quest for Liberty; Islamic Leviathan, Islam and the Making of State Power; Mawdudi and the Making of Islamic Revivalism; and Vanguard of Islamic Revolution: Jama'at-i Islami of Pakistan; and numerous articles in scholarly journals. He has advised senior American policymakers, world leaders, and businesses, including the President, Secretary of State, senior members of the Congress, and presidential campaigns. He has written for New York Times, Foreign Affairs, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post, among others. Reading Recommendations: - The Shia Revival - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000U0O9FC/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 - The Dispensable Nation: American Foreign Policy in Retreat - https://www.amazon.com/Dispensable-Nation-American-Foreign-Retreat-ebook/dp/B009Y4I9EM/ref=sr_1_1? - All Against All - https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/middle-east/2021-12-02/iran-middle-east-all-against-all