Ali Raza Khan
Pakistan
- Program Year
- 2004-05
- Country of Current Residence
- Pakistan
- City/Town of Current Residence
- Lahore
- Current Position
- President, CEO
- Organization
- Youth Engagement Services (YES) Network Pakistan
- Profession(s)
Youth Advocate
- Sector(s)
- Advocacy, Civic Engagement, Community, Human rights, Youth engagement
- Language(s)
- English, Urdu, Punjabi, Hindi
- Interest(s) / Expertise
- developmental politics, reproductive health, youth advocacy, youth empowerment
Ali is dedicated to promote ‘Youth as a Solution, not as a Problem’ in the society. Ali is taking both direct and institutional change approach to foster a culture of youth-led development and social innovation. He has brought a significant paradigm shift from a deficit-based youth development model to a strength-based youth development model.
Ali is the founder and CEO of Youth Engagement Services (YES) Network Pakistan. His organization facilitates thousands of children and young people to begin their entrepreneurial journey each year through its projects. Idea testing in the field of youth engagement is his craft.
Ali has introduced the concept of youth social entrepreneurship to over 1200 technical and educational institutions of the country; integrated this concept into the curriculum of over 172 leading vocational and educational institution of Pakistan; and is working with over 60 leading universities of the country to prepare young people as social entrepreneur through a variety of exciting and innovative projects. Ali has delivered over 500 training workshops for youth-focused organizations in Pakistan. Having pioneered many innovative youth-led projects and visited more than 30 countries, Ali has worked with many international organizations as a partner, trainer, advisor and consultant, including the British Council, USAID, USIP, ILO, Caritas, Atlantic Council, Agha Khan Foundation, and UNICEF. Ali is an Ashoka fellow and a board member of the International Association for National Youth Service. He has traveled widely and participated in many international programs and activities. His vision is “Youth as the solution, not as the problem.”
A native of Lahore, Pakistan, where he earned his BA and Masters in Political Science focusing on Development Politics. Ali also participated in communication courses at Johns Hopkins University, USA.
In December 2012, Ali gave a TED talk at TEDxFCCollege, an event organized by Forman Christian College, Lahore, Pakistan under the theme of Innovation- Harnessing the Hidden Revolution, in which he identifies Youth Disengagement as the greatest problem facing the world today. More about the TEDxFCCollege event and Ali.
Links:
Sauvé Testimonial:
My time at the Sauvé was one of the most enriching and fulfilling year of my life. We were offered a wonderful work and living environment. I do want everyone to know that every second I spent at Sauvé house was sheer bliss. It fostered friendly evenings of talk and healthy meals within a dynamic young community. I accomplished much of what I’d set out to do but I also went in new directions I could not have planned. The fellowship allowed me to reflect, work, contemplate, analyse, connect and discuss ideas. I was able to really unplug and focus solely on my youth development work. A comfortable living space made it an ideal place to unwind, work, critique, rest and revive.