On 18 April 2026, Shehri – Citizens for a Better Environment (Shehri-CBE) successfully conducted a Capacity Building Workshop titled “Youth Empowerment for Engaged Citizenship” at the Democracy Lab (D-Lab), Aga Khan University, Karachi. The workshop was organized as part of the Democracy Lab: Incubator for Civic Action initiative, aiming to strengthen students’ practical understanding of civic engagement, public policy, and human-centered design.

The event brought together students from participating universities to enhance their skills in qualitative data synthesis through the Affinity Mapping methodology. The sessions focused on identifying community challenges, organizing issues into thematic clusters, generating insight statements, and developing “How Might We” questions that would guide future civic innovation projects.

The workshop began with a session brief delivered by Noor Ali Khan, followed by an in-depth introduction to Affinity Mapping for Data Synthesis by Farhan Anwar, Urban Planner, Project Manager, and Associate Professor of Practice at Habib University. Participants then worked collaboratively in groups to analyze real-world data, document their findings, and present their outcomes during the plenary session. The event concluded with discussions on preparing design prototypes and identifying the next steps in the Human-Centered Design process.

This workshop formed part of the broader Youth Empowerment for Engaged Citizenship and Informed Citizen Activism project, which focused on building the capacity of young people for informed civic participation. Through practical learning experiences, students explored governance structures, public policy, grassroots engagement, and community-led problem-solving while applying their knowledge to real-life civic challenges.

GALLERY: Photos of Knowledge Workshop 18 April 2026