Mission & Strategy
Mission
The Center for International Study and Development provides educational opportunities to the most marginalized and vulnerable populations, empowering them to improve their lives and their communities.
Our Strategy
Our projects are organized around several pillars of development that we support depending on the specific requirements of the location: Education, Economic/Social Development, Women’s Issues, Migration, Democracy/Human Rights, Environment, Health, Agriculture, Conflict Resolution/Prevention, Civic/Civil Society, and Self-Determination. Some of these pillars are still in developmental stages. We believe these areas are the foundation for a flourishing society and need to be addressed comprehensively to bring about positive lasting change
Education: We believe knowledge is power and education is a basic human right for all. It is a means for alleviating people out of poverty, encouraging socioeconomic progress, empowering people to choose their own destiny, and achieving one’s full potential as a human being. The foundation of a civilized, peaceful, and global society rests on the intellectual muscle of its people.
Unfortunately, the lack of an education system that accommodates the tribal, nomadic, and indigenous people’s way of life leaves them behind in the globalized world. As a result, these people are plagued with little political representation in their state, low literacy rate, and lack of essential services and infrastructure of their homeland. Education is a necessity for these isolated people to know about the outside world and interact with outsiders in the globalized world.
CISD strives to promote secular primary education for ages 6 to 12 and communal/vocational training for ages 12 and over as a means to empower the tribal, nomadic, and indigenous people. We are currently implementing our first pilot school project, the “Black Tents,” in the Chagai district of Balochistan, Pakistan.
Economic/Social Development: We believe focusing on economic and social development of a region is a moral imperative that the world community neglects to focus on. Despite the world’s substantial increase in life-expectancy, literacy, and social and economic development today, there still persist extreme poverty and inequality between the rich and the poor.
The tribal, nomadic, and indigenous people are one of the groups who are left in the dark, forced to endure extreme poverty. They live in politically unstable and geographically remote regions where there is a lack of adequate education, infrastructure, and healthcare. Because of this, the region faces miniscule economic and social growth. The world community avoids these problems by focusing on other issues when reaching out to these people and lifting themselves out of poverty is of utmost concern.
CISD supports the economic and social development of tribal, nomadic, and indigenous people through sustainable micro-economic projects and acts to bring the full implementation of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.
Women’s Issues: We believe in the prosperity of women within the marginalized tribal, nomadic, and indigenous society. As the most vulnerable group, they are frequent victims of discrimination, violence, domestic abuse, and trafficking. Furthermore, they lack education and economic resources to lift themselves out of this problem. Equality cannot exist without support for women.
CISD advocates for the social, cultural, economic, and personal equality and liberty of women among tribal, nomadic, and indigenous peoples. We are in the process of establishing its first Women’s Center in Quetta, Pakistan.
Migration: We believe that tribal, nomadic, and indigenous people have a right to choose where they should migrate. Unfortunately, forced migration exists everywhere around the globe. Volatile environmental, economic, social, and political conditions such as war, famine, natural disasters, and political upheaval force nomads to move to sedentary life and rural workers from deprived areas to urban areas. Some of these processes create tragic slum communities where people struggle desperately in extreme working and living conditions for starvation wages, food, and shelter.
CISD implements research and surveys on how these volatile conditions affect the tribal, nomadic, and indigenous people and are taking steps to alleviate this issue.
Democracy/Human Rights: We believe every individual has social, economic, civil, and cultural rights that must be secured under a fair and effective justice system in all levels of government. Such rule of law provides these people the opportunity to live the life of freedom and foster stability and development.
But with poverty, discrimination, and desperation breeds social injustice. All around the globe, the rights of tribal, nomadic, and indigenous people are frequently denied. This people often become pawns or targets of those who would use them for their political or financial gain. This isn’t the life of freedom or equality that should be realized in a democratic society. It is a life that is stripped of human dignity.
CISD strives to promote institutions that protect human rights and fundamental freedom of tribal, nomadic, and indigenous peoples.