Meet Our Team
Dr. Syed Rifaat Hussain
President, Initiate Futuresrifaathussain@initiatefutures.org
Dr. Rifaat Hussain is a political scientist, professor, defense analyst and television personality whose career in the academia spans over four decades. The New York Times Magazine has described him as a “leading Pakistani foreign policy thinker.” Hussain served two terms as visiting professor at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC). From 2005 to 2008, he was the executive director of the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RCSS), a Colombo-based think tank in Sri Lanka. Dr. Hussain has held associations with Quaid-i-Azam University for 36 years, and has headed the Department of Government and Public Policy at the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), a top-ranked public research university in Pakistan.
He served as a supervisor and coordinator of the NUST Research Team, a project sponsored by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), Washington, D.C. to provide inputs on challenges and opportunities facing Pakistan to the Standing Committee of the Parliament on Foreign Affairs. Dr. Hussain was also part of the Higher Education Commission’s committee on undergraduate curriculum design for Social Sciences.
Dr. Rifaat Hussain earned his MA and PhD from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver, United States.
Read more about our president.
Hamzah Rifaat
Senior Expert, Initiate Futureshamzahrifaat@initiatefutures.org
Hamzah is a Senior Expert at Initiate Futures with years of experience in policy analysis, consultancy, academia and international affairs. He was a 2016 South Asian Voices Visiting Fellow at the Stimson Center in Washington, D.C. and has contributed analysis on policy issues and global affairs for the Diplomat Magazine, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, The News International, The National Interest, and The London School of Economics. Previously, he worked as a news anchor for English-language news channels—PTV World and Indus News.
Hamzah holds a Master of Philosophy degree in Peace and Conflict Studies from the National Defense University, Islamabad and earned a diploma in World Affairs and Professional Diplomacy from the Bandaranaike International Diplomatic Training Institute in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He received a Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) scholarship at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey to study nonproliferation and terrorism studies. He also worked for The Women’s International Perspective (The WIP), a global source for women’s perspectives based in Monterey, California.
Hamzah’s specialization is in gender and conflict, governance, development and addressing inclusivity challenges in Pakistan.
Hannan Hussain
Senior Expert, Initiate Futureshannanhussain@initiatefutures.org
Hannan is a Senior Expert at Initiate Futures and an author. He was a Fulbright Scholar of Public Policy at the University of Maryland and is a specialist in international security. Hannan brings years of experience across research, policy, consultancy, and media industries both within Pakistan and overseas.
He has provided expert insights to the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy, the Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations, Cornell University’s Policy Review, University of Southern California’s Center on Public Diplomacy, Middle East Institute USA, The Fletcher Forum of World Affairs, Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, The London School of Economics, Columbia University’s Public Policy Review, The Science and Technology Conference (SnT) in Vienna, the Fulbright Association, OC&C Strategy Consultants, Channel News Asia, Embassy of the Netherlands in Pakistan, The Diplomat, The Sydney Morning Herald, Pakistan Institute of Petroleum, Türkiye’s Center for Islam and Global Affairs (CIGA), The Institute of Regional Studies (IRS) and the Islamabad Policy Research Institute, among others.
Hannan has authored studies on Pakistan’s climate mitigation challenges, trade outreach towards Southeast Asia, universal health insurance reforms, post-floods food crisis, the Belt and Road, and active insurgencies. He has also published in-depth analyses on security studies, democratic rights, sustainable development, conflict resolution, gender inclusion, electoral politics and regional diplomacy, with work spanning South Asia, the Middle East, China and the United States.
He was the program manager and lead instructor of the sentiment analysis initiative at herDomain, an education-empowerment NGO focused on grooming the next generation of female changemakers in South Asia. He helped expand education outreach efforts for Pakistani and African schools at a nonprofit organization United We REACH, and worked on information technology assessments in partnership with IBM.
An alumnus of the Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations (HPAIR), Hannan has delivered talks at numerous forums and writes regularly for national and international news outlets. He has served on the United States Education Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP)’s Fulbright interview panel, and regularly appears as a policy expert on local and foreign media channels.
Hannan is also the recipient of numerous awards and accolades, including the U.S. Department of State’s Fulbright Scholarship Award, California’s Mountain View-Los Altos Staff Scholarship, and gained historic recognition for his work with Harvard’s Asia Project, The London School of Economics, The Diplomat, and universal health insurance reforms in Pakistan.
Hannan holds degrees in Public Administration from the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) and a Fulbright Masters in Public Policy from the University of Maryland, USA. He is currently pursuing his PhD in International Relations from Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad.
Haider Rifaat
Communications Director, Initiate Futureshaiderrifaat@initiatefutures.org
Haider is a journalist and a talk show host with 12 years of experience in print and digital media. He was a features writer for OK! Pakistan, the international edition of OK! Magazine, and a contributor to the lifestyle and entertainment pages of the Hong Kong newspaper—South China Morning Post.
In a journalism career spanning more than a decade, Haider has interviewed prominent experts in all fields. Some of them are Andrew Small (German Marshall Fund of the United States), Christine Fair (Professor of Security Studies, Georgetown University), Glenn Wakai (Hawaii State Senator), Suzanne Vares-Lum (President, East-West Center), Michael Kugelman (Wilson Center), Javad Kachoueian (former Iranian Ambassador to Ireland and Finland), Maleeha Lodhi (former Pakistan’s representative to the United Nations), Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy (Oscar and Emmy-winning journalist), Arfa Sayeda Zehra (Academician) and Shireen Mazari (former Federal Minister for Human Rights of Pakistan).
Outside the political realm, Haider has interviewed British actor William Moseley, Grammy-nominated singer Shontelle, Canadian actress Tasya Teles, Iranian-Swiss actress Lara Wolf, and Pakistani actors Mahira Khan, Ali Zafar and Hamza Ali Abbasi. As an entertainment journalist, Haider attempts to uncover key issues affecting the global film/TV industry.
His commentary on politics and culture, and in-depth interviews with international celebrities and fashion designers have appeared in notable publications such as Wonderland Magazine (London), Khaleej Times (Dubai), Arabian Moda Magazine (Paris), Flanelle Magazine (Montreal), Good Times (GT) Magazine, China Global Television Network (CGTN), China Daily, DAWN, The Express Tribune and Daily Times.
Since 2016, Haider has been headlining Pakistan’s first web talk show titled The Haider Rifaat Show, producing 9 seasons. He has produced and acted in several short films under the independent production label Haider Rifaat (HR) Films on YouTube. His short film on mental illness titled KAASH (I WISH in English) emerged as a semifinalist under the Best Actor Short Film category at the 2021 Stockholm City Film Festival. In 2025, Haider released his debut short documentary film In Shackles sponsored by Initiate Futures and co-sponsored by the University of Hawaii at Mānoa’s Center for South Asian Studies, Center for Southeast Asian Studies and Department of Asian Studies.
Haider is currently a PhD scholar of Political Science at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, United States where he also earned a Master’s degree in Communication. From 2021 to 2023, Haider served as a Graduate Degree Fellow at the East-West Center, a prominent education and research organization based in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is currently with the Center as a Student Affiliate and was appointed as their Global Leadership Ambassador in 2024.
Haider’s research interests include studying intercultural communication/conflicts and factors influencing legal mobilization efforts for Pakistani women experiencing increased sexual violence.
Aruba Binte Khalid
Consultant, Initiate Futuresarubakhalid@initiatefutures.org
Aruba is a distinguished professional, policy researcher and a social entrepreneur with extensive experience spanning both the corporate and development sectors. Throughout her career, she has held various management and policy research roles, thereby significantly contributing to these fields. Her work as a social entrepreneur is particularly focused on the financial empowerment and entrepreneurial advancement of women. Aruba has been affiliated with numerous international organizations, including the United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP) and the Youth Thinkers’ Society. Over the years, she has successfully led several impactful development projects, earning recognition from both the government and the State Department for her social initiatives. Currently, Aruba is undertaking her coursework in law from the University of London with the aim of further enhancing her contributions to public policy and legal frameworks in Pakistan.