Who we are

Policy Research Institute for Equitable Development (PRIED) is a for-profit think tank registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan. Based in Islamabad, PRIED is dedicated to working for climate justice and clean energy in Pakistan and through its work highlights the plight of marginalised communities affected by the country’s energy policies.

PRIED is the successor of non-governmental organisation Rural Development Policy Institute (RDPI). The organisation has a diverse group of people from various professional backgrounds such as researchers, former journalists and activists, who are striving to bring a notable change in Pakistan’s energy sector by advocating for greener energy options through their work at PRIED. The primary work of PRIED revolves around the following:

  • Produce evidence-based and actionable research to create awareness among people.
  • Advocate to bring favorable changes in policies for easy transition towards clean energy.
  • Engage with the mass media to help reach wider audiences.

  • Vision

    To bring equitable development in Pakistan and make marginalised communities of Pakistan an integral part of development.

  • Mission

    Our mission is to promote a secure and healthy environment for communities bearing the burden of social and environmental issues instigated by Pakistan’s energy sector. We aim to achieve this by uniting the various actors in Pakistan’s energy sector to abandon fossil fuel and shift towards renewable energy options such as solar and wind for the betterment of people and the environment. We hope to play a significant role in accelerating Pakistan’s electricity transition from fossil fuel to clean energy sources. In order to make this a true and fair transition towards green energy, PRIED believes that the energy sector must place economic, social and environmental issues at the center of this transition.

  • Partners

    Our partners enable us to fulfill our mission and amplify the voices of marginalized communities that have adversely been affected by energy policies in Pakistan. PRIED’s work is made possible by financial support from TARA, an alliance working in collaboration with the European Climate Foundation (ECF).

What we do

  • Research

    PRIED carries out research on economic, social and environmental effects of energy sector’s policies. We have so far successfully conducted multiple research studies on different topics around energy sector which highlights various adverse impacts of energy policies on local communities and issues being faced in making a transition to clean energy.

  • Collaborations and alliances

    PRIED is one of the founders and an active member of Alliance for Climate Justice and Clean Energy (ACJCE), which is a civil society network endeavoring for a transition in Pakistan’s energy sector. The work of alliance revolves around diverting the country from dirty fossil-fuel-based energy production and advocating the adoption of clean and renewable sources of energy which are socially compatible, economically affordable and environmentally sustainable.

  • Policy advocacy

    PRIED regularly engages with decision-making authorities to introduce favorable policies for equitable development. Parliamentary Caucus is one such initiative of PRIED, through which we invite parliamentarians and engage with them to improve policy coordination on issues of people affected by energy policies, matters of renewable energy and climate justice. Through this caucus, we aim to promote a cross-party critique and prompt a discussion within the parliament over existing policies on renewable energy and climate justice and improve the existing legislation on renewable energy and climate justice.

  • Outreach and engagement

    We engage regularly with reporters, editors, filmmakers, and social media content creatures to take our research and advocacy work to broader audiences. This helps us create awareness about the impacts of fossil-fuel energy, initiate a discourse on the urgency to transition to clean energy, highlight the importance of climate justice to the victims of bad energy policies and point out gaps between policy and practices in the energy sector.

Research and Publications