Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Certification
Accomplishments
Publications
Volunteer Experience
References
Timeline
Generic

Sobia Shah

Summary

An experienced Human geographer and development professional with over five years of expertise in sustainable resource management, climate resilience, and policy development. Adept at using GIS and data-driven approaches to address environmental challenges and support inclusive growth. Proven experience in collaborating with government and private stakeholders to enhance food security, improve community resilience, and reduce environmental risks.

Overview

9
9
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification

Work History

Graduate Assistant

Missouri State University
01.2024 - Current
  • Support research projects in the Resilience and Adaptation Lab, focusing on geography, GIS, and environmental studies, with an emphasis on climate resilience and adaptation strategies.

Participant

National Science Foundation (NSF) and UCAR (The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research)
08.2024
  • Participated in interdisciplinary projects aimed at addressing environmental sustainability challenges using Geospatial AI, focusing on wildfire economic impacts on Texas buildings.

Business Enabling Environment (BEE) Associate

Chemonics International Inc. / USAID SMEA
04.2021 - 12.2021
  • Contributed to the sustainable management of natural resources by reviewing and developing policies for Gilgit-Baltistan Tourism and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minerals Governance, focusing on climate risk reduction and environmental sustainability.

District Coordinator, ICT

Interactive Research and Development (IRD), Pakistan
03.2020 - 05.2020
  • Coordinated district-level activities, ensuring effective implementation of public health strategies, including adverse event management and social mobilization in collaboration with health authorities.

Research Assistant

Gilgit Baltistan Rural Development and Climate Resilient Project
09.2019 - 02.2020
  • Conducted research on climate resilience, focusing on the social impacts of environmental changes, and contributed to monitoring and evaluation plans to improve community adaptation to climate risks.

Research Analyst

Aga Khan Rural Support Program (AKRSP)
06.2019 - 08.2019
  • Collected data on out-of-school children in remote valleys of Gilgit Baltistan, analyzing results to address educational disparities in climate-vulnerable regions.

Monitoring and Evaluation Assistant

Consultancy funded by Asian Development Bank implemented by National Transmission and Distribution Company NTDC Pakistan
12.2016 - 01.2019
  • Conducted field visits for environmental assessments, focusing on the impact of land acquisition and resettlement for transmission line projects.

Enumerator

UNESCO research project with the collaboration of AKF and PDCN
09.2016
  • Collected data for the 'Girls' Right to Education' program in remote regions, managing a team of enumerators and ensuring accurate delivery of survey results related to educational access in climate-sensitive areas.

Monitoring and Evaluation Intern

Economic Transformation Initiative, funded by the international fund for agriculture development (IFAD)
02.2016 - 08.2016
  • Planned logistics for fieldwork and managed data collection instruments for environmental and developmental projects.

Education

MS. Geography, Geology, and Planning - Geospatial science

Missouri State University
05.2025

MS. Public Policy -

George Mason University
12.2022

MS. Development Studies -

National University of Science And Technology Islamabad
05.2020

Bachelors, Economics -

Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi
05.2017

Skills

  • Geospatial Analysis & GIS
  • R Programming for Data Analysis
  • Climate Resilience & Adaptation
  • Environmental Policy Development
  • Sustainable Resource Management
  • Project Management & Coordination
  • Data Collection & Analysis
  • Stakeholder Engagement

Certification

  • Data Analysis with R programming
  • Project Management
  • Fundamentals of GIS-University of California, Davis
  • Fundamentals of GIS-ESRI

Accomplishments


  • Graduate assistantship in Missouri State University
  • Accepted to Summer School 2024: Leveraging AI for Environmental Sustainability, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Campus in Boulder, Colorado

Publications

  • Exploring adaptation strategies for glacier lake outburst flooding in the HKH region of South Asia is currently under review in the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction
  • Research paper has been published in an international journal (Resource Policy). The topic of research paper is Artisanal Small-Scale Mining for Sustainable Livelihood in Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan
  • Review of the Gilgit – Baltistan Pakistan Tourism Policy, Legal Framework and Development of Subsidiary Rules in USAID, Development Experience Clearinghouse (DEC)
  • Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minerals Governance Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan in USAID, Development Experience Clearinghouse (DEC)

Volunteer Experience

  • Students Environmental Organization Gilgit, 10/2009, 2017,
  • Worked as event coordinator for Organization for Educational Change in Gilgit and Chitral (2015-2017)
  • CEENA health and welfare services, 2017, Present, Volunteer

References

Referees will be provided upon request.

Timeline

Participant

National Science Foundation (NSF) and UCAR (The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research)
08.2024

Graduate Assistant

Missouri State University
01.2024 - Current

Business Enabling Environment (BEE) Associate

Chemonics International Inc. / USAID SMEA
04.2021 - 12.2021

District Coordinator, ICT

Interactive Research and Development (IRD), Pakistan
03.2020 - 05.2020

Research Assistant

Gilgit Baltistan Rural Development and Climate Resilient Project
09.2019 - 02.2020

Research Analyst

Aga Khan Rural Support Program (AKRSP)
06.2019 - 08.2019

Monitoring and Evaluation Assistant

Consultancy funded by Asian Development Bank implemented by National Transmission and Distribution Company NTDC Pakistan
12.2016 - 01.2019

Enumerator

UNESCO research project with the collaboration of AKF and PDCN
09.2016

Monitoring and Evaluation Intern

Economic Transformation Initiative, funded by the international fund for agriculture development (IFAD)
02.2016 - 08.2016

MS. Geography, Geology, and Planning - Geospatial science

Missouri State University

MS. Public Policy -

George Mason University

MS. Development Studies -

National University of Science And Technology Islamabad

Bachelors, Economics -

Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi
  • Data Analysis with R programming
  • Project Management
  • Fundamentals of GIS-University of California, Davis
  • Fundamentals of GIS-ESRI
Sobia Shah