I am a journalist based in Pakistan covering climate, technology and human rights.
Email: zsiddiqui [at] protonmail [dot] com
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Selected Writing
Climate
16 Children Died Within Days. Experts Blame This Megacity’s Toxic Air.
VICE, February 2023
Big Promises were made at COP27. Where’s the money?
VICE, November 2022
The Devastating Colonial Legacy of Dams in Pakistan
The Juggernaut, November 2022
Karachi: Fighting an unfolding climate apocalypse
The Sinking Cities Project, October 2022
Republished in Scroll.in and The Third Pole.
Pakistan floods pose urgent questions over preparedness and climate reparations
The New Humanitarian, September 2022
Scant hope for relief as repeated heat waves scorch Pakistan
The New Humanitarian, May 2022
Early Heatwaves Foreshadow Uncertain Future in South Asia
The Third Pole, April 2021
Technology
Scams are ruining Pakistan’s digital economy
WIRED, March 2023
Pakistan’s three-day Wikipedia ban sends a “dangerous” message
Rest of World, February 2023
Amazon finally authorized Pakistani sellers. A wave of scammers followed
Rest of World, January 2023
Inside the Pakistani city at the heart of Alibaba’s global expansion strategy
Rest of World, September 2022
How to buy a sari in Lahore
Rest of World, July 2022
Who will be Pakistan’s first unicorn?
Rest of World, May 2022
Asia’s largest food delivery platform Foodpanda stumbles in Pakistan, too
Rest of World, March 2022
Airlift Mafia: Pakistan’s buzziest startup has created a new class of founders
Rest of World, March 2022
Digital Rights & Feminist Futures
Goethe Institut, December 2021
Pakistan’s tech ecosystem is booming. Here’s why it will slow down in 2022
Rest of World, November 2021
How the platform economy sets women up to fail
Rest of World, SEPTEMBER 2021
Amazon finally opens its marketplace to merchants from Pakistan
Rest of World, May 2021
Amazon banned merchants from Pakistan, but they’re still finding a way onto the platform
Rest of World, April 2021
With No Formal Sex-Ed, Pakistanis Turn to The Internet
The Juggernaut, November 2020
Pakistani Women Said #MeToo — Now They’re Getting Sued
The Juggernaut, October 2020
Pakistan Is Using a Terrorism Surveillance System to Monitor the Pandemic
Slate, July 2020
Human Rights
Pakistan faith groups restricted from supporting Afghan refugees
Devex, October 2021
Pakistan’s Blasphemy Laws Are Politically Toxic—and Often Lethal
World Politics Review, October 2021
In Pakistan, Legacy of Fake CIA Vaccination Programs Leads to Vaccine Hesitancy
VICE, March 2021
Protest and Purdah in Pakistan
Foreign Policy, January 2021
Pakistani Women Said #MeToo — Now They’re Getting Sued
The Juggernaut, October 2020
Harassment scandal at girls’ school spurs Pakistan #MeToo movement
The National, July 2020
In Pakistan, the Army Tightens Its Grip
Foreign Policy, July 2020
In Pakistan, the pandemic exacerbates precarious conditions for journalists
Ethical Journalism Network, June 2020
Doctors without Armour
Himal Southasian, April 2020
Is Abortion Legal in Pakistan?
Soch Writing, February 2020
Afterlives of the Empress
Soch Writing, February 2020
Karachi’s Missing Children
Soch Writing, September 2020
China Is Trying To Spy On Pakistan’s Uighurs
Buzzfeed News, June 2019
For Afghan Refugees, Pakistan Is a Nightmare—but Also Home
Foreign Policy, May 2019
Firebranding the Frontier: The Women of the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement
Jamhoor, May 2019
Culture
Many Pakistanis dig the cultural nods on ‘Ms. Marvel’ but are mixed on casting
National Public Radio, June 2022
A Border Apart: Stories of Families Divided by Partition
The Juggernaut, October 2021
Why Most Pakistanis Can’t See The Film Pakistan Is Submitting For An Oscar Nod
National Public Radio, February 2021
Pakistan’s Trans TikTok Stars
The Juggernaut, January 2021