ML Resources Social Vision Division applies our founder’s spirit of sharing and tolerance to the development of socially responsible partnerships and philanthropic projects. We engage in causes geared toward capacity building and institution strengthening, and provide the necessary support to ensure their expansion and success. Social Vision also aims to bridge the gap between the West and the Islamic World, particularly Pakistan. Our goal is to enhance our current partnerships in order to help them achieve their potential.



Center for Global Understanding (CFGU)
The Center for Global Understanding (CFGU) is a non-profit organization designed to bring people together by building a bridge between different cultures and religions. CFGU has a partnership with The Washington Center (TWC), an education non-profit organization, to administer their Washington DC internship program focused on cultivating the next generation of American leaders from under-represented minority backgrounds. ML Social Vision awarded a grant for CFGU’s summer 2010 internship program, which provided support to five students.

^{Congressman Keith Ellison’s speech at the CFGU Reception July 2010
Intern Ambereen Shaffie’s speech at the CFGU Reception July 2010}



Interfaith Youth Action Group (IYAG)
In June 2010, ML Resources Social Vision and 9/11 Unity Walk, a not-for-profit organization that brings people of all backgrounds and faiths together to walk in unity, partnered to launch the Interfaith Youth Action Group (IYAG). IYAG is a pilot initiative in the Washington, D.C. area that builds on previous efforts by the Tony Blair Faith Foundation’s Faiths Act Fellows. It aims to empower high school students from diverse backgrounds to become leaders in interfaith dialogue and service, guiding them to create their own year-long community service initiatives with both a local and global expression, using the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals as their platform.




Interfaith Center NY / CONNECT
In April 2010, Social Vision provided a grant for a two-year initiative to train religious leaders in domestic violence awareness and crises interventions, a program spearheaded by the Interfaith Center of New York (ICNY) and CONNECT, an NYC organization dedicated to preventing domestic violence and promoting gender justice. Given that every religious community in New York suffers from domestic violence, the training and capacity building will provide an opportunity for diverse communities to work together on a shared and very serious issue. ICNY and CONNECT are partnering to create a citywide network of grassroots religious leaders who will be educated and empowered to prevent and respond to domestic abuse in their respective communities. This two-year program will provide the foundation for future replication and growth of such efforts.




Miriam's Kitchen
On Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day 2009, ML Resources LLC Social Vision partnered with Miriam's Kitchen, a Washington, DC gourmet soup kitchen, to serve breakfast to Miriam's homeless guests. Social Vision provided funding and recruited volunteers to prepare and serve the meals, bringing people from various faiths together in service. The company also provided personal hygiene kit items for the soup kitchen’s homeless guests, with tote bags imprinted with both ML Resources Social Vision and Miriam's Kitchen logos.




Interfaith Service Week
August 31 to September 6, 2009 was Interfaith Service Week, part of President Obama’s United We Serve Campaign. ML Resources Social Vision took seriously this call to action and reached across faith lines to partner with The Salvation Army and The Salvation Army Advisory Council, coordinating volunteer service opportunities for The Salvation Army Sherman Avenue Corps Feeding Program and The Salvation Army Grate Patrol. On September 3, 2009, ML Resources partnered with 9/11 Unity Walk, All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS), the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Interfaith Youth Core, and The Salvation Army to host Fast2Feed, an interfaith Iftar/community service rally at the 6th and I Historic Synagogue in Washington, D.C.

^{ML Social Vision Interfaith Week Video
VOA Urdu Coverage of Fast2Feed (with English subtitles)
Press Release
News Coverage}



The Salvation Army - Grate Patrol Program
Social Vision currently funds and supports the Salvation Army’s Grate Patrol, a program that feeds homeless men, women and children 365 days a year in Washington, D.C. The Grate Patrol van feeds between 100-200 people per night. In addition to the meals, the program directs clients to housing, social services and other support services. Social Vision’s funding for the Grate Patrol began on Christmas Day 2008.


^{Press Release on ML Resources LLC Support for the Salvation Army’s Grate Patrol}





Relief4Pakistan
The recent floods in Pakistan have affected over 20 million people and have destroyed homes and livelihoods. In August 2010, ML Social Vision partnered with Pakistani Peace Builders (PPB) and Indus Valley Productions to launch Relief4Pakistan, a global grassroots donation campaign that leverages social media platforms and people-to-people relationships to raise money for the millions suffering from the disaster in Pakistan. In its first phase, R4P successfully mobilized a citizen response to the disaster, raising $150,000 for Mercy Corps' emergency first response relief efforts on the ground. ML Social Vision provided the seed donation to jump start this campaign. In November 2010, we launched our 2nd phase, an innovative program developed in partnership with Operation USA to aid recovery efforts in the Bangla Ichha Union Council, a cluster of four forgotten villages in Rajanpur, Punjab province. Working closely with the local tribal leadership and community organization, Relief4Pakistan will raise and direct funds to help jumpstart this area’s agrarian economy.




PULS (Pakistan Urban Link and Support Network)
In July 2010, ML Social Vision awarded a grant to the Pakistan Urban Link and Support Network (PULS), a pilot initiative aiming to build a real-time, internet based SMS network and dispatch system that connects people and organizations for positive local action. The pilot, which launched in August 2010, deploys Groundcrew Software as a networked communication and mapping tool in direct support of the clients and staff of National Rural Support Program (NRSP)’s flagship urban poverty alleviation program, the Socioeconomic Development of Destitute and Neglected Children’s Families project (SDDNCF) in Punjab province. PULS provides added value, efficiency, and enjoyment to the ongoing activities of SDDNCF’s staff and clients, while at the same time creates a new system for outreach and productive linkages to civil society volunteers and supporters.




Naya Jeevan
Naya Jeevan is a not-for-profit social enterprise that provides urban, low-income families in the emerging world with affordable access to quality, healthcare. Founded in 2007 by a team of social entrepreneurs, Naya Jeevan’s unique and comprehensive microinsurance program seeks to create the emerging world’s first “HMO for the marginalized poor.” In April 2010, ML Resources Social Vision provided a seed grant for Naya Jeevan’s operations in Pakistan and US.





EcoEnergy Finance
EcoEnergy Finance is a non-profit organization that seeks to provide cleaner, healthier, and more efficient energy for the rural poor in developing countries and the United States. The organization aims to install solar-powered lighting in rural villages in order to foster green investment and develop income-generation opportunities. Social Vision is currently providing funding and support for EEF’s pilot initiative in rural Sindh, Pakistan, which will launch in September 2010.





Batting for Change
In October 2009, ML Resources Social Vision launched Batting for Change, a community development initiative in Buner, a conflict-affected area in northwest Pakistan. In the first phase of the pilot program, Social Vision partnered with Pakistan-based NGO Regional Institute of Policy Research & Training (RIPORT) to launch a district-wide cricket tournament for the local community. In April 2010, Social Vision initiated Phase II of Batting for Change, establishing, Da Ilam Kor (“House of Learning” in Pashto), a computer literacy center for high school boys. In the last ten months (April 2010-Jan2011) more than 90 students have successfully trained and certified in the basic computer skills (Windows XP, MS Office applications, Basic designing/multimedia, Urdu & English typing and Basic Internet knowledge training), which enabled them with the spirit of hope for the future.The program will also engage participants in a sports tournament, instituting an innovative work and rewards system. ML Resources Social Vision aims to replicate the Batting for Change model in other conflict-affected areas in Pakistan in an effort to develop local communities and engage youth.



Women Aid Trust (WAT)
Since January 2000, ML Resources LLC founder Muslim Lakhani has been the primary benefactor for the Women Aid Trust, an organization formed by a group of enterprising women that provides legal aid and rehabilitative services for women in Pakistani prisons. Due to his continued support for this cause, the organization has flourished and expanded to aid both women and juveniles in six jails throughout Pakistan. WAT also undertakes research and advocacy efforts to improve the country's legal and judicial system for the rights of women, and offers a range of community welfare, education, health and emergency relief services. Social Vision recently inherited direct responsibility for the support and funding of WAT.



House of Rice (Chawal Wala Ghar)
In August 1997, our founder initiated a program to feed the poor on the lane next to his home in Islamabad, Pakistan. Word spread about the "Chawal Wala Ghar" (meaning, "House of Rice" in Urdu), and today the program has expanded to provide food for the laborer and underprivileged men, women, and children in five locations - three in Islamabad and two in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. The program, appropriately entitled House of Rice, serves food to over 500 people per day, 365 days a year. In 2008, Social Vision assumed responsibility for the continuation of this initiative.