Beirut Pride is a project by Public Interest Design Levant – PID –, a non-profit and multidisciplinary organization founded in 2015 in Beirut, and operating at the intersection of design-thinking and entrepreneurship. PID aims to Create Shared Value to catalyze needs-based development grounded by research and interaction with stakeholders.

Vision

Catalyze SMART, strategic, and sustainable needs based on development, by engaging maximum stakeholders in Creating Shared social and economic Value (CSV), through crafting development strategies while facilitating cooperation between stakeholders to identify and implement opportunities and innovative solutions of intervention under the overall strategy.

Mission

To become a reference for research-based development and development consultancy by building a reliable and detailed database of opportunities and a wide network of private, public, and civic institutions involved in development, while engaging stakeholders with the right opportunity to Create maximum Shared Value.

PID engages all stakeholders in the development process, in particular residents, civic institutions, private companies, public institutions and educational institutions. Any intervention to be implemented therefore carries a common value for all stakeholders, and therefore the participants’ ownership and responsibilities, ensuring sustainability and success. Stakeholders vary depending of the project. The most regular ones are the following 5.

Residents

We partner up with local residents to get research data about the needs and wants of a certain population, which generates, with the participation of the locals, a development intervention strategy of that tackles economic, social, cultural, and environmental issues.

Civic institutions

We seek civic institutions working in the same areas that our intervention strategy addresses. We join hands with them in research and implementation to ensure high quality of delivery, and the satisfaction of the community.

Private institutions

As a CSR and CSV consultancy working with businesses to co-build or implement their CSR and CSV policies, we leverage our network, our projects, and our value creation practice, to align corporate and civic social initiatives under common goals and causes. This ensures maximum impact, and return on investment for corporations.

Public institutions

Public institutions are key to the success of initiatives, be it on the level of policy or governance, or on the level of local, social, cultural, and environmental small-scale interventions. We engage public institutions, and we seek their support and buy-in for a maximum value creation to all stakeholders.

Educational institutions

We join forces with academic institutions, think tanks and universities, to conduct research and analysis, and to host academic debates and conferences with the aim to stay up-to-date with academic debate, and push the boundaries of innovation and creativity.

Our 4-Step Methodology Cycle

Base lining and needs assessment

Based on research, PID identifies areas with the most needs and potential and designs potential interventions. Areas of intervention are either specific geographic areas or social, cultural, and environmental causes. After identification, we conduct research to further understand the needs of the area of intervention, and we baseline the current situation to measure future change and gaps between current and ideal.

Analysis

The baselining results and needs assessment are studied in order to highlight the core of the issue. We study the Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST) environment, and benchmark it to other comparable situations (when applicable) to identify gaps and opportunities, and set the scope of the project.

Design

At this third stage, we devise short, medium, and long term interventions based on the needs and wants of the stakeholders, informed by the field research, and the survey findings. We then connect the population, the stakeholders, and the intervention specialists as part of the participatory design process to ensure maximum value creation for all.

Implementation

The project is launched with two to three phases. The pilot phase tests the intervention on a controlled, representative sample. The second phase is then adjusted, and improved based on the pilot feedback. Should the pilot be repeated, we would then recommend a phase three for the final project launch. Regular feedback loops are designed to continuously improve the intervention, and to gather data that identifies other needs for intervention.