Groundswell of hope for the needy

On invitation of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), in partnership with The Dubai Mall, concluded its participation in the Well of Hope competition launched by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI), under a campaign themed ‘Power of Giving.’  

During the campaign, held on 23 May, Dubai Culture managed to pump 17,707 litres of water, amounting to 1,180 bottles to be donated to the needy and people living in remote areas with limited access to water. Under the campaign, the participants, in the presence of Hala Badri, the Director General of Dubai Culture, pumped water through a virtual device, thus collecting water remotely. Apart from the installation, the campaign also featured a live painting session by renowned calligrapher and talented artist Diaa Allam.

 Sheikha Latifa Bint Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice Chairperson of Dubai Culture, said, “The Well of Hope campaign, part of The Arab Hope Makers initiative, was launched by my father His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, perfectly encapsulates the commitment of our leadership to lend a helping hand to those in need, globally. It also reflects His Highness’s vision to support humanitarian work and his belief in the importance of collective action to serve people wherever they are, thus allowing organisations, individuals, and members of the community to do their part in making our world a better place for people and future generations.

 Through His Highness’s charitable initiatives, we learn the lessons of giving and tolerance; we learn how we can rise together, develop, innovate, and progress. I firmly believe in my father’s vision that we all play a role in contributing to the efforts that address urgent humanitarian issues.”

Sheikha Latifa added, “Water is the source of life and the growing scarcity of available sources of clean drinking water has made it one of the greatest challenges of our time. By encouraging interaction, dialogue, action, and sharing solutions for the most pressing and urgent global challenges, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed has left a positive impact on communities and instilled hope in the lives of many. The UAE has a long and storied history of charitable efforts, the values of which were established and passed down by our founding fathers. With a culture steeped in compassion and altruism, every small act can be the pebble in the pond that creates the ripple for change.”

The ‘Power of Giving’ campaign gathered Dubai Culture’s employees, people of determination, and the members of the community from various nationalities and cultures to participate, ranking The authority is among the top three government entities in terms of number of bottles collected for the Well of Hope competition.

Hala Badri said, “This campaign was our effort to reinforce a culture of giving and spread hope among the community by supporting the Well of Hope initiative. The theme Power of Giving signified the importance of empathy, and aimed at positioning Dubai as a champion of humanitarian work. The campaign exemplified diversity as an integral part of our social fabric and aligned with the national observation of 2019 as the Year of Tolerance. The response was overwhelming as a huge number of people from various nationalities, ethnicities and cultures, including women, people of determination, and even children, joined us for the noble cause of donating water.”

Dubai Culture aims to enhance Dubai’s cultural scene and draw attention to the UAE’s rich heritage. The authority’s mandate is to build bridges of constructive dialogue between different civilisations and cultures to enhance Dubai’s position as a creative and sustainable city for culture, heritage, arts, and literature, with the aim to empower these sectors by developing creative and innovative projects and initiatives locally, regionally, and globally.

The Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) was launched on March 8, 2008 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, in order to drive the growth of the city’s artistic and cultural landscape. The authority’s vision is to establish Dubai as a global, creative, and sustainable city for culture, heritage, arts and literature, and to empower these sectors to bring happiness to Dubai’s society.

As part of its mandate, Dubai Culture has several initiatives that are focused on strengthening both the historic and modern cultural fabric of Dubai.