Campus issue 25 by Oryx Group of Magazines

YOUSUF JASSEM AL DARWISH

SINDHU NAIR ABIGAIL MATHIAS AYSWARYA MURTHY

VENKAT REDDY M HANAN ABU SAIAM

SANDEEP SEHGAL ALPANA ROY RAVI RAMAN

NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2014

FREDRICK ALPHONSO SAKALA A. DEBRASS THOMAS JOSE

MATHEWS CHERIAN HASSAN REKKAB LYDIA YOUSSEF

ADITYA KARKERA

PRATAP CHANDRAN BIKRAM SHRESTHA ARJUN TIMILSINA BHIMAL RAI, BASANTHA

AYUSH INDRAJITH MAHESHWAR REDDY B

IF YOU OWN A PET OR KNOW SOMEONE WHO DOES, THE CHANCES ARE QUITE HIGH THAT YOU’VE HEARD ANECDOTES ABOUT HOW THEIR PINT-SIZED DOG ATTEMPTED TO FRIGHTEN THE PIZZA DELIVERY PERSON OR THEIR CAT MARKED ITS TERRITORY ON THE LIVING ROOM COUCH. THE CAMPUS TEAM TRULY ENJOYED PUTTING THIS ISSUE TOGETHER. WE CERTAINLY TRIED TO ADDRESS THE MORE SERIOUS ISSUES OF BADLY TREATED ANIMALS, SOME NEGLECTED, OTHERS ABANDONED. WE ALSO SPEAK TO PARTICIPANTS OF THE RECENTLY CONCLUDED WISE CONFERENCE IN QATAR WHICH PUTS EDUCATION AT THE FOREFRONT. IF YOU HAVE BEEN THINKING OF TRAINING FOR THE UPCOMING MARATHON, WE GOT EXPERTS SHARING A FEW TIPS TO GET YOU GOING. HAPPY READING.

Address all correspondence to CAMPUS, Oryx Advertising Co. WLL, P.O. Box 3272 Doha-Qatar. Tel: (+974) 44672139, 44550983, 44671173, 44667584. Fax: (+974) 44550982; Email: campus@omsqatar.com. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. The publisher does not accept responsibility for advertising contents. Licensing/Republishing CAMPUS content: To obtain permission for text syndication in books, newsletters, magazines, newspapers and web or to use images/pictures carried in CAMPUS, please contact our syndication and licensing department on the numbers given above. Permission is also required to photocopy a CAMPUS article for classroom use, course packs, business or general use. Custom reprints: Any previously published article/s to be used as stand-alone pieces can be reprinted by us on special request. The reprint cost is based on the length of the article and the quantity ordered. Contact our custom publishing division on the numbers given above for more information.Previous issues (January 2004 onwards) of CAMPUS are available for sale, contact our library department. To subscribe to CAMPUS call our subscription department on the numbers given above.

Published by Oryx Advertising Co. , P.O. Box 3272 Doha-Qatar. Tel: (+974) 44672139, 44550983, 44671173, 44667584. Fax: (+974) 44550982. Email: campus@omsqatar.com website: www.omsqatar.com

THE REAL STARS

Who will win the top spot and the $600,000 prize money in the latest edition of Stars of Science?

34 IN THE LAND OF GOOD HOPE

ISSUE 25 NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2014

Jyostna Subramaniam from the Class of 2014 at Georgetown University in Qatar talks about the eventful trip to South Africa last summer which brought about tectonic shifts in her perspective.

COLLEGE CLIFF JUMP How to write that winning college admission essay.

WISE LEARNERS LEAD BY EXAMPLE

THE THUNDER FROM DOWN UNDER

Project Orenda uses feedback from the most marginalized sections of the community and helps reconstruct schools for them.

Young New Zealander Lorde has pocketed some of the biggest awards the music industry has to offer with her sweet, sultry voice and sophisticated songwriting, all before she turned 18.

MARATHON TRAINING FOR DUMMIES The marathon season is here and Crunch Doha and Guinness World Record holder Ziyad Rahim put together an 18-week training plan for those preparing to run their first one.

TAPPING INTO GIRL POWER The Qatar branch of Girl Up is the newest node in the growing network of young people working towards girlsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; education in developing countries.

EXOTIC ENCLOSURE Keeping with our theme for the current issue, we take a stroll around the (in)famous pet souq in Doha.

CAMPUS NEWS

A DECLARATION TO EMPOWER HER EXCELLENCY SHEIKHA AL MAYASSA BINT HAMAD AL THANI, CHAIRPERSON OF REACH OUT TO ASIA (ROTA) SIGNED THE ‘EMPOWER DECLARATION 2014’ TO PROMOTE HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT AMONG THE YOUTH.

his was part of the 6th Annual Youth Conference ‘Empower’ organized by ROTA. Entitled ‘Sports for Youth Empowerment’, the declaration was launched by young ROTA volunteers from Qatar and the Gulf region. They include Generation Amazing Youth Ambassadors from the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy. HE Sheikha Al Mayassa expressed her delight at the signing, saying: “Today we are reaping the rewards of five years of continued efforts to develop youth capacity in Qatar and the Gulf region, through Reach Out To Asia activities. We celebrate this declaration launched by Empower Volunteers themselves. Through their own determination and sense of responsibility, they drafted its content with the intention of investing in younger generations. They are using sports as a platform to inspire the values that build a healthy and thoughtful society.”

KICKOFF AT QF

THE SECOND UNIVERSITY LEAGUE BEGAN IN EDUCATION CITY WITH 12 TEAMS FIGHTING IT OUT FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP, WHICH WILL END IN FEBRUARY.

rganized in association with the Qatar Football Association, Qatar Foundation is hosting the matches which features teams from Qatar Aeronautical College, Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies, Texas A&M University, Carnegie Mellon University, Weill Cornell Medical College and College of the North Atlantic (Group A); and Northwestern University, Qatar University, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, HEC Paris, Academic Bridge Programme and University of Calgary Qatar (Group B). Londoner James Copplestone-Farmer, who studies communications at NU and has been a resident of Qatar for over four years, was quoted as saying: “The pitches looked bigger and everything is much more organized. Judging by the edges of the pitch, there seems to be a lot more sponsors and interest in it this year.” Qatar University won the tournament last year, with the University of Calgary and Qatar Aeronautical College finishing second and third respectively.

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NEW MEDICAL COLLEGE SET TO OPEN IN DOHA AS PER A DIRECTIVE FROM HH THE EMIR SHEIKH TAMIM BIN HAMAD AL THANI, THE BOARD OF REGENTS OF QATAR UNIVERSITY HAS APPROVED PLANS TO ESTABLISH A COLLEGE OF MEDICINE, ACCORDING TO A STATEMENT RELEASED BY THE UNIVERSITY.

he establishment of the College addresses the increasing need for Qatar-trained physicians, and supports the country’s growing healthcare sector and national strategies in healthcare and education. Working collaboratively with key healthcare providers and educators, the College will make invaluable contributions to strengthening clinical practices, medical education and research in Qatar overall. The decision was based on the result of a thorough feasibility study conducted by a team of high-ranking members from Qatar University, Hamad Medical Corporation and Qatar Leadership Center. The team was further advised by an international advisory board, including current and former Deans of medical colleges at Stanford University, Johns Hopkins University, Heidelberg University, American University of Beirut, and University of Sharjah. “We look forward to welcoming the first class of students to the College of Medicine in Fall 2015,” QU President Prof Sheikha Abdulla Al Misnad said.

‘STAND UP! SPEAK OUT!’

UNIVERSITIES IN EDUCATION CITY COLLABORATED TO HOST ACTIVITIES THROUGHOUT THE MONTH OF OCTOBER IN SUPPORT OF THE INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH.

s part of the campaign, events were designed to raise awareness among students, staff and faculty on issues of personal safety. Activities included informative booths at Education City to address pertinent topics like personal safety, types of abuse, healthy relationships and how to help a friend in need. A self-defense class took place in late October, along with a film screening and discussion of Cairo678 – a film focusing on harassment.

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CANADIAN OPPORTUNITIES

MANY STUDENTS IN QATAR AND THEIR PARENTS ATTENDED THE EDUCANADA FAIR ON NOVEMBER 3, AT THE COLLEGE OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC - QATAR TO SPEAK WITH CANADIAN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND TO LEARN ABOUT GOING TO SCHOOL IN CANADA.

“W

e are very pleased with the turnout,” said Canadian Ambassador André Dubois. “We believe that Canadian schools are some of the best in the world and we want to make sure that people living in Qatar have the opportunity to learn about them.” HSBC reports that obtaining an education in Canada is less expensive than in other countries such as Australia, Singapore, the US, UK, and Hong Kong. There are also scholarships at each school that students can apply for that could lower fees. This is why there were over 293,000 full-time overseas students in Canada in 2013. This makes Canada one of the most popular countries for overseas students.

EXPLORING THE NANOSPACE

S THE ART OF REPURPOSING

irginia Commonwealth University in Qatar hosted Brazilian activist

and researcher Felipe Fonseca as part of their Designer in Residence program. In his public lecture, Fonseca explored the popular practices of Gambiarra and Mutirão in Brazil where several initiatives have been launched to promote the reuse and repurposing of discarded objects and inspire further discuss how society relates to the waste it generates.

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tudents from high schools participating in Qatar University’s Al Bairaq program will now be engaged in workshops on nanotechnology, along with the other scientific fields covered. Speaking at the induction event, Head of the Center for Advanced Materials, Dr Mariam Al Maadeed, said that the program increased the number of offerings on modern scientific subjects in the new session including “Manipulation of Light in the Nanoworld”. Nine hundred students from 30 participating schools expected to join the program were present with parents and teachers to learn details of the program’s modules - “I am a Researcher”, “I am Discovering Materials” and “Science in Sport”.

THE REAL STARS “THE INTELLECTUAL” THIEAB AL DOSSARY OF BAHRAIN AND “THE STRATEGIST” SULTAN AL SUBHI OF OMAN WILL COMPETE FOR THE TOP SPOT AND A SHARE OF THE $600,000 IN PRIZE MONEY IN THE LATEST STARS OF SCIENCE.

uring an episode punctuated by moments of tension and triumph, the two fan favorites of Qatar Foundation’s “edutainment reality” T V program successfully defended their projects in the design stage. Al Subhi and Al Dossary took first and second place respectively to advance, while Walaa Aniba of Tunisia, with her Smart Headphones project, fell just short and was eliminated. Stars of Science, now in its sixth season, pits innovators against each other in a competition to turn their ideas into reality. Twelve candidates, aged 18 to 30, come to

develop their inventions from concept to commercialization, with the ultimate goal of winning funding for their projects. After proving themselves in the crucial engineering stage, candidates had very little time to enhance the design of their projects, while also improving functionality and marketability. In the design stage, candidates were evaluated by VIP juror James Law, founder of the award-winning architectural firm James Law Cybertecture International. Commenting on aesthetic specifications, design improvements, product functionality and user interface,

Director of the United Nations ESCWA regional technology center. The judging criteria were based on industrial design (50%), marketability (30%) and knowledge skills (20%). Sultan got high marks for incorporating Arabic geometric patterns in the design of his Wudu Area Robotic Cleaner, which automatically cleans the ablution areas in mosques. Thieab impressed the jury with an attractive, re-vamped design of his Tactile Communicating Bracelet, which adds an extra dimension to the multimedia experience by relaying pulses to the user’s

Doha, Qatar, where they are mentored by world-class engineering and design experts at the Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP). The innovators’ resilience, ingenuity and teamwork are tested in challenges throughout the show as they

Law applied his vast knowledge and experience to critique the candidates’ work. He was joined by perennial jurors Youssif Al Salhi, the General Manager of Qatar Shell Research and Technology Center and Dr Fouad Mrad, the Executive

arm in sync with music. Walaa impressed Law and the rest of the jurors with the concept of her Smart Headphones, which pauses music playback when risk is detected. However, her project’s design was not distinctive enough to satisfy the jury.

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SPOTLIGHT

paws

for thought

HAVING A PET MAKES LIFE SO MUCH MORE FUN AND MEANINGFUL. DON’T BELIEVE US? LET THESE IMAGES SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES. MEET THESE PROUD PET OWNERS IN DOHA WHO LEAD RICH LIVES THANKS TO THEIR FURRY FRIENDS.

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SHERIF MOSTAFA

CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY IN QATAR, CLASS OF 2018 I have a pet cat and I’m in love with her because she understands what I want her to do with simple gestures and she knows her baby kittens very well. This is very intriguing because I had never seen first-hand a mother’s care in an animal before and now I witness this almost every day. My cat had about seven kittens in total but one of them unfortunately died because she was malnourished. We even interfered to try and help the kitten but the mother just knew that it won’t work out. On a positive note, whenever my cat casually walks outside my house, she always has to come back at night to either protect her kittens or (mainly) to sleep.

NEHA MISHRA AMERICAN SCHOOL OF DOHA

It started off as a biology project, but now Cheesepuff is part of our family. I’ve yearned for a pet since before I could walk and ever since this hamster entered our home, he has never ceased to brighten my day.

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MAHMOUD AL AKER COLLEGE OF NORTH ATLANTIC IN QATAR

I love this monkey probably more than any other animal because it is rare to have one as a pet. I often also feel like a father protecting it. I take it with me everywhere I go.

MOHAMMED ALAWAD TEXAS A & M UNIVERSITY IN QATAR

Having a duck as a pet is easy. But loving it is not something that can be done by anyone. I like how this cute little animal walks around the garden and then suddenly jumps in the swimming pool. Its name is Tarzan.

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KAVYA NAIR DOHA MODERN INDIAN SCHOOL

Our puppy was a tiny bundle of cement, concrete and dirt when we found him outside our compound. He was barely two months old and was dehydrated as it was in the hot month of Ramdaan that someone had abandoned him. We gave him water and cleaned him and took him to a veterinary doctor who said we found him at the right time and that he was completely fine. Though he came to our house by accident, he is an important member of the family who loves all of us fiercely and unconditionally. He is so possessive of us that he hates it when we have visitors. Coming back to a house to be greeted by his licks and kisses are a treat for all of us. But what we cannot understand is how would anyone, anyone with a heart, ever abandon a small helpless little puppy and leave it, knowingly, to its death. We still cannot believe how lucky we were to have found him at the right time. Having a pet has made our household cluttered, our schedules chaotic, our clothes always covered with his hair, but has filled our lives with so much love.

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ALL CREATURES

GREAT AND SMALL BY L ABIGAI S MATHIA

Dr Koney Kwao, Veterinary Surgeon at Dr Faris Al Timimi Veterinary Clinic smiles when asked about being interviewed. Maybe it is because it marks one year since he joined the clinic in Doha. Or may be heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unaccustomed to being in the spotlight. Clearly stars in his clinic are the animals that he and his team treats.

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THE CLINIC

operates in Katara and has a regular number of pet owners who bring their beloved creatures for treatment, vaccines and other related supplies. As we discuss the work that goes on, it is hard to ignore the many pet owners streaming in. Many have a sense of urgency that is hard to ignore. There are countless notices on the walls for missing pets put up by distressed owners. We meet on what is an auspicious day for Dr Kwao. “I started at this clinic exactly a year ago,” he says. He is too busy treating the animals in his care to mark the milestone before this. Dr Kwao hails from Ghana. He completed his training in Kenya at the University of Nairobi. “It’s a general vet practice where you graduate as a vet surgeon and are basically expected to handle every possible condition of animal care,” he explains. Treating animals is second nature for Kwao. His father is also a practicing vet in Ghana. Growing up with animals gave him the instinct to care for them. “I have an affiliation from a very young age to help animals,” he says. The clinic in Katara treats mostly dogs and cats, but it also extends its services to exotic animals like lions and cheetahs. “We also treat falcons, which are considered wild animals. I am quite fond of them,” says the vet. Is pet care in Qatar adequate? Dr Kwao says, “In terms of caring for animals more needs to be done. You find cats littering all over the place. That is not where cats are supposed to be. They need to be in shelters. Not roaming about eating from the garbage. We call them pets when it suits us but they deserve a better life than that.” Elaborating on medical assistance for animals, he adds, “I believe that if there are too many veterinary centers, it won’t be good for the profession as some centers may offer a quick fix solution in order to attract more clients. In this case one won’t take the time to understand the problem the animal is facing, before treating them.”

CHALLENGES The clinic has five doctors. “At any point in time you can find someone,” reassures the doctor. Emergency is open all the time, even on Fridays. Commendably the centre can

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“If someone finds a distressed animal we would encourage them to take the animal to a vet but you should approach such animals with care.”

He adds, “I always aim to do my very best. No vet is happy to lose an animal. If an animal survives from being treated we are extremely pleased as well.”

THINKING OF ADOPTION? READ ON

handle a whole range of cases. “Complications do occur but we are always capacitated to handle them. The only complication for us are the humans,” smiles Dr Kwao. Owners tend to be impatient when it comes to their pets. “When you treat one of their pets you treat the owners as well. When someone brings an animal, I have to make them understand exactly what is happening. Only if they agree, then I can go ahead with the line of

“We all may enjoy having a pet but if you are serious about it, I would encourage them to meet a vet before as they can tell you what is involved and how to handle an animal. Often someone adopts a cat and doesn’t know the basics of handling the animal. The cat is miserable and falls ill all the time. If you know what to do, what time to feed the animal, how to provide a source of constant water and bring it routinely to the vet, your pet will be happy,” says Dr Kwao. The clinic is regularly involved in collaborative efforts with many cat and dog rescue groups in Doha. These groups trap sick, stray animals, get them treated, neutered and release them. Many of these animals get adopted and find new homes. “If someone finds a distressed animal we would encourage them

treatment. For example, if I tell an owner that it may be a terminal stage for their pet, and they do not understand, we cannot go ahead. A lot of times the vet is blamed when things go wrong,” he explains.

to take the animal to a vet but you should approach such animals with care. There is no rabies in Qatar but there could be other diseases. The vet has to examine the condition of the animal,” he concludes.

EXOTIC ENCLOSURE

IN KEEPING WITH OUR THEME FOR THE CURRENT ISSUE, WE TAKE A STROLL AROUND THE (IN)FAMOUS PET SOUQ IN DOHA.

S 22

ouq Waqif is a fascinating labyrinth to get lost in. If you are brave enough to abandon the main veins of the bustling market and plunge into its criss-crossing arteries, you’ll be richly rewarded. And often the smells will guide you to where you want to go. The sweet scent of karak, kebabs, exotic spices and oud perfumes waft around, pulling you in all directions, like in a cartoon. But there is one small

colour and the noise of hundred living things, mingled with the oohs and aahs of the passer-bys, will signal that you have officially entered the liveliest part of the market. You can’t take two steps without tripping on a little kid, staring transfixed at a majestic toucan or lovingly petting a baby rabbit. And the grown up kids (of the 40-year-old variety) aren’t any less fascinated. They point excitedly at the

buyers to cuddle and pet. It’s a wonderful cacophonous experience. Birds are by far the most populous occupants of the pet souq. From palm-sized chicks that you can get for QR20 each and large exotic ones that cost upwards of QR1,200, there is a bird for every budget. Parrots and love birds are very popular, with people buying them in pairs to brighten up their homes. The smallest ones are not bigger than a couple of inches,

section, spread across barely three lanes, which you can not only smell, but also hear, from leagues away. As you wander closer to the pet souq, the squawks and mews and yelps get louder and a sudden burst of

huddled up hedgehogs and squeal at the bucket full of mice. Tourists pose for pictures holding plump parrots and bored-looking shopkeepers let the puppies in and out of their cages for potential

chirping around and bouncing against each other in their cages. Just close by a giant turtle languidly climbs on top of his buddy’s shell. We call him giant because though he isn’t as massive as turtles go, he is

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absolutely gargantuan next to his cousins, the miniscule baby turtles swimming in a plastic pan nearby, barely 3 cm long. Fat little hamsters thirstily drink water from their bottles. Below them are huge rabbits, almost as big as fully-grown cats, their ears pointed up straight and whiskers shaking. Their babies (and they just don’t stop having them, as it is common knowledge) are delicate little things, curled up close to one another, sleeping soundly despite the din. They go for QR30 each. Even the white mice look adorable and you try not to think about how they are soon going to become falcon-fodder. For the most part, being to this part of the souq leaves you feeling happy. That is if you don’t look close enough. The first thing you hear about the pet souq almost as soon as you get to know that it exists is the sad state of the animals there. Animal lovers and activists have for ages been asking the government to clamp down on these retailers, who clearly don’t care about these little creatures and are only concerned with

The plight of the animals during the summer months were particularly heart-breaking with the cages being left out in the sun without water bowls.

making a buck. There have been reports of fraudulent vaccination papers and pets dying within a few days of being home because of continued exposure to harsh

the continuous campaigning and social media outrage. Apparently cats and dogs are no longer allowed to be retailed at the pet souq. Though many of the shops have stopped selling these animals, we still saw a couple of them - little snowy-white kittens and adorable Bernese puppies on show. These were, in fact, the most popular shops, with the crowd around them not being able to get enough of them. The kittens were being sold for QR600, the puppies from QR500-QR1,600, depending on the breed. The shopkeeper there says they sell at least one pup each day; sometimes as many as four. And it’s good to see the complete absence of bright-coloured chicks, dyed in unnatural shades of pink and blue to attract customers. There is now a veterinary clinic close by and this too is a welcome change. But despite all these

conditions. The plight of the animals during the summer months were particularly heart-breaking with the cages being left out in the sun without water bowls. The situation has reportedly improved due to

obvious improvements, maybe because of the souq’s bad reputation, you can’t help but feel the animals there are getting the raw end of the deal. The longer you stay, the more you notice how the little rabbits,

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usually active creatures, seem too tired and unwillingly to even attempt hopping down from their raised platforms. Maybe being petted by hundreds of well-meaning but curious kids does that you, especially when you are barely a baby yourself. The birds refuse to fly away, inspite of not being tied down to their stands and you wonder what is wrong with them. This is why animal rights campaigners urge people to never buy at the pet souq. And if you are in the market for a pet, we recommend that you don’t shop, but

The birds refuse to fly away, inspite of not being tied down to their stands and you wonder what is wrong with them rather adopt. With Doha’s large transient population, often pets find themselves being abandoned. There are several shelters here that take in and care of these

animals and they are always looking for a new home. While the lure of a “fresh, new” puppy might be great, we urge you to think in the long-term – how long are you going to be here? Will you be able to take your pet with you? Wouldn’t you rather give a loving home to a pet that has lost its old one and is hungry for love from a new "mom" or "dad"? The following shelters will help you find the pet that is right for you and can fill your lives with the unconditional love that only a pet can provide.

QATAR ANIMAL WELFARE SOCIETY

CAT ASSISTANT TEAM:

2ND CHANCE RESCUE:

One of Doha’s oldest shelters that has weathered uncertainty, closure and funding issues solely due to the commitment of its founders and the support of the community. Even if you are not in a position to adopt a pet, you can still volunteer at the shelter – help take the dogs for a walk, play with the cats, clean up the cages, buy them pet food, blankets and other equipment to keep the shelter running and help during fundraising events.

This group of volunteers donates its time and resources for our feline friends who are injured, pregnant or vulnerable. Their TNR team (Trap, Neuter and Return) humanely traps cats, sterilizes them at private or government vets and returns them to the same spot. You can help foster a cat that is healing, donate your DVDs, books, accessories, etc for their fundraising events, cat-sit for someone in need and of course, take home a cat that you happen to fall in love with.

This also another well known group of volunteers in Doha, who aim to provide a safe haven for stray dogs and cats, while they find them loving, ‘forever’ homes. They run their shelter on a farm, 15 minutes north of Landmark Mall and are also always looking for volunteers and donations. They host incredibly fun fundraising events too that you can be a part of.

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Haroon Yasin Co-founder of the Orenda Project

the YOUNG TURKS

wise learners

lead by example BY L ABIGAI S MATHIA

The youth have always had the potential to make a positive change. This is probably best exemplified in the efforts of a team of individuals who met in Qatar a year ago and now run Project Orenda. 26

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team uses feedback from the most marginalized sections of the community and helps reconstruct schools for them. Campus spent time with them to find out what motivates them to do more. A year ago, Ahwaz Akhtar, Thanos Sardellis, Haroon Yasin, and Fatima Ramadan Sanz, all students at Georgetown University Qatar, alongside Ahsan Malik, a student at Warwick University, decided to do something to help the most neglected communities in society, where children are denied the right to basic sanitation and education. “We came together in 2013 by applying to the WISE Learners Voice program. We come from different countries, continents, and have a very diverse array of experiences. Our passion for education is what brought us together,” explains Yasin, cofounder of the Orenda Project. The Learners’ Voice Program has helped the group develop the ideas, taking them to conferences and intensive training workshops in Qatar and Madrid. “There are a lot of people who are displaced due to strife, war or natural calamities,” says Yasin. They include asylum seekers and refugees. “After some time they disappear from the humanitarian agency radars and they fall into a sort of pit where they are not getting access to education. They move to the edge of cities and live in slums.” Orenda attempts to address this problem by establishing a safe educational space for slum populations -- a school that is co-created with the local population, and is constructed using local resources, which make it cost effective. The group has been working together to create a school in a village predominantly inhabited by Afghan refugees in Islamabad. Orenda’s mission is to use contextualized education to alleviate poverty, by establishing schools that are co-created with the input of the people and are made using local and easily available resources. The schools are developed to keep cultural and local traditions in mind. “We decided to co-create schools with inputs from the people who were going to inhabit the schools,” says Yasin. "They use the feedback received and attempt to build community schools. We also collaborated with Virginia Commonwealth University Qatar to design sustainable buildings,” he explains. The process starts with a basic Q and A model. “We ask the students, ‘What would you like your school to look like?” says Yasin. The answers are often simple and of course childlike naive. “Someone once told us they only want to see clear blue skies on the roofs of their schools,” adds Yasin. Clearly, the impact of war and rehabilitation are on the minds of the

people that Orenda interacts with. The input is the building blocks on which Orenda tries to construct a school.

DOUBLE BENEFIT Make no mistake, the youngsters behind Orenda have as much to benefit as the people that they help. When students help create their own learning environments, they become active participants in their education. In return, they receive world-class training in skills such as entrepreneurship, leadership and communication. Yasin, a senior majoring in International Politics, flew to Islamabad this summer to carry out research on 160 Afghan refugee households. He conducted a survey to document their challenging living conditions. Yasin brainstormed many of the ideas for the school with members of the Afghan refugee community, and hopes construction can begin in August next year, if the students are able to secure funding at this year’s WISE conference. The group also educates the misplaced and poorest communities on matters of basic hygiene. Yasin explains, “We found that a major problem for children in these areas is diarrhea. They play in the sewage areas and then eat with the same hands. They spend 80% of their income treating diarrhea. If they have the basic information on cleanliness it will hopefully alleviate that problem.” In 2011, Yasin launched Akhuwat-e-Awam, a school that provides free education to impoverished children in Pakistan, currently providing lessons to 40 children aged five to 15. The successful project turned into a GU-Q campus club where student members decide all matters pertaining to the school.

The Orenda Project team speaks to locals of the Afghan Basti, whom they reached out to this August.

The children of Afghan Basti who were eager to have a school built in the area.

FROM THE GROUND UP The team shares its building process. Yasin tells us, “During our first site visit to Islamabad in Pakistan, we identified - through local knowledge - that many buildings were built from hollow blocks and mud as this absorbs heat in this hot territory, whilst keeping the inside of the building cool at the same time. All these resources are easily available in the local area and the residents of the slum have the skills to use these resources to build the school. We are empowering the community to be at the heart of the school project.” Another important learning, which could only have come after speaking to the inhabitants is “that occupiers of slums are ousted from their homes without notice, thus with the use of such materials, the school can be taken apart like Lego bricks and be put together elsewhere with ease if needed,” says Yasin.

A typical hose in Afghan Basti, constructed using hollow concrete blocks, and then coated with a layer of mud.

ORENDA STRATEGY 1) A high quality, government certified education which is affordable for all. 2) Basic hygiene education, to introduce the students to healthier lifestyles and habits so that they can avoid easily preventable diseases. 3) Entrepreneurship training, so that slum populations can learn how to improve their communities using the scarce resources that they have.

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TAPPING INTO

GIRL POWER

The Qatar branch of Girl Up is the newest node in the growing network of young people working towards girls’ education in developing countries.

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or Sarah Hesterman, grade 11 student at the American School of Doha, life changed unrecognizably within the span of a year. Before her family moved to Qatar in August of 2013, she had only lived in the United States and Britain. “I never really had access to the developing world,” she says, “But here, I got the opportunity to go on a school service trip in April to Tanzania where I witnessed first-hand how many of the girls there weren’t able to get a quality education.” Later that year, a family trip to Jordon opened her eyes to the plight of Syrian refugee girls whose education had come to an abrupt and complete halt. “These personal

during one of her researches on human rights. Girl Up clubs had sprouted around the world – there are now close to 700 clubs in 45 countries – and Sarah saw an opportunity to start the first one in Qatar. “As an American, it was an exciting idea; being able to bring Girl Up to this country and be a positive advocate for the community.” She contacted Girl Up when she was in Washington DC for her summer vacations and they were more than happy to help her get started. “It was an easy, simple process. Because the movement is student-driven, it is set up in a way that makes it very accessible to students. We just had to register online, send progress reports on our activities and exchange thoughts and ideas with the online

experiences and my increasing interest in human rights led me to start Girl Up Qatar.” Girl Up was initially started in America to spread awareness among the young people there on girls’ education around the world. But Sarah learnt about the organization when she was in Qatar,

community,” she says. But what Sarah wasn’t expecting was how receptive the young people in her new home were going to be. It all started with something as simple as a Facebook post. “I had starting sharing ideas on my personal social media profiles about Girl Up and how we

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could go about putting a club together. The response was overwhelming. Almost immediately we had 60 girls and boys express interest (and this was two months before start of school) and now we have close to a hundred loyal members,” she says. Her school was eager to support the club as well as it was a great platform to get the students interested in global issues. They held their first meeting on August 31. Thought they are still very much in the formative stages, Girl Up Qatar already caught the attention of WISE and were able to talk about their work in front of the foremost thought-leaders and innovators in the field of education. “It was an amazing experience,” Sarah says, “I believe we were the youngest speakers to ever present at WISE. We gave a 10-minute presentation on what the organization was doing and were able to spread awareness, make some great contacts and also learn about how we could improve on our ideas. It was a good kick off point.” Girl Up Qatar has already had their first fundraiser and is in the process of preparing for another one. “We tested the waters with the first one with a low-key food sale in our school during lunch and

thinking of organizing a book drive for their library.” “Being from a privileged society many of us are not exposed to these problems, be it right next door or in a country on the other side of the world,” Sarah says. But through Girl Up’s vibrant online community, Sarah and her friends are able to connect with clubs in Malawi, Liberia, Guatemala to understand how their hard work in Qatar is effecting change in girls’ education in these countries, and also interact with students across the globe who are interested in the same issues and talk about how they can work together to maximise the impact of the organization. With barely a year and a half left before she and her club mates graduate school, Sarah’s focus right now is to make the club an institution in her school, so that it continues its advocacy and fundraising activities even after the founding members leave. “The idea is to get people involved in a fun way. It’s a serious issue and we definitely don’t want to make light of it but we also want to make it accessible and interesting to students,” she says. Living in a country with the resources and the will to do something meaningful in the field of education, Sarah wants to raise as much money as they can

ended up raising over QR2000 in less than two hours. It’s truly impressive to see how eager people were to donate money for the cause,” she says. The club is also reaching out the community. “We are planning to go to a local girls’ school, meet the students one-on-one and introduce them to the idea of Girl Up. We are also

for the cause. Their goals are also long-term. “We are lucky to have a lot of diversity in our club and we will get our members to write to our respective governments, make personal relationships and get their support,” she says. It’s a lofty ambition for a group of 16-year-olds.

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EXPERT TALK

USHERING IN A NEW ERA MAKING QATAR A LEADER IN WORLD ENERGY INNOVATION IS ONE OF THE MAJOR OBJECTIVES OF THE NEWLY-OPENED GAS AND FUEL RESEARCH CENTRE (GFRC) AT TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY IN QATAR (TAMUQ), THE CENTER’S DIRECTOR AND ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, DR NIMIR ELBASHIR TELLS US MORE.

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he gathering of only a handful at the GFRC’s inauguration concluded in less than an hour, but the message was loud and clear, and strong enough to draw the attention of the oil and gas industry in the Middle East. The United

engineers and other technical staff are among other goals of the Gas and Fuel Research Centre. The idea to set up the facility was mooted by TAMUQ during a two-day workshop on natural gas monetization that took place in Montgomery, Texas, in March this year.

collaboration with the state of Texas. The Center’s role will be to accelerate economic development,” a visibly elated Dr Elbashir says. The Center, which is part of the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES), seeks Qatar to be a leader in world

States, for the first time, has accepted an overseas institution to lead one of its major research projects. Developing new technologies, providing clean energy, training highly-skilled

“For Qatar, which is establishing itself as world leader in monetization of natural gas, the Center comes at a critical time as TAMUQ is leading the initiative, the first institution in the Middle East to work in

energy monetization as it is the new home for cutting-edge innovation, research, learning, and collaboration. “This is a proud moment for Qatar as TAMUQ, the first branch campus of Texas

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“There is a great advantage to have TAMU both in Qatar and College Station provide leadership, research, education, and outreach for the oil and gas industry at such a critical time.” Dr Mahmoud El Halwagi Managing Director Gas and Fuel Research Centre

A&M University from the Middle East, to establish this unique research/service project in collaboration of the main campus - College Station - in the state of Texas,” Dr Elbashir says.

A KNOWLEDGE HUB Arching over two continents and several disciplines, the GFRC has the potential to become the definitive depository of knowledge, as well as the leading cradle of new technologies related to the production, transport, and processing of natural gas worldwide, he added. “The Center has a unique opportunity to lead multidisciplinary innovative research activities in natural gas exploration, production, treatment and processing to support Qatar – the world capital of natural gas – and the state of Texas-the world energy leader,” Dr Elbashir says. Already, many students are working on various projects but GFRC will provide an opportunity for the students in Qatar to expand the horizons of their knowledge. At present, some 50 Qatari students are taking part in more than a dozen research projects. Each project will take at least three years to achieve its desired results. “This will improve the employment chances of any students who have the opportunity to do research alongside professionals from world-leading corporate and governmental institutions,” Dr Elbashir says.

The GFRC will address the two major issues - improving energy efficiency and environmental concerns - that have been bothering the oil and gas industry around the world. The center will also help in breeding a new generation of engineers and technical staff who can meet the rising demand of the country’s oil and gas industry, Dr Elbashir says.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT Besides establishing strong links with research institutions, industry and governmental agencies both in Qatar and the US, the center will work to develop new technologies in the exploration and production of natural gas novel catalysts and materials for natural gas conversions, new processes related to hydrocarbon treatment, and new materials and mathematical models for property prediction and process design, in the coming years. GFRC Managing Director and McFerrin Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering in Texas A&M College Station, Dr Mahmoud El Halwagi, says that investments in the US shale gas industry is expected to exceed QR364 billion ($100 billion) over the next decade. “There is great

“This is a proud moment for Qatar as TAMUQ is leading the initiative, the first branch campus of Texas A&M University from the Middle East to establish this unique research/service project in collaboration with the main campus in the state of Texas.” Dr Nimir Elbashir Director Gas and Fuel Research Centre Texas A&M University

advantage to have TAMU both in Qatar and College Station provide leadership, research, education, and outreach for the oil and gas industry at such a critical time,” Dr El Hawagi adds.

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CAREER TRIVIA

FIVE MISTAKES FRESH GRADUATES MAKE IN A JOB INTERVIEW

HOW TO

AVOID THEM Job interviews can be a daunting process, especially for fresh graduates. Making even the smallest mistake could be fatal and unfortunately mistakes are very common. However, with a little guidance, you can ace your next job interview like a pro.

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YOU DON’T RESEARCH THE ROLE OR THE COMPANY

Surprisingly, many fresh graduates are too lazy to do their research on the organization’s values, mission, vision, structure or history. When asked about why they want to be a part of the organization, they are stumped for what to say. Solution: Read, learn and absorb. Pretend that you are studying for an exam before an interview. Go through the company website thoroughly, look through their corporate culture. Read up on the industry and market to which the company belongs. Scan the job description like a hawk. Some keywords, once identified, could be used in your answers to make recruiters feel that you have understood your role very well. When it comes to interviews, 20% of employers consider poor preparation to be the biggest turn-off in potential employees (as per the Bayt.com "Hiring Practices in the MENA" poll, February 2012).

YOU DISCUSS ALL YOUR AWESOME FUTURE PLANS WITH THE EMPLOYER

You probably have a game plan for your future. Maybe you plan to work with a company for one or two years, then go to grad school or plan to save for a bit and go backpacking across Europe. These plans might be great, but they show a lack of commitment on your part to the employer. Solution: The less you reveal about your personal ambitions, the better. When asked, you could state that you might pursue your higher education “sometime in the distant future”, and that you will give your absolute commitment to the organization, if hired. Honestly, these plans are not set in stone and you may really love your job after a couple years, therefore, talking about something which has not yet happened in a job interview may harm your chances of getting the job.

YOU TAKE EVERYTHING CASUALLY OR SEEM UNINTERESTED

After graduation, you may not know what your true calling is. When called for an interview you might find that the job description doesn’t match your dream job. But you decide to go for the interview anyway since getting an interview is so difficult. The problem is that this lack of passion shows through your body language.

Solution: Show enthusiasm. Make sure you arrive ahead of time. The most important point is to never look bored during the interview. Always be optimistic. Talk about the job role as well as your passions and experience. The Bayt.com "Hiring Practices in the MENA" poll reveals that 28.8% of employers in the region look for “hunger, drive and ambition” as the most important factors when making a hiring decision.

YOU ASK THE WRONG QUESTIONS

Usually, at the end of a job interview, the employer will ask you if you have any questions. Some common questions that fresh graduates ask are “What will my salary be?” or “Will I have to work on weekends?” or “How long is the lunch break?.” These questions are the wrong ones to ask. In fact, these points should only be raised once you have been offered the job. Solution: Instead of asking all the wrong questions, you could convey your interest in knowing more about the job, your long-term prospects in the company, and the company’s culture. Examples of some intelligent questions are: “How would this role affect the organization in the short-, medium- and long-term?” or “What do you feel is the best part about working for this organization?”

YOU TALK ABOUT EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN, EXCEPT EXPERIENCE RELEVANT TO THE ROLE

As someone who is overly enthusiastic to land a job, you could be babbling about a lot of things in the job interview which are really not relevant to your role. A story about how you saved a kitten from a tree might be very inspiring, but irrelevant. Remember, the employer has a specific slot for you and you must not waste their time. Solution: With the little experience that you have, it is important to highlight your accomplishments, if relevant to the job role. Prepare a list of questions that could be asked during the interview. Make these answers interesting and relevant. Accentuate your biggest assets: your youth, the knowledge you have gained from university that is fresh in your mind, and the perspective that you can bring to the company. Finally, remember to talk about how you can help the company grow, by making it about them, and not you.

Bayt.com is the #1 job site in the Middle East with more than 40,000 employers and over 17,250,000 registered job seekers from across the Middle East, North Africa and the globe, representing all industries, nationalities and career levels. Post a job or find jobs on www.bayt.com today and access the leading resource for job seekers and employers in the region.

2014

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BY ADITYA A R KARKE

College Cliff Jump HOW TO WRITE THE WINNING COLLEGE ADMISSION ESSAY.

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the leaves yellow and rain down onto the ground with the beautiful birth of fall, hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of senior year students are too busy to witness the orange downpour, or feel a fall breeze whistle past their ears. only thing their senses are subjected to is the dogged race to get into one of humanity’s greatest institutions - college. From the arduous task of writing essays, the painful labor of getting recommendation letters, and the mundane job of submitting transcripts and report cards, November is a month of extreme stress, and excitement, for senior students everywhere, as they apply to universities around the world. For them, November retains the natural virtue of fall, but in a different light. Just as in fall, November for students oversees slow, transitional death. Not of leaves, but academic careers instead. Twelve years spent walking into the same classrooms, meeting the same people, laughing at the same anecdotes, and instructed by the same teachers, all about to end in a few weeks. Indeed, letting go of something like that is a dreadful and often painful experience. But just like fall, college paves the way for new life to blossom from the old. Beginning on November 1st, universities everywhere open their doors - some grand and old, others new and pioneering - to embrace aspiring young minds and give them the tools with which they may sculpt the world. In today’s hyper-competitive world, where kids are getting smarter with every application cycle, and even more audacious in their achievements, students no longer fight to secure seats in prestigious colleges. Instead, universities battle it out to

present the most alluring offer to attract potential students. Every university wants to be the place where the next Einstein will study. From the student’s point of view, however, things are a bit different. The college application process, with its infinite intricacies, demanding questions, rigorous mental regimen, and general knack for inducing severe anxiety, is probably one of the most hated documents a student will endure. Students don’t see the application as a door to college, but more as a cliff jump where you need to survive the fall and land wherever you can, however you can. That’s not what the college application is all about.

IF ALL ELSE FAILS, HERE ARE A FEW TOPICS YOU CAN USE AS AN INSPIRATION TO WRITE A BETTER ESSAY + An injustice in your life and how you handled it. + An obstacle to success in your life and how you crossed it. + How would your family react if you ceased to exist for a day? + Describe one time when your actions were unconventional. + If you had a week to live, what would be on your to-do list?

If anything, the college application should be all about you! After spending the last four years of your life slogging away to maintain a pristine academic record and utterly disregarding your own mental growth and well-being, the college application is a wonderful release and emancipation from the rigor of an academic career that’s in its final months. The college application allows you to sit down, take a deep breath, and review the person you are - the things you’ve done, your passions, your fears, your failures, and your victories. It allows you to delve into yourself and paint a picture of the

person you truly are. Bearing in mind that the words you submit in your application are the only ways for the admissions officer to know who you are within - the college application is a wonderful opportunity to use language for selfdiscovery. But many, if not most of the applicants reading this piece, are firmly entrenched in the notion that the college application is all about following a formula to craft a successful application. That’s the first mistake you’ll make in your application. The secret ingredient is not perfection, but honesty. Thus, nobody in the world can tell you what to write, except you. I will merely attempt to tell you how to write. Ever have that empty feeling when you sit down to write the five hundred words that will define you as a human being and a member of society? We all do. You’re not alone. Nor are you bad at writing essays. You’re suffering from writers’ block, as we all do at some point. There is no cure for writers’ block because it isn’t a disease. It’s a state of mind. The best way to write a successful essay is to have a clear mind when you start. Don’t ponder on whether your essay is likely to fail or succeed. Don’t waste precious brain cells wondering how the admissions officer will see your essay. Focus on painting the picture, not criticizing it before it’s even finished. Write in a voice that defines you. I reiterate - vocabulary is dwarfed by sincerity in your essay. If that doesn’t help, consider taking a walk, or watching a movie, or - in my case - eating what you love. Just be as close to your element as possible while writing your application. If you like the sun, take your laptop to the park and write. If you’re a music lover, blast your favorite tunes on headphones while you write. The biggest enemy of a truthful essay is an artificial setting to write in. Be yourself, and be true to your words. Your essay is the manifestation of your soul in words. Not a cliff jump to leave to chance.

2014

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TRAVEL BYTES

IN THE LAND OF

GOOD HOPE

JYOSTNA SUBRAMANIAM FROM THE CLASS OF 2014 AT GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY IN QATAR TALKS ABOUT AN EVENTFUL TRIP TO SOUTH AFRICA LAST SUMMER WHICH BROUGHT ABOUT TECTONIC SHIFTS IN HER PERSPECTIVE.

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have always wondered how a country like South Africa, full of rich culture and dynamic history that had also undergone tremendous political and social turmoil, still managed to host the FIFA World Cup in 2010. I had the opportunity to learn the answer to this question first-hand on a student trip to South Africa last summer, through Georgetown University in Qatar’s “Zones of Conflict, Zones of Peace” program. The trip, which focused on how post-apartheid South Africa dealt with reconciliation and the impact of that history on social and cultural issues, was broken down to two parts. We spent half of the trip in Johannesburg and the other half in Cape

Dilip Menon where he discussed Apartheid and how the future history of South Africa is currently being written now, in the present. A question and answer session at the end of our day gave us a chance to share ideas and was very interactive. We also had the chance to learn about other students’ experiences and how they and their families coped with Apartheid. We got to know more about the people living in Sandtom and about the bridge between Sandtom and the poorer regions in South Africa. We then watched a show at the Market Theater called Missing, which shows how a particular family dealt with Apartheid. The next day we went to two townships, Soweto, where large deposits of gold were discovered, and Kliptown, two of

on what is important in life. The students treated us to a school performance and we spent quality time interacting with the children. The next day we visited Sophiatown. We learned how people were kicked out of their homes late on a winter night by police forces because it was a whites-only area. However, it was also in Sophiatown where many musicians and artists emerged despite the oppression, and where they told their stories of struggle through song and music. Moving on, we visited Constitution Hill, formerly a prison for notorious criminals as well as political prisoners. Before heading to Cape Town, we stopped in Pretoria to visit Freedom Park as well as the Voortrekker Monument Heritage site. Freedom Park is a place where heroes are

Town. In Johannesburg, we started our first day at Wits University. We met various professors, deans and students. A highlight of this part of our visit was a talk given by Professor

the poorer regions in Johannesburg. We had a tour of a school and houses in Kliptown. My experience here, when I saw how happy the children looked although they had so little material wealth, really led me to reflect

honored. It is also a place where many events and celebrations are held. In Cape Town, we went to the District 6 Museum, where the tour guide Joe, who lived in that area, took us around the museum and

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The trip was a learning experience that made me come out of my comfort zone. As a result, I now realize how much I have in Qatar. I have a renewed appreciation for my life, my family, and the shelter I enjoy and food on my table every day. I learned more about Apartheid and also about its history.

surrounding locations, sharing his experiences as we toured about. We also made a visit to the University of the Western Cape where Professor Marion explained how the university accepts special-needs students so they have a chance to succeed in life. She also talked about South Africa, saying, “This country is a teenager, it is only 20 years old.” By this she meant that post-Apartheid South Africa is still young, and so is in the process of learning new things. She continued the metaphor, saying it is one of the “new babies of democracy as well as an adult survivor of childhood abuse”. She discussed the social dynamics of the country and whether the social standing has improved for people. Her conclusion was that since the World Cup

to the social structure there. Children born in the townships still have little chance of escaping poverty and succeeding in life. She emphasised a few challenges faced by youth, such as a wide disparity in living standards, inequality, domestic violence, gang violence and other illegal activities. Moving on, we visited Bo Kaap, an area populated by Malay people, most of whom descended from Malaysia and Indonesia. The scenery was alive with the vibrant colors of beautiful local architecture. We also tried a variety of authentic Malay food for lunch. Bo Kaap is the place where the Afrikaans language took root. The language was developed out of necessity because it allowed slaves and migrants coming from Bali, Indonesia and Malaysia to interact with

in South Africa was located in Bo Kaap. Because of their Muslim faith, the ancestors of this town were labelled “Malayas” by the Dutch who occupied the area at that time. After 1994, the term was changed to Malays. Most of the words in the Afrikaans language are a mixture of Malay and Indonesian, we learned. For example, the term for banana is “piesang” in both Malay and Afrikaans. Overall, the trip was a learning experience that made me come out of my comfort zone. As a result, I now realize how much I have in Qatar. I have a renewed appreciation for my life, my family, and the shelter I enjoy and food on my table every day. I learned more about Apartheid and also about its history. Furthermore, I learned

was held, social standing has not changed, with the poor getting poorer and the rich getting richer. She said that the social and economic gap is widening, although the role of social cohesion continues to be important

each other. People of Bo Kaap lived in harmony. It was customary to share food with neighbors. The multi-cultural mix of people also resulted in the development of a new cuisine. The first mosque that was built

more about the continuing impact of racial inequality. I have no doubt that this country, with the commitment of the strong minds and high hopes I observed, will take South Africa forward to a more successful future.

2014

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THE THUNDER FROM DOWN UNDER CELEB TALK

Young New Zealander Lorde has pocketed some of the biggest awards the music industry has to offer with her sweet, sultry voice and sophisticated songwriting, all before she turned 18. 38

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year after releasing her debut album Pure Heroine, Lorde, born Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O’Connor, says she has tentatively begun work on a second album. “I don’t really have any sort of timetable. I’m not in any kind of rush,” she told Rolling Stone. “Part of me thinks that the longer I leave it, the better a musician I’ll be. I used to do the same thing with homework!” Known for being “humble and down to earth” (see box), Lorde’s fans love her because she is a breath of fresh air amidst the Miley Cyruses and Nicki Minajs of the world, with songs that communicate teenage angst using lyrics that are beyond her years. Even before she released her first album (this is after her debut single Royals became an international crossover hit), she wrote for Sunday magazine, “Songwriting is selfish – I make music for myself, using it as an outlet, something to fulfil my creative desires – yet the rewards of deciding to write something can keep an artist going for a lifetime, can whip me across datelines, throw me under the lights. I constantly ponder the absurdly cool nature of this.” The album was met with international acclaim (it had sold 1.5 million copies by the end of last year) and several of her hit singles like Tennis Court, Team, No Better and Glory and Gore bear the stamp of her signature mix of electronica, pop and rock, including dream pop and indietronica. In 2014 Lorde received two Grammy Awards for her single Royals in the categories Best Pop Solo Performance and Song of the Year. She has also achieved two Billboard Music Awards, one MT V Video Music Award and three World Music Awards, officially making her music royalty (according to Wikipedia, Lorde chose her stage name because she was fascinated with “royals and aristocracy”, but added the ‘e’ to ‘Lord’ to make it more feminine). She memorably performed All Apologies with the

made her way into Forbes ‘s “30 Under 30” list. By her eighteenth birthday in November 2014, it was estimated that Lorde was worth NZ$11 million (QR30 million). Lorde tweeted that she was attending her very first movie premier, courtesy of her role in curating the soundtrack for Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, which included

used the protagonist Katniss Everdeen as inspiration for her song and she almost cried when she heard it in the movie for the first time. This incredible songstress celebrated a low-key 18th birthday barely a few weeks ago with her family and boyfriend James Lowe with a plum, lime and coconut cake.

surviving members of Nirvana during the band’s induction ceremony at the Rock ’n Roll Hall of Fame. She was also named among Time ‘s most influential teenagers in the world, and later

recording a new tune, Yellow Flicker Beat. She has roped in some interesting artists like Grace Jones, Duran Duran’s Simon Le Bon, Diplo, Miguel, The Chemical Brothers and Kanye West. She is quoted as saying that she

Taylor Swift, whom she has reportedly struck a fast friendship with, wished her on Twitter, saying, “It’s Ella’s 18th birthday technically, but we all know she’s nearly 300 and knows all the secrets of the universe.”

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YA YA YA, I AM LORDE

You know you are somebody when you are featured in South Park. And Lorde became the subject of, not one, but two episodes of the long-running animated series. In Gluten Free Ebola, the boys plan a party and announce that Lorde will be performing that evening. After much panic over not being able to deliver what was promised, it all seemingly ends well with Randy Marsh showing up dressed in drag and being awkward on stage. The audience was not too thrilled (“she doesn’t seem as hot in person”) but due to popular demand, “Ya ya ya, I am Lorde (Push)” has now been released as a single and can be downloaded for free from the South Park website. In real life, when Spin magazine criticized the show for making fun of the “humble and down to earth artist”, asking “has Lorde ever really done anything all that worthy of drawing the cartoon creators?" South Park hit back with Cissy, where the truth about Lorde was finally revealed – She is actually the 45-year old geologist Randy Marsh. Lorde reportedly loved it and tweeted – “I have officially been the subject of 2 South Park episodes and that is weird and cool.” When quizzed about this during an interview she reportedly said, “Yeah he [Lorde/Randy Marsh] has a moustache…I mean I have a moustache, but is it that prominent?”

TECHIE WATCH

SELFIE OBSESSION THE

CONTINUES

hat happens when a dozen or more journalists from around the Middle East are set free with a good mobile device and free data? Yes, you guessed it; there is mayhem and a lot of

narcissism involved. But the reason for the latter can only be the device they were provided with. The latest Microsoft offering, the Nokia Lumia 730, is powered with a full-HD 5MP, wide-angle front-facing smartphone camera, that enables one to take perfect impromptu group shots or in this case, selfie snaps.

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But what does this mean? That you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need a longer arm or a selfie stick to include more people or click better photos at the Oscars or anywhere else for that matter? No, it also means a lot more. It also means that the photo you capture with this innovative front-facing camera will have more in it. More scenery, more detail, more you â&#x20AC;&#x201C; more of everything. With over 93 million selfies taken every day around the world and a staggering 1 million of these selfies uploaded on social media, the need for a mobile phone with

great selfie-taking capabilities is dire, or so feels Microsoft. And with this trend sweeping the world, Microsoft Mobile Devices have designed and delivered a device that will enable the average person to take amazing selfies. Back in the day, people had to use their rear camera to take selfies and they would also attach them to selfie sticks to capture a wider “bird-eye” picture. The Lumia 730 and 735 smartphones however solve this issue with their wide-angle lens. Commenting at a recent Lumia experiential activity, Microsoft Mobile Devices, Manager of Product & Portfolio Management, Sahar Elsayed said: “The imaging philosophy for this model required us to design a phone with a front-facing camera that delivered the same results as any main camera. We used a 5MP sensor with a big pixel size, developed a super wide optics design and bent some laws of physics to make it fit the product without any compromises.” The Lumia 730 is equipped with the dual SIM 3G support, whereas the Lumia 735 has 4G LTE connectivity and also provides outstanding personalization, through the Windows Phone 8.1 platform. With all that talk, let’s not forget about the back-facing camera with its 6.7 MP ZEISS lens, which can also take breath-taking pictures. And with that wide aperture of F/1.9 and some practice, you can take amazing pictures with real blurred effects and create depth of field, so the subject of your photo will look robust and clear. “The Lumia 730 is easily the best device to take selfies. End of story. I have been using it for the past two weeks for my blog postings, and I have to say I am very pleased with the results. Not only have I taken many shameless selfies, I have also been able to share them on social media seamlessly, thanks to its easy and user-friendly Windows 8.1 Smartphone operating system. This is the go-to mobile device to satisfy your day-to-day needs,” says Natasha Northcote, a renowned fashion blogger in the UAE. The Lumia 730 and 735 range is also available in Qatar according to CGC. “Following the recent launches of the more affordable Lumia 530 and Lumia 630, the new smartphones offer our

customers another unique Windows Phone 8.1 device with even more innovation, but still at an affordable price,” says Jehad Al Qudah, Head of Mobility BU of CGC.

LUMIA SELFIE APPS With the Lumia 730, there is a plethora of apps to help you perfect that selfie. So instead of just adding a high performance camera to the device, Microsoft Mobile Devices has developed a new Lumia selfie app. It is perfect for taking selfies with the front or main camera. Not only that, but you can also add filters, fine-tune facial details and create themes. But what is by far the most interesting feature is the self-portrait assistant, to help you take the best selfie. This is the Lumia Creative Studio, where you can create studiolike images using the in-app edit tools. These include tilt-shift or circular blur, high-resolution reframing and color popping. Microsoft has announced the local availability of the Lumia 730 Dual SIM for QR999 and 4G LTE variant Lumia 735 for QR1099.

2014

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TECHIE TALK

WHY ELON MUSK HATES AI?

THE MAN BEHIND SPACE X, TESLA MOTORS AND THE REVOLUTIONARY HYPERLOOP TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM EXPRESSED RESERVATIONS ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, SAYING IT THREATENS HUMAN EXISTENCE.

THE HOTEL OF THE FUTURE

Speaking at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Aeronautics and Astronautics department’s Centennial Symposium, Musk said that in developing artificial intelligence “we are summoning the demon”. “I think we should be very careful about artificial intelligence. If I had to guess at what our biggest existential threat is, it’s probably that. So we need to be very careful. I’m increasingly inclined to think that there should be some regulatory oversight, maybe at the national and international level, just to make sure that we don’t do something very foolish,” he said. However Musk himself has invested in companies developing AI “to keep an eye on them.”

STARWOOD HOTELS AND RESORTS ANNOUNCED THE ROLLOUT OF THEIR KEYLESS INITIATIVE IN TEN OF THEIR PROPERTIES GLOBALLY, WITH W DOHA BEING ONE OF THEM. Guests staying at the W Doha will now be able to bypass the front desk, go directly to their room and unlock their stay with a simple tap of their smartphone. The Bluetooth-enabled technology is powered by their SPG (Starwood Preferred Guest) app and will be implemented with immediate effect in hotels in Beijing, Hong Kong, New York and Los Angeles, among others.

TECH SUPPORT FOR FIGHTING EBOLA

Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan donated $25 million to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to fight against the disease that is making populations paranoid everywhere. Only a few weeks before the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation made a $50 million donation to support emergency efforts in West Africa.

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GOOGLE ANNOUNCES NEXUS 9, NEXUS 6 THE HTC-BUILT TABLET AND MOTOROLABUILT SMARTPHONE WENT ON SALE STARTING IN NOVEMBER.

Both run on the latest Android OS, Lollipop. The Nexus 9 boasts an 8.9 inch IPS LCD screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio. The tablet’s 6700mAh battery should be good for around nine hours. A Keyboard Folio case, sold separately, allows you to alter the typing position, and allowing it to compete with both the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 and the iPad Air 2. It is available in black, white and sand. The smartphone, meanwhile, sports a 6-inch screen and is powered by a quad-core 2.7GHz Snapdragon 805 processor from Qualcomm. A 13-megapixel camera with a dual LED flash that encircles the camera lens, a 2-megapixel front shooter, A 3,220mAh battery which can last for up to 24 hours of talk time, 3GB of RAM and dual front-facing speaker grilles are other significant features.

WHY, WHATASPP? WHY?!!! The relief was short-lived. It hasn’t been more than a few months since Whatsapp let us disable the ‘last seen’ feature that was wrecking havoc on our social lives and the messaging app is back with a worse monster – the blue ticks. Now you’ll know if and exactly when a recipient has seen your text. So if you don’t get a response to your "yo wazzaaap" right away once the ticks turn blue, it’s only because your friend hates you and not because they have something else more important to do than indulge in idle chitchat at 11 in the morning!

THE NEW CANDY IN TOWN The new Android Lollipop 5.0 is believed to be the most impactful design overhaul in recent years. Boasting a flat, minimalistic design, the OS adds tons of functionality like unlocking through automatic facial recognition, more animations, a battery life analytics tool that tracks consumption and more. The Nexus 6 smartphone and Nexus 9 tablet will be the first devices to run on this OS and most phone manufacturers have promised to release an update before the end of the year.

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FITNESS

P 46

reparing for your first marathon is an extremely daunting and arduous challenge, even to those who consider themselves fit. The first two questions that come to everyone’s mind before attempting the

prior to that race, she had never walked more than a mile, weighed over 200 pounds and lived off an unhealthy diet. Fauja Singh. Ran his first marathon at the age of 90 and at 103, and still runs long-distance races around the world! We all have different goals and lifestyles;

FROM GEAR TO GRUB

challenge are – Am I too old to run? And, am I too unfit for this challenge? The answer is always "No". Case in point: Oprah Winfrey. She completed the New York City Marathon in four hours at the age of 40. A few months

so there is no one-size-fits-all program. But the simple and most important factor is self-belief. If you have that, there is no stopping anyone from crossing the finish line at 42.2 Km.

running shoes, a pair of shorts and some T-shirts (the moisture wicking kind to suit Doha’s hot climate). Optional: Running cap, music player, and a GPS-watch fitted with a heart rate monitor. Now it is time to hit the

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Like everything else, we need to start with baby steps. If you are starting from the couch, it is best to consult your GP and have a thorough medical examination. Once you get the go-ahead, you would need to invest in some basic running gear which includes

SUPPLEMENTS Include whey protein powder to fulfill your protein needs, glutamine for quick recovery and keeping up your glycogen stores as you break it down for energy and branched-chain amino acids to safeguard your lean muscle loss in your diet. Furthermore, L-Taurine can help metabolic processes like heart contraction and antioxidant activity. It is necessary for both cardiovascular function and development and skeletal muscle function. Red beetroot is naturally high in nitrates (NO3), which are believed to improve athletic performance. Nitrates are helpful to athletes because they quickly bring oxygen to muscles, essentially making difficult efforts easier.

tarmac. Good places to run in Doha are the Corniche and Aspire Park. However, if you are running on the road, try and avoid high-traffic areas and always run against the traffic. A healthy, novice runner can attempt a marathon with 18 weeks of training. The following schedule assumes the runner has the ability to run 5 Km, three to four times a week. If that seems hard, consider a shorter distance for your first race or possibly take more time to develop an endurance base.

5) CROSS-TRAINING: Can be swimming,

4) REST: It is an integral part of the training

To complement the training, it is imperative that runners follow a strict meal plan. Imagine driving a super-charged F1 car with kerosene. Do not experiment with a new meal plan before race day or take any supplements that you have not tried before the race. You should prioritize protein and carbs both before and after you run. These are the types of fuel that the body needs most during intensive work. For runners

Loading your body with complex carbohydrates the night before the run is recommended as it fills your muscles with glycogen and releases sustained energy. During the run, this stored glycogen will be broken down into glucose moieties to provide you with energy. Also keep in mind not to consume excessive amounts of water as it will dilute the electrolytes left in the body. A solution to this is to â&#x20AC;&#x153;rechargeâ&#x20AC;? your electrolytes during and after running with a sports drink, or with a packet of salt to eat when needed. So with a proper training routine and the right diet plan, anyone can attempt, and even complete, a marathon within 18 weeks. This is the easy part. The most critical and, for a lot of us, the most difficult part is finding the motivation to do that. Running has a number of benefits including improving cardiovascular heath, enhancing the knees- and joint-strength as well as weight loss and control. However, the one thing that every runner will confirm is that running makes you happier and that nothing compares to the feeling you get from completing your daily run. Need we say more?

which should be followed religiously. This allows your body to rebuild and recharge. Get at least eight hours of sleep each night. Consider taking hot baths or going for an occasional massage.

training for a marathon, you should be taking at the bare minimum 1 g of protein per pound of bodyweight per day. During intense training, you may even want to increase that amount up to twice as much.

Following the above steps will prepare you to run your first long-distance race and your weeks of training, proper diet and your strong mental toughness will carry you to the finish line. Good luck!

CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING POINTS BEFORE YOU EMBARK ON THIS ENDEAVOR 1) PACE: Always run at a comfortable pace. Simply put, run at a pace where you can run and talk at the same time.

2) DISTANCE: Try and achieve the prescribed distance, but stop short if you are unable to continue. There is always another attempt.

3) LONG RUNS: The runs should be progressive each week but one long run a week is a must.

cycling, football or any other sport.

6) STRENGTH TRAINING: Always on off days. Why? As you run faster, the amount of time you are in contact with the ground decreases. This actually makes it harder to run because your body has to supply more force to overcome the lack of traction. Developing your core, hips and gluteus through weight training is essential to becoming an efficient runner, and should be incorporated in your marathon preparations, for 1-2 days every week. (see plan in the next page)

7) STRETCHING: A must before and after running and strength training sessions.

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FULL MARATHON 18 WEEK SCHEDULE WEEK SUN

MON TUE

WED

THU FRI

SAT

Strength

5K run

Rest

10K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

Rest

11K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

7K run

5K run

Rest

8K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

7K run

5K run

Rest

15K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

8K run

5K run

Rest

16K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

8K run

5K run

Rest

12K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

10K run

5K run

Rest

19K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

10K run

5K run

Rest

21.1K run

Strength

5K run

12K run

8K run

Rest

16K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

7K run

12K run

8K run

Rest

23K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

7K run

13K run

8K run

Rest

25K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

7K run

14K run

10K run

Rest

18K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

8K run

15K run

8K run

Rest

28K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

8K run

15K run

8K run

Rest

22K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

8K run

16K run

8K run

Rest

32K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

8K run

13K run

7K run

Rest

18K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

7K run

10K run

5K run

Rest

13K run

Cross Trainer

Strength

5K run

8K run

3K run

Rest

Marathon

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Crunch Doha is the only physique transformation company in Qatar and the GCC, dedicated to providing result-driven training in a short period of time. Our fitness programs are designed to cater to the busy lifestyle of corporates, who are often exposed to health issues such as diabetes, obesity etc. because of their inactiveness, bad eating habits and lifestyle. Since our debut, we have helped over 200 people to take control over their health, physique and lifestyle. Crunch aims at reshaping your physique through result-driven fitness training and nutrition. Whether you want to lose weight or gain mass, we coach you, motivate you and support you. At Crunch, we transform physiques, transform lives.

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STRENGTH TRAINING:

ALTERNATE BETWEEN PROGRAMS 1 AND 2 PROGRAM 1

PROGRAM 2

Squat (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Bench Press (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Deadlift (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Bent Over Row (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Shoulder Press (2 sets of 8-10 reps) Hanging Leg Raises (2 sets of 8-10 reps)

Lunges (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Incline Bench Press (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Romanian Deadlift (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Bent Over Row (2 sets of 6-8 reps) Pullups (2 sets of 8-10 reps) Swiss Ball Russian Twist (2 sets of 8-10 reps)

Disclaimer: All the information above are opinions and are not to be treated as medical advice. Please consult your doctor prior to following any of the above.

Ziyad Rahim is an adventure-runner from Pakistan who holds five Guinness World Records in endurance running, from marathons to ultra-marathons. He has run over 100 long-distance races in more than 30 countries and has completed a marathon and ultra-marathon thrice on all seven continents. Some of the hardest races he has taken part in are the Marathon Des Sables (a 250 km self-sufficiency footrace in Sahara Desert), the North Pole Marathon in -35 c and the Antarctica Marathon. He is a banking professional and lives in Doha with his wife and two kids.

WHATâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S COOL This winter, Weill expresses femininity with redoubled energy and diversity: more than ever its new wardrobe has taken a free rein. While remaining Parisian in spirit, it is intent on widening its appeal from urban sophistication to sporty chic and is appropriate for the week in the city and leisure at the weekend.

Bourjois has created Silk Edition, the new powder sensation compact that has an immaculate texture and offers a bare skin sensation. Inspired by silk, the texture is designed to glide over the skin as lightly as a caress. This new generation powder creates no overload or thickness. Silk Edition evens out blemishes and dark spots. The complexion is matte but never dull.

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When it comes to funky, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only one designer who defines it well. Not convinced? Check out the cool shoes from Marc by Marc Jacobs.

Fall/Winter 2014-15 marks the launch of Replay One Off, a collection all about innovation and experimentation, an edgy rethinking of materials, shapes, finishes and treatments. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a line of clothing that bypasses a classic concept of denim, to embrace a contemporary urban vision of jeanswear in the pure and upbeat spirit of change.

The latest range from Lacoste is inspired by an adventure through the futuristic cityscapes of Asia. From the bustling streets of Bangkok to ultra-bright Tokyo nights, its statement style is always one step ahead. With neon signs, heavy brights and the hyper-hustle of modern urban life all referenced as key touch-points for the collection, the latest range features bright colors, bold branding and tech-influenced fabric finishes.

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GIZMOS

Be lazy, be creative; be warm, be active.

EMBRACE LAZINESS Make way for the wifi-enabled kettle, here to cater to all your urgent hot drink needs. Prefix a household appliance with an ‘i’ and you know the future has arrived. The iKettle can be instantly controlled from anywhere in the house with your smartphone. Turn on the kettle as soon you enter the house. Program your kettle to turn on the alarm on your phone and wake you up when the water is boiling. Want to hit the snooze button? The iKettle will keep warm for however long you like, so that when you are finally ready to face the world, you won’t have to do it without your cup of java. Speaking of java, did you know that coffee and tea are served at different temperatures? Well, your kettle knows and that’s all that matters. For GBP99.99 (QR575), you will never have to wait by the kettle again.

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DIGITAL FRAGRANCE Your air-freshener has a nozzle? Are you from the 1800s? Get with the times and just use your smartphone. That’s right. Your phone can now turn into a fragrance dispenser with this nifty little contraption. The Scentee Smartphone Aroma Diffuser plugs neatly into the headphone socket of your phone. Choose between five scents which include coffee, lavender and strawberry and the free app can then help you customize the interval between sprays, the length of the spray and the flashing LED lights, all of which will be a treat for your eyes as well as your nostrils. Best of all, configure the device to emit a pleasant whiff every time you receive a Facebook notification or email. Not a bad deal for GBP 29.99 (QR172).

WARM AND CUDDLY Winter is coming! Here’s how you can stay toasty. Snuggle and squeeze this super-sized and very happy slice of toast and it’ll keep you warm for up to four hours. The concealed internal battery pack charges quickly via USB and it is reportedly very soft and cuddly. How about getting two for GBP29.99 (QR172) each and creating a cuddle sandwich?

2D IS OLD SCHOOL Make your doodles come alive in three dimensions. Just plug in the 3Doodler and start drawing as you would with a regular pen, only in the air. The 3Doodler neatly squeezes out a thin, flexible, but strong thread of heated plastic that quickly hardens, allowing you to create colorful threedimensional shapes in real time. It’s like having a mini 3D printer in the palm of your hand. What will you create for GBP99.99 (QR575)?

WHO LET THE DOGS OUT? You suspect your puppy is lazier than the average pet? Track his activity and find out for sure. Lightweight, rugged and 100% weatherproof, this device easily clips onto your pet’s collar and uses four different internal sensors to track its movements 24/7 with a battery that you don’t have to recharge for a whole week. Enter your pet’s vital statistics into the free app and monitor the steps, movements, playtime and additional information to determine if the little fellow is hyperactive or mega lazy. The integrated high-resolution display allows you to easily see your pet’s progress at a glance, or you can dive into the app for a much more detailed view, full of rich graphical information and compare with other pets worldwide through the pet activity ranking. Is GBP59.99 (QR345) too much to spend on your furry friend?

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AROUND TOWN

THATâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S HOW THE DUTCH DO 3D PRINTING IN THE RECENT DUTCH DESIGN IN DOHA EVENT, ORGANIZED BY THE EMBASSY OF THE NETHERLANDS, STUDENTS AND DESIGN ENTHUSIASTS WERE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO WITNESS THE FUTURE OF 3D PRINTING.

Her Excellency the Ambassador of the Netherlands to Qatar, Yvette van Eechoud, took to the floor first talking about the potential of 3D printing in sectors as diverse as healthcare, automobiles, food, architecture, product design and more. At the exhibition which was on at the Katara Art Center till November 13, students from Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar and Texas A&M in Qatar showcased several 3D printed objects like compressor wheels for turbofan engines printed with titanium, variation geometry wings to be tested in wind tunnels, patient-specific kidneys and tumors to understand localization, home accessories, jewellery etc. Mark Brand and Ralph Zoontjens, two Dutch students from Eindhoven University in the Netherlands who were winners of the Dutch Design in Doha competition, were flown down to present their design ideas in the presence of HE Hamad bin Abdulaziz Al Kuwari, Minister of Culture, Arts and Heritage. Mark Brand had a particularly interesting concept of incorporating a small personalization into the coded design (for example, weight of a person) to create pieces that are truly unique. With the 3D printing negating the need to mass produce in order to be cost effective, Brand believes this is an exciting future where every user can feel like they have contributed to the design of their own personal objects.

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BREAST CANCER AWARENESS PROGRAMS REWARDED IN A CEREMONY THAT WAS HELD AT THE TORCH HOTEL RECENTLY, FIVE AWARDS WERE PRESENTED TO THE OUTSTANDING BREAST CANCER AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS HELD BY DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS IN QATAR.

Initiated by The Youth Company the ceremony was in partnership with Queen Medical, the first five-star medical service of its kind in the country, and was powered by the US Embassy in Qatar. “For the past five years, organizations have been engaging their customers, clients and partners towards breast cancer awareness. It was the right time for us to bring them all together and not only reward them, but also help them network with each other, which will give rise to bigger and better campaigns in the upcoming years,” said Aya Abu Issa, Chief Executive Officer of The Youth Company International. The event welcomed 200 guests that included students from various schools and universities, professors, community activists, business representatives, health care industry representatives and dimplomats. Dr Mamdouh Farid, CEO and founder of Queen Medical mentioned the importance of public health issues and a responsibility of being a health care provider.

DONATE YOUR SOFT TOYS FOR EDUCATION Home décor giant Ikea recently launched its annual Soft Toys for Education campaign designed to help improve lives of children less fortunate in Qatar and across the world. Beginning November 6 until January 3, 2015, for every soft toy sold in the Doha Festival City store, Ikea Foundation will donate QR 5 to help support UNICEF’s education programmes around the world. John Kersten, Managing Director, Ikea Qatar, UAE, Egypt and Oman said, “Ikea believes that education is one of the most effective ways to help children escape poverty and shape a better future for themselves. It has a direct impact on wellbeing, from better health to increased opportunities. The Soft Toys for Education campaign is therefore an extremely important initiative for us. I would like to urge our customers to help make this campaign a success.” For more than 12 years, the Ikea Foundation has been a key partner and supporter of UNICEF’s work to provide quality education to millions of children worldwide. Customers will be urged to drop the soft toys they buy into a special donation box located after the store checkout. These toys will then be distributed to under-privileged children within Qatar. Launched in 2003, the Soft Toys for Education campaign has so far benefitted over 11 million children globally. It has supported over 99 projects in 46 countries worldwide. The campaign raised 67 million in total over the last 10 years and 10.1 million in 2013 alone.

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Sheikh Faisal bin Fahad Al Thani, HE Dr Mohammed Abdul Wahid Al Hammadi, Dr Theodore Chiasson and Dr Ken MacLeod with some of the winners

LARGEST NATIONAL ROBOT OLYMPIAD CONCLUDES THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION AND HIGHER EDUCATION, HIS EXCELLENCY DR. MOHAMMED ABDUL WAHID AL HAMMADI, CONGRATULATED MORE THAN 800 STUDENTS WHO COMPETED AT THE 2014 QATAR NATIONAL ROBOT OLYMPIAD WHICHWAS HELD RECENTLY.

The competition was the culmination of the year-long school robotics programme, GO ROBOT, that encourages students to study science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects. HE Dr Al Hammadi attended the final day of the 2014 National Robot Olympiad, held at Aspire, taking a tour around the open, regular and GEN II categories, and presenting medals to the winners. He said, “The Supreme Education Council is proud to once again endorse National Robot Olympiad. Congratulations to the students, their coaches and the organizers of the 2014 Qatar National Robot Olympiad for another successful competition. We look forward to hosting the World Robot Olympiad in Qatar in 2015.” He added: “In 2014, more than 400 ICT,

number of participants in next year’s Olympiad.” The Qatar National Robot Olympiad is organised by College of the North Atlantic-Qatar, sponsored by Maersk Oil Qatar and endorsed and supported by the Supreme Education Council and Qatar Petroleum. Sheikh Faisal bin Fahad Al-Thani, Deputy Managing Director of Maersk Oil Qatar, said, “We are thrilled to continue to sponsor the GO ROBOT programme and the Qatar National Robot Olympiad and want to congratulate all of the students, and their coaches, who helped make it a success. Talented engineers and scientists are the lifeblood of Qatar’s energy industry, around 4,000 students have been involved in GO ROBOT in 2014 and

mathematics and physics teachers received training in robotics, which has led to more students being exposed to robotics in Qatar’s schools than ever before, and we look forward towards increasing the

I’m convinced many of those who participated and those who competed at the Qatar National Robot Olympiad will form the next generation of leaders in our country.”

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Dr Ken MacLeod, President of College of the North Atlantic-Qatar (left), Sheikh Faisal bin Fahad Al Thani, Deputy Managing Director of Maersk Oil Qatar, The Minister of Education and Higher Education, His Excellency Dr Mohammed Abdul Wahid Al Hammadi, and Dr Theodore Chiasson, Dean of Information Technology at College of the North Atlantic-Qatar, look on as the winning student are handed their medals at this year’s Qatar National Robot Olympiad at the Aspire Zone in Doha.

Two students competing in this year’s olympiad discuss their robot with HE Dr Mohammed Abdul Wahid Al Hammadi

Dr Theodore Chiasson explains how some of the competition tables work to HE Dr Mohammed Abdul Wahid Al Hammadi