August in Edinburgh isn’t just another month, but a special time of the year for the worlds of arts, culture and media. It’s a time when thousands of performers, musicians, actors, entertainers, and talented professionals get together to perform in front of audiences from all over the world. The Scottish capital city overflows with people from many walks of life. Many locals believe the population of Edinburgh doubles during this month.
The Edinburgh International Festival is a must-visit event that has taken place every August since 1947. The Edinburgh International Culture Summit also falls during the festival. Ministers, leaders, thinkers and artists get together to share ideas, discuss the latest practices and, most importantly, facilitate creative exchange between policymakers and practitioners.
For this year’s summit, I was selected to represent the UAE as an international youth delegate, along with Ahmed Al Anzi. It was an honour to be able to represent the UAE and share our country’s own accomplishments and fast-paced progress towards being a global hub of arts, culture and media. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was given to us by the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation and the British Council, who have jointly created a programme called the Cultural Excellence Fellowship. As I listened to all the speeches and round-table discussions, I was inspired and closely noted down the interesting ideas that were discussed.
Throughout the summit, two main thoughts circled around in my head: firstly, how remarkable it was to join ministers and leaders to learn about their methods and ideas that have – or haven’t – been successful in different parts of the world. Secondly, how we in the UAE could also benefit from creating a similar platform that encourages these kinds of collaborations, builds sustainable creative communities and inspires current and future generations to get more involved in the creative world.
Shortly after my return from this trip, it was announced that Abu Dhabi would host the world’s first Global Cultural Leadership Summit, in April 2017. This was exciting news to me, because it shows how the UAE sees the importance of bringing together leaders and government officials within the fields of arts, culture and media to address topics such as cultural policy, economic models, new technologies and the important roles that the youth play in nurturing a creative, sustainable economy.
Hosting the summit also falls in line with Abu Dhabi’s vision of building an entire district devoted to culture and arts – also known as the Saadiyat Cultural District, which aims to be a live canvas for international and local art collections, museums and performances.
Abu Dhabi is already a thriving creative platform, with several events regularly taking place all around the city. These events, all of which bring artists and creatives together, include the Rooftop Rhythms series, which has activated Abu Dhabi’s open-mic poetry scene and often hosts sold-out shows; New York University Abu Dhabi’s Arts Center, which hosts a variety of performances and exhibitions on a weekly basis; Twofour54’s Creative Lab, which frequently runs workshops, film screenings and talks that bring the creative community together; and Abu Dhabi Art, an annual event that attracts visitors and artists from around the world.
The UAE has definitely paved the way for a creative ecosystem that not only cultivates local and international talent, but also encourages collaboration among the growing community. This in turn will further help Abu Dhabi to become a global destination for arts, culture and media. I look forward to the UAE having its own cultural summit that will build closer ties between like-minded cultural game-changers.
Waheeda Al Hadhrami was speaking to Jessica Hill. Waheeda Al Hadhrami manages talent in the creative and media industries.
