Earlier this year, when the opportunity to represent Palestine at the Miss Europe Continental beauty pageant was presented to Nadeen Ayoub, the model and fitness trainer from Ramallah jumped at the chance.
Ayoub, 24, who had only recently finished university in Ontario, Canada, had no prior pageantry experience but says she felt compelled to participate.
"Palestine hardly ever gets represented in global competitions ... or anything for that matter," she tells The National. "So I thought I'd do it for my country.
"Also, I thought it would be a nice vacation in Italy, which is where the competition was," she adds, laughing.
Ayoub admits she wasn't really taking the competition seriously. But when she placed in the top five among the 53 countries being represented, something changed in her.
"I realised how close I came to winning and thought if I prepared myself, I could really make a big impact," she recalls.
Ayoub, who was named Miss Palestine 2022 soon after, made history last month by placing in the final four of the Miss Earth global pageant — the first time someone from Palestine has ranked so high in a major beauty competition.
The environment-focused Miss Earth is one of the Big Four annual beauty contests, along with Miss World, Miss Universe and Miss International, and has been held mostly in the Philippines since it was launched in 2001. While the 2022 title was won by Mina Sue Choi of South Korea, the contest places "elemental" titles on the rest of the finalists — Miss Fire, Miss Water and Miss Air.
Ayoub was crowned Miss Earth-Water while Andrea Aguilera of Colombia was crowned Miss Earth-Fire and Sheridan Mortlock from Australia was named Miss Earth-Air.
Ayoub, a fan favourite during the preliminary rounds, says she gave the competition her all this time around.
"For me, it was an opportunity to be a voice for the Palestinian people, and be up there and speak about us on a global stage," she says. "I was not just there as a beauty queen, but I was representing my country, its culture, designers and artists — everyone who helped me along the way to represent my country."
But it was when she made it to the final 12 early on in the competition that Ayoub says she really felt she could actually win big.
"I've always had a stubborn confidence, so I was just enjoying the process. But when my name was called for the final 12, I was like 'Whoa! This is getting real'. That's when I really got into competition mode," she recalls.
She also relished the decisive final question posed to the final four: "What is one thing you want to right in this world and how would you right it?"
"I would want to fight the ignorance and selfishness of people," Ayoub said, drawing loud cheers from the audience. "Because I think that is the main problem that we are facing today, with all of the issues including environmental catastrophes, which are made by humans.
"It starts with education," she added. "That's how we can solve the selfishness and ignorance that we see today, and save planet Earth."
Ayoub says the question meant a lot to her, because it gave her the opportunity to speak as a Palestinian to the world, even beyond the pageant's environmental theme.
"It was a chance for me to really speak my heart, to say things as I saw it," she says. "By then, I didn't just see it as a competition where I'm up there trying to win, I saw it as a chance to use my voice as a Palestinian would, an opportunity we rarely get."
Still in Manila following the Miss Earth pageant, Ayoub, who splits her time between Canada and Palestine, will soon head back to Ramallah, where she hopes to continue her environmental work across the Middle East.
She will also continue to work with the Miss Palestine Organisation and help inspire the next generation of beauty queens to become global ambassadors for her country.
"I want to continue spreading awareness about the beauty of Palestine and give artists and fashion designers and talented people in Palestine a platform and a voice," she says.
"I hope that I have paved the way for other women in Palestine and the Arab world to be represented in a global competition. Because these platforms are not just about beauty, they are important platforms where you can really add your voice to issues and be an advocate for important causes."
Scroll through the gallery for more pictures from the Miss Earth 2022 competition
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
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PAKISTAN SQUAD
Abid Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali (test captain), Babar Azam (T20 captain), Asad Shafiq, Fawad Alam, Haider Ali, Iftikhar Ahmad, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper), Faheem Ashraf, Haris Rauf, Imran Khan, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Sohail Khan, Usman Shinwari, Wahab Riaz, Imad Wasim, Kashif Bhatti, Shadab Khan and Yasir Shah.
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Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
SPECS
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Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Uefa Nations League
League A, Group 4
Spain v England, 10.45pm (UAE)
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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The specs
The specs: 2019 Audi Q8
Price, base: Dh315,000
Engine: 3.0-litre turbocharged V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 340hp @ 3,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm @ 2,250rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
The biog
Favourite pet: cats. She has two: Eva and Bito
Favourite city: Cape Town, South Africa
Hobby: Running. "I like to think I’m artsy but I’m not".
Favourite move: Romantic comedies, specifically Return to me. "I cry every time".
Favourite spot in Abu Dhabi: Saadiyat beach
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
How it works
Booklava works on a subscription model. On signing up you receive a free book as part of a 30-day-trial period, after which you pay US$9.99 (Dh36.70) per month to gain access to a library of books and discounts of up to 30 per cent on selected titles. You can cancel your subscription at any time. For more details go to www.booklava.com
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More on Quran memorisation:
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
