I'm always impressed by stories of people going that extra mile to make someone else's day for no apparent gain. For this reason, I was charmed by last year's story of the delicate and enchanting paper sculptures that were left around Edinburgh's cultural institutions.
The mystery began in March 2011, when an anonymous artist gifted an exquisite paper sculpture, the Poetree, to the public at the Scottish Poetry Library with a note saying: "In support of libraries, books, words, ideas…"
Ten sculptures were found around the city throughout the year, the last of which was again at the Poetry Library in November with a note ending: "Cheers, Edinburgh. It's been fun!"
The identity of the sculptor has never been discovered, but, as Lilias Fraser, a reader development officer at the Poetry Library, explains, the secrecy is part of the fun. "These sculptures are just an extraordinary gesture. It's obviously someone who wasn't looking to be recognised or to make money or even a commission out of what she was doing. It is an extraordinary thing that someone has done these beautiful things for absolutely nothing other than pleasure and interest and enthusiasm and love for places and books."
Of course, it is not the first time we have seen this kind of selfless creative gifting: street chalk drawings have long appeared all over the UK, most recently in the form of Joe and Max's 3D pavement illusions for Reebok. There are the iconic masterpieces of the graffiti artist Banksy and Slinkachu's miniature street art installations, which are left all around London to be found and enjoyed. And then there is the more recent emergence of the yarn bombers who brighten our cities with knitted and crocheted pieces.
This new wave of creatives gifting artworks is a fabulous example of a "new old" attitude that goes beyond the simple ideas of sharing and community, and is instead based on old values and generosity. They demonstrate a willingness to give money, help or time freely.
Here in the UAE, the attitude is well practised by the ruling families, long known for their humanitarian attitude and respected as loyal supporters of those in need through housing and education programmes and conservation projects.
Perhaps we can all learn something from these random acts of creativity, specifically a generosity of spirit and kindness. An unexpected act goes a long way in creating a more beautiful and joyous community.
Scotland's mystery sculptures have all been photographed by the literary fan and photographer Chris Scott. My favourite piece is the second in the series (discovered in June at the National Library of Scotland), a beautifully crafted gramophone from Ian Rankin's Exit Music.
To see all 10 pieces in the series and more of Chris's work, visit www.chrisdonia.co.uk.
Shelley Pond is the creative director of Scarlet Opus. For more information, visit www.trendsblog.co.uk or www.twitter.com/scarletopus
The biog
Alwyn Stephen says much of his success is a result of taking an educated chance on business decisions.
His advice to anyone starting out in business is to have no fear as life is about taking on challenges.
“If you have the ambition and dream of something, follow that dream, be positive, determined and set goals.
"Nothing and no-one can stop you from succeeding with the right work application, and a little bit of luck along the way.”
Mr Stephen sells his luxury fragrances at selected perfumeries around the UAE, including the House of Niche Boutique in Al Seef.
He relaxes by spending time with his family at home, and enjoying his wife’s India cooking.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The biog
Age: 19
Profession: medical student at UAE university
Favourite book: The Ocean at The End of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
Role model: Parents, followed by Fazza (Shiekh Hamdan bin Mohammed)
Favourite poet: Edger Allen Poe
More Expo 2020 Dubai pavilions:
Dubai World Cup prize money
Group 1 (Purebred Arabian) 2000m Dubai Kahayla Classic - $750,000
Group 2 1,600m(Dirt) Godolphin Mile - $750,000
Group 2 3,200m (Turf) Dubai Gold Cup – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Turf) Al Quoz Sprint – $1,000,000
Group 2 1,900m(Dirt) UAE Derby – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Dirt) Dubai Golden Shaheen – $1,500,000
Group 1 1,800m (Turf) Dubai Turf – $4,000,000
Group 1 2,410m (Turf) Dubai Sheema Classic – $5,000,000
Group 1 2,000m (Dirt) Dubai World Cup– $12,000,000
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group B
Tottenham Hotspur 1 (Eriksen 80')
Inter Milan 0
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.