As the mother of a teenage boy, I know first-hand how intensely worrying this stage of parenting can be. We carry so many fears at once – afraid something might happen to them, that they’re spending too much time online, or that they’ll fall in with the wrong crowd.

When they’re home, we worry they’re not active enough; when they go out, we worry about where they are and who they’re with. That tightness in the chest every time they step out of the door is something only a parent truly understands.

Every mother of a teenage boy fears that her son could become dependent on something, whether it be excessive gaming, smoking, substance use, or simply the adrenalin rush teenagers so often seek.

It is one of the many parts of motherhood no one warns you about. We know teenagers need to fill their time – what keeps us awake at night is how they fill it.

Al Mubarakah Foundation was established to ensure those hours are filled with purpose – and not by chance. It offers a place where boys are not only safe, but actively learning resilience, discipline and values.

For a parent, that is an immeasurable relief.

In this edition, we speak to Sheikha Shamma bint Khalifa bin Hamdan, granddaughter of the late Sheikh Mubarak bin Mohammed, the UAE’s first Minister of Interior – a man who believed that the role of the police was not to intimidate, but to stand alongside the community.

Today, she continues his legacy not through enforcement, but through empowerment.

It is a philosophy that mirrors her grandfather’s. Sheikh Mubarak helped build the foundation of the UAE’s security system on trust and community cohesion rather than intimidation – and that legacy lives on in the way Al Mubarakah works with adolescents today.

Thank you for reading.

Al Mubarakah Foundation does not make a lot of noise. It works steadily and intentionally, which may be why it has endured.

The foundation was established in 2016 by Dr Sheikha Mouza bint Mubarak, daughter of Sheikh Mubarak.

Today, that legacy continues through Sheikha Shamma, who oversees programmes designed to keep young people anchored during the years when they are most likely to drift.

“We don’t work through authority. We work through identity, dignity and purpose,” Sheikha Shamma tells The National. Her approach stems from how she was raised.

“I am also a proud daughter of parents who shaped my outlook in very distinct ways. My father modelled integrity, discretion and an unwavering sense of duty. My mother instilled in me a love for community and learning. Their influence is present in every element of our work.”

Sheikha Shamma speaks quietly and with intention. She is not loud, not overly active and never forceful. There is a pensiveness to her, a way of taking in what is being said before she responds – thoughtful rather than animated.

The name “Al Mubarakah” is both a personal tribute and a public message. It honours the legacy of Sheikh Mubarak – whose life was rooted in service, wisdom and nation-building.

The name also draws from the Quranic image of “a blessed tree that gives its fruit in every season”.

New rules around fostering will widen opportunities for children in need of families. Getty Images
New rules around fostering will widen opportunities for children in need of families. Getty Images

The UAE has rolled out significant reforms of its law on fostering to offer greater support to children in need of a loving home.

Non-Emirati couples and single women are now allowed to foster children in the UAE for the first time.

Fostering children was previously limited to Emirati Muslim married couples and Emirati Muslim women between the ages of 30 and 50.

The amendment to the law means any married couple who are both over the age of 25 can apply to foster a child, regardless of nationality or religion. Women over the age of 30 can also apply to become foster parents, with no upper age limit.

President Sheikh Mohamed with Dr Frauke Heard-Bey, who received an Abu Dhabi Award on behalf of her late husband, David Heard, at Qasr Al Hosn. Photo: UAE Presidential Court
President Sheikh Mohamed with Dr Frauke Heard-Bey, who received an Abu Dhabi Award on behalf of her late husband, David Heard, at Qasr Al Hosn. Photo: UAE Presidential Court

The wife of David Heard, who received a posthumous Abu Dhabi Award on his behalf from President Sheikh Mohamed, paid tribute to her late husband for his lasting legacy.

It is 20 years since the launch of one of the UAE’s most meaningful national honours, the Abu Dhabi Awards, created to credit quiet heroes whose work has strengthened the country and its communities.

Over two decades, the programme has recognised 110 people whose service has left a measurable imprint on the nation. Some of them are no longer alive, yet their contributions continue to be felt.

This month, The National spoke to two families who accepted the award on behalf of loved ones, each of whose life's work still resonates long after their passing.

Dr Frauke Heard-Bey, who herself received the Abu Dhabi Award in 2007, accepted the honour on behalf of her late husband, David Heard, a respected historian, author and photographer whose work documented the country’s early development.

The National produces a variety of newsletters across an array of subjects. You can sign up here. To receive The Editor's Briefing, our Editor-in-Chief's weekly newsletter – exclusive to registered readers – that rounds up the top stories of the week, sign up here.

THE DETAILS

Solo: A Star Wars Story

Director: Ron Howard

2/5

Barbie
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The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 

Company Profile 

Founder: Omar Onsi

Launched: 2018

Employees: 35

Financing stage: Seed round ($12 million)

Investors: B&Y, Phoenician Funds, M1 Group, Shorooq Partners

Three tips from La Perle's performers

1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.

2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.

3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.

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Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.

Based: Riyadh

Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany

Founded: September, 2020

Number of employees: 70

Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions

Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds  

Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices

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Company profile

Date started: 2015

Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki

Based: Dubai

Sector: Online grocery delivery

Staff: 200

Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends

Desert Warrior

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley

Director: Rupert Wyatt

Rating: 3/5

SPECS
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if you go

The flights
Fly direct to Kutaisi with Flydubai from Dh925 return, including taxes. The flight takes 3.5 hours. From there, Svaneti is a four-hour drive. The driving time from Tbilisi is eight hours.
The trip
The cost of the Svaneti trip is US$2,000 (Dh7,345) for 10 days, including food, guiding, accommodation and transfers from and to ­Tbilisi or Kutaisi. This summer the TCT is also offering a 5-day hike in Armenia for $1,200 (Dh4,407) per person. For further information, visit www.transcaucasiantrail.org/en/hike/

 

Rock in a Hard Place: Music and Mayhem in the Middle East
Orlando Crowcroft
Zed Books

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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.
'Laal Kaptaan'

Director: Navdeep Singh

Stars: Saif Ali Khan, Manav Vij, Deepak Dobriyal, Zoya Hussain

Rating: 2/5

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

The Case For Trump

By Victor Davis Hanson
 

Dubai Bling season three

Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed 

Rating: 1/5

Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion

The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.

Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".

The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.

He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.

"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.

As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.

Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
 
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Profile

Name: Carzaty

Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar

Launched: 2017

Employees: 22

Based: Dubai and Muscat

Sector: Automobile retail

Funding to date: $5.5 million

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo

The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
​​​​​​​Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km

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