Dana El-Kalache and Ammar Al Alwan distribute water to workers on a construction site as part of the Sameness Project's campaign during the hot summer months. Antonie Robertson / The National
Dana El-Kalache and Ammar Al Alwan distribute water to workers on a construction site as part of the Sameness Project's campaign during the hot summer months. Antonie Robertson / The National
Dana El-Kalache and Ammar Al Alwan distribute water to workers on a construction site as part of the Sameness Project's campaign during the hot summer months. Antonie Robertson / The National
Dana El-Kalache and Ammar Al Alwan distribute water to workers on a construction site as part of the Sameness Project's campaign during the hot summer months. Antonie Robertson / The National

Hundreds of Dubai residents hand out water to workers who brave heat


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DUBAI // With temperatures soaring across the UAE, a group of Dubai residents is on a mission to remind others about the tough conditions some have to endure on a daily basis.

Seven hundred people spent more than three hours handing out 10,000 water bottles to labourers, gardeners, delivery drivers, petrol station and road workers last Saturday, as part of the Sameness Project’s Water for Workers initiative. The drive is an ongoing project.

For Dana El-Kalache, a 27-year-old Lebanese expatriate who used her blog The ScoopDXB to promote the project, it was her second time taking part in the initiative.

“I love to promote homegrown organisations and businesses as there are so many amazing concepts to be proud of in the UAE,” she said.

“The Sameness Project stands out with their main purpose being to create moments of sameness across the UAE and you really realise how much a smile and few kind words can make a difference. The energy that’s transmitted is amazing, and the workers are so approachable and fun.”

She said the reward was priceless.

“They really appreciate the fact that you’ve chosen to go out of your way to make a nice gesture,” Ms El-Kalache said. “The things they’d say – like call me ‘sister’ or say ‘God bless you’ – gave me goose bumps and made me truly happy.

“We are all workers in Dubai and, no matter what our occupation is, we are all the same in our humanity, so it’s nice to appreciate the work of others and to go the extra mile to make someone around you smile.”

Embroidered handkerchiefs with messages translated into different languages were also handed out.

“The volunteer flags have beautiful quotes, like ‘Where there is Life, There is Hope’ or ‘I wonder how many people I’ve looked at all my life and never seen’,” she said. “I absolutely loved it because I think it’s the main purpose of the initiative, to simply see the people that are a part of our day-to-day life.”

Iraqi Ammar Al Alwan, a 29-year-old resident of Dubai, said such workers had contributed a great deal to the emirate. “The heat this summer is peaking and I feel this initiative allows the people in Dubai to reach out to the workers,” he said. “It’s not about what you give them, it is more about the gesture and the interaction that the workers appreciate.”

Suhail Mohammed, a Bangladeshi who works on a construction site in Dubai Marina, said the water made a difference for him. “It is nice to have people come to you and make such a nice gesture,” he said. “We have long days on site and then long hours on a bus so it is a nice break for us.”

His colleague, Abdul Rahman, said 12-hour shifts feel longer in high temperatures. “It becomes more exhausting closer to summer time,” he said. “But we are thankful when people do such good deeds.”

Johnny Kennaugh, a 31-year-old Dubai resident from New Zealand, started the project with five friends three years ago. “We were looking at ideas which [showed] that, despite what separates people, like race, culture, class and religion, we’re all human beings,” he said.

“It’s a nice concept and makes sense but we wanted to live it out on the ground. We were going to an event at the time and had extra water bottles so we stopped to give them to labourers, but rather than just walking away we created interactions where they can be two human beings with water being the [means of] interaction.”

The group, which calls itself “social innovators”, managed to cover all of Dubai and Sharjah. “We have four stations set up where we explain the project,” he added. “Abu Dhabi is the next place we’re looking at.”

For more information, visit www.thesamenessproject.com.

cmalek@thenational.ae

Key findings
  • Over a period of seven years, a team of scientists analysed dietary data from 50,000 North American adults.
  • Eating one or two meals a day was associated with a relative decrease in BMI, compared with three meals. Snacks count as a meal. Likewise, participants who ate more than three meals a day experienced an increase in BMI: the more meals a day, the greater the increase. 
  • People who ate breakfast experienced a relative decrease in their BMI compared with “breakfast-skippers”. 
  • Those who turned the eating day on its head to make breakfast the biggest meal of the day, did even better. 
  • But scrapping dinner altogether gave the best results. The study found that the BMI of subjects who had a long overnight fast (of 18 hours or more) decreased when compared even with those who had a medium overnight fast, of between 12 and 17 hours.
Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFixtures%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3ESaturday%2C%20May%2028%2C%20United%20States%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3ESunday%2C%20May%2029%2C%20United%20States%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3ETuesday%2C%20May%2031%2C%20UAE%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3EWednesday%2C%20June%201%2C%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3EFriday%2C%20June%203%2C%20UAE%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3ESaturday%2C%20June%204%2C%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAhmed%20Raza%20(captain)%2C%20Chirag%20Suri%2C%20Muhammad%20Waseem%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20CP%20Rizwan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Kashif%20Daud%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Alishan%20Sharafu%2C%20Akif%20Raja%2C%20Rahul%20Bhatia%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETable%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Oman%2032%2019%2011%2040%20%2B0.156%3Cbr%3E2.%20Scotland%2016%2011%203%2024%20%2B0.574%3Cbr%3E3.%20UAE%2018%2010%206%2022%20%2B0.22%3Cbr%3E4.%20Namibia%2014%207%207%2014%20%2B0.096%3Cbr%3E5.%20United%20States%2016%207%209%2014%20-0.229%3Cbr%3E6.%20Nepal%2012%206%206%2012%20%2B0.113%3Cbr%3E7.%20Papua%20New%20Guinea%2020%201%2019%202%20-0.856%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Opening day UAE Premiership fixtures, Friday, September 22:

  • Dubai Sports City Eagles v Dubai Exiles
  • Dubai Hurricanes v Abu Dhabi Saracens
  • Jebel Ali Dragons v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Scoreline:

Everton 4

Richarlison 13'), Sigurdsson 28', ​​​​​​​Digne 56', Walcott 64'

Manchester United 0

Man of the match: Gylfi Sigurdsson (Everton)

MATCH INFO

Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)

Third-place play-off: New Zealand v Wales, Friday, 1pm

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home. 

UK-EU trade at a glance

EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years

Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

Smoother border management with use of e-gates

Cutting red tape on import and export of food

Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

Available: Now

Defending champions

World Series: South Africa
Women’s World Series: Australia
Gulf Men’s League: Dubai Exiles
Gulf Men’s Social: Mediclinic Barrelhouse Warriors
Gulf Vets: Jebel Ali Dragons Veterans
Gulf Women: Dubai Sports City Eagles
Gulf Under 19: British School Al Khubairat
Gulf Under 19 Girls: Dubai Exiles
UAE National Schools: Al Safa School
International Invitational: Speranza 22
International Vets: Joining Jack

ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

Keep it fun and engaging

Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.

“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.

His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.

He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.