Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 26 October 2020: Dubai Culture and Arts Authority launched the 11th edition of Live Our Heritage Festival at Global Village, which is celebrating its Silver Jubilee. This edition of the festival will be held under the theme ‘Genius of Emirati Traditional Crafts’ from 25 October 2020 to 18 April 2021 and will present visitors with rich and varied heritage events that celebrate ancient Emirati heritage across generations, reinforcing Dubai’s position as the largest intellectual meeting point for people and the various cultures of the world.

 

The festival will welcome visitors to Global Village daily from 4 p.m. until 10 p.m., presenting them with a rich programme of activations, including traditional coffee, the traditional room, Emirati cuisine, the Tawash profession, Mutawa, traditional crafts, pottery, and date-selling as well as local traditional arts programmes covering distinguished Emirati folk groups who would be performing during the festival, in addition to holding workshops that focus on the traditional crafts displayed throughout the festival and its stages of development. The programme will also include dialogues and educational sessions and meetings with specialists in the field of culture and heritage, as well as workshop presenters and media professionals, to provide the public with an opportunity to learn about the most important features of Emirati heritage and its original customs and traditions.

 

The programme will also provide an exciting atmosphere through varied and innovative cultural and heritage competitions and challenges that would continue throughout the festival, in addition to a range of other distinctive activities specifically designed around National Day celebrations and World Heritage Day.

Hala Badri, Director General of Dubai Culture, stressed the importance of the Live Our Heritage Festival in supporting the wise leadership’s directions to consolidate Dubai’s position on the global cultural map and to enhance the Authority’s efforts in preserving local heritage, supporting local craftsmen and artists as well as preserving handicrafts and traditional Emirati heritage and its development. She said: “Dubai is a vibrant city that provides its residents and visitors with unique experiences to discover the emirate’s distinct heritage and ancient historical origins through many cultural events and heritage activities; the aim is to reveal the magic behind Dubai’s authentic traditions that reflect the depth and richness of cultural assets forming the emirate’s fabric. Live Our Heritage Festival is part of our efforts through which we seek to enhance the emirate’s position as a cultural tourism destination on the global stage, and we are keen to reserve a permanent site for us at Global Village, the unique destination that brings the world together in one place.” 

 

She added: “Dubai Culture believes in the importance of making culture accessible to everyone everywhere by holding large cultural events to celebrate and instil the pride of authentic national identity and rich Emirati heritage among the younger generations. Live Our Heritage Festival is an ideal platform to spread awareness of our heritage that reveals the history of ancestors, their customs and traditions to a wide audience of Global Village visitors, constituting citizens, residents and tourists, to participate in experiencing the UAE’s old social and professional life. This festival also plays an important role in keeping our proud heritage alive in the minds of the new generation and inspired them to preserve it and to continue the march of excellence and achievement that our inspiring leadership took to the heights of glory, inspired by the UAE’s heritage and the determination of its founding fathers.” Badri also emphasised the role of the festival’s activities in supporting traditional handicrafts as a national cultural and civilizational asset that resembles an important part of the Emirati identity.

Dubai Culture is committed to enriching the cultural scene of Dubai, based on the heritage of the United Arab Emirates, and to celebrating emirate’s rich heritage and ancient past, preserving, protecting and transmitting it across generations, granting everyone access to it and instilling feelings of pride and national belonging in the younger generation.