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| Daly with the winners of Vodafone Qatar’s ‘World of Difference’ programme |
Now in its second year, the “World of Difference” is an initiative that is part of “Better World”, Vodafone Qatar’s corporate social responsibility strategy.
It is a flagship project and a first in Qatar in which Vodafone Qatar gives people the opportunity to receive funding for 12 months to undertake projects to help the community in Qatar.
Kathleen Bates is founder of Freestyle, an aquatics programme that includes swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving for the physically disabled population.
It will be the first and the only one of its kind in Qatar.
Bates has been working with the physically disabled for the past 15 years in active/outdoor recreational settings.
She has 13 years diving and teaching experience, and she is a professional snorkeling and scuba diving instructor with certification from three international accredited agencies from Europe, Asia and the United States.
She is the only certified handicapped scuba instructor in Qatar and only one of two female adaptive instructors in the GCC.
As a volunteer, Bates travels to Oman twice a year to work with their disabled population.
In addition to her professional experience, education and volunteer work, Bates says what she has the most of is passion for working with individuals with special needs, and showing them that they can scuba dive just like their able-bodied friends.
She has seen these activities and the chance to be active change their lives.
Al-Naemi is founder of Second Chance Animal Rescue that involves direct action to help abused, abandoned and stray animals in Qatar, as well as raising awareness of the issue of animal welfare in Qatar.
Al-Naemi owns one of the few veterinarian clinics in Qatar, and has been actively involved in animal welfare in Qatar.
Second Chance Rescue Qatar started in 2009 and has grown from there. In the last 12 months, he has set up and is now running a veterinary hospital.
“’World of Difference’ is an important part of Vodafone’s ‘Better World’ corporate social responsibility initiative,” said Vodafone Qatar chief executive Richard Daly. “In addition to being a first in Qatar, this is an innovative approach that scores highly versus traditional grant-giving or philanthropy, leading the way to a different way of doing charity – not by simply donating money, but by sustaining people to fulfil their charitable projects for an entire year.”
“The programme is about connecting passionate people to a local need, so they can complete a project that will make a sustained difference to the lives of others. While many people dream of ‘making difference’, constraints of time and money often curb the extent to which that dream can become a reality,” Daly said.
“More than 200 applications were received for this year’s programme and after a rigorous selection process, al-Naemi’s work with animals and Bates’ scuba diving for the disabled clearly stood out as the strongest and those that will make a sustained difference to the lives of others in Qatar,” said Vodafone Qatar’s head of corporate responsibility Dana Haidan. “I wish them the best of luck as they embark on their community projects.”
The winners will commence working on their projects in January 2012.
Their progress can be tracked on http://www.facebook.com/VFQABetterWorld.
