Qatar was elected to the membership of the Intergovernmental Committee of the 2005 Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) in June 2018, affirming the confidence of the international community in the country’s ability to promote cultural diversity and to protect and enhance the diversity of cultural expressions.
The country has made several efforts that highlight and enhance cultural diversity among expatriate communities in the country, in addition to its support for regional and international co-operation and communication that reflects the civilisational image of Qatar.
Qatar joined the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in 2009.
Doha was chosen in 2010 to be the Arab Capital of Culture, and the Forum of Arabic and International Relations was established in 2011.
Qatar launched the Years of Culture initiative in 2012 and started with the Qatar-Japan Year of Culture, followed by the Qatar-UK Year of Culture in 2013 and the Qatar-Brazil Year of Culture in 2014.
It was Turkey in 2015, China 2016, Germany 2017, Russia in 2018 and India in 2019.
Qatar is also celebrating “Doha QIC Youth Capital” this year.
Despite its keenness on cultural diversity, Qatar is keen to preserve and promote its national identity in various events.
Qatar dedicated centres to promote cultural heritage, such as the “Nomas Centre”.
The Qatari heritage is also present in various events, for example Marmi international falcon and hunting festival, Al Galayel hunting competition, and the Traditional Dhow Festival, in addition to celebrations of Qatar National Day on December 18 where Darb Al Saai, the prime venue for these celebrations, focuses on organising many cultural activities.
The National Museum of Qatar... The desert rose
His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani inaugurated the National Museum of Qatar on March 28, 2019, giving the country a platform to showcase its rich heritage and culture and to express the future liveable ambitions of its people.
The museum embraces, as its centrepiece, the restored historic Palace of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim al-Thani (1880-1957), son of the founder of modern Qatar: a building that in former times was both the home of the Royal Family and the seat of government, and was subsequently the site of the original National Museum.
Alongside the palace, the new museum includes innovative artworks designed by Qatari and international artists, as well as rare and precious collections, documentary materials, and interactive learning activities.
Jean Nouvels’ dynamic architectural design echoes the geography of Qatar while evoking the history and culture of the nation.
According to Nouvel, “Qatar has a deep rapport with the desert, with its flora and fauna, its nomadic people, its long traditions. To fuse these contrasting stories, I needed a symbolic element. Eventually, I remembered the phenomenon of the desert rose: crystalline forms, like miniature architectural events, that emerge from the ground through the work of wind, salt water, and sand. The museum that developed from this idea, with its great curved discs, intersections, and cantilevered angles, is a totality, at once architectural, spatial, and sensory.”
The National Museum of Qatar is organised in three “chapters” – Beginnings, Life in Qatar, and Building the Nation – presented in 11 galleries.
The visitors’ chronological journey, which extends through more than 2.7km of experiences, starts in the geological period long before the peninsula was inhabited by humans and continues to the present day.
The route passes through a succession of impressive, remarkably shaped volumes until it reaches its culmination in the very heart of Qatari national identity, the thoroughly restored Palace of Sheikh Abdullah.
Oral histories, archival images, artworks, music, storytelling, and evocative aromas create an immersive sensory experience that contextualises the impressive array of archaeological and heritage objects, which includes the renowned Pearl Carpet of Baroda – commissioned in 1865, embroidered with more than 1.5mn of the highest quality Gulf pearls, and adorned with emeralds, diamonds, and sapphires – as well as manuscripts, documents, photographs, jewellery, and costumes.
Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding
The Board of Trustees of Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding announced that the winners of the Award’s fifth season for the year 2019 will be declared and honoured during a ceremony on December 8.
A total of 234 participants representing individuals and institutions involved in translation from more than 34 Arab and foreign countries, took part in the competition.
The countries were: Qatar, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Yemen, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, Sudan, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Uzbekistan, India, Pakistan, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Somalia, Kenya and South Africa.
The Steering Committee has commenced its work in handing over the works to the jury from around the Arab world and the world.
Founded in 2015, Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding seeks to honour translators and acknowledge their role in strengthening the bonds of friendship and co-operation among peoples and nations of the world, reward merit and excellence, encourage creativity, uphold the highest moral and ethical standards, and spread the values of diversity, pluralism and openness.
The Award also aspires to inculcate a culture of knowledge and dialogue, promote Arab and Islamic culture and develop international understanding.
In its fifth edition this year, the Award selected Russian as the second major language alongside English, with five new languages being selected in the achievement category – Uzbek, Portuguese, Bahasa Indonesia, Somali and Malayalam.
There are also five categories this year: Translation from Arabic into English, Translation from English into Arabic, Translation from Arabic into Russian, Translation from Russian into Arabic, and an Achievement Award.
The total amount of the Award is $2mn divided into three categories – translations awards, achievement and the award for achievement in the main two languages.
Youth is the power of the nation
Doha is the OIC Youth Capital for the year 2019 and has marked the event with a host of activities organised by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, in co-operation with the Islamic Co-operation Youth Forum and under the supervision of Qatar Centre for Cultural and Heritage Events, under the motto “Youth is the Power of the Nation”.
Doha the OIC Youth Capital, whether through its already established or later events, has been keen to provide a suitable environment for young people to get acquainted with the most important issues of concern, and to activate the conditions of empowerment for a decent life for Muslim communities.
Its motto – Youth is the Power of the Nation – reflects the will and stakes of Islamic countries in making youth an essential player in consolidating the values of unity, co-operation and dialogue, and empowering young people to manage public affairs and achieve sustainable and promising development strategies.
In the framework of the event, Doha Youth Camp for Voluntary and Humanitarian Work will be organised in co-operation with Qatar Red Crescent Society from October 28 to November 6.
The camp represents an opportunity for Muslim youth to share experiences in the field of volunteerism and humanitarian work.
It aims to develop the capabilities of Muslim youth in the areas of relief and disaster management, discuss the experiences of some Islamic countries in volunteering, humanitarian and relief work, and motivate young people to acquire and spread a culture of social responsibility and volunteerism.
The event will be a simulation of real and realistic experience of the situation of refugees and the victims of natural disasters and wars.
Throughout the camp period, participants will live in tents similar to the refugee camps.
Doha the OIC Youth Capital also includes the Doha Youth Innovation Award which honours outstanding works in visual arts, photography and short films, in co-operation with the Islamic Co-operation Youth Forum (ICYF), and in partnership with the Visual Arts Centre, Doha Film Institute and the Youth Hobbies Centre.
The Award aims at developing the spirit of innovation and creativity among young people in various scientific, literary and artistic fields and moving away from stalemate and calcification in thinking and planning; providing an appropriate environment for creative youth to highlight innovative efforts and unleash creative skills; and encouraging young Muslims to aspire to a culture of competition and excellence.
Winners of the first three positions in each category of the Doha Youth Innovation Award will be crowned at the closing ceremony of the Doha QIC Youth Capital in January 2020.
Doha also organised several important events in the framework of the Doha OIC Youth Capital, the most important of which was the Doha Islamic Youth Forum, which was held in July with the participation of youth delegation from 56 countries.
The Forum discussed three main themes: sage governance and transparency among youth, and youth and the bet on sustainable development, youth and social media, as well as the diplomatic simulations.
In the same context, Doha Oasis for Innovation was organised in September with the participation of 42 inventors from 32 Muslim countries.
The activity aimed at stimulating creativity among youth in the fields of invention and innovation.
Winners of the individual competitions were announced, while the winners of the group competition will be announced later this month.
The group competition resulted in the establishment of six companies to implement innovative projects.
Qatar received the key of Doha OIC Youth Capital 2019 in April in recognition of the country’s efforts to support and empower young Muslims, at the closing ceremony of “Al Quds Ash Sharif OIC Youth Capital 2018” held in Ankara.
Al Thuraya Planetarium
The first fixed astronomical dome in Qatar, the Al Thuraya Planetarium is one of the main attractions at Katara Cultural Village, offering a full-dome digital system with a seating capacity of 200 people and a 22m screen, equipped with state-of-the-art digital projectors showing 2D and 3D tutorial shows.
The planetarium takes visitors through a journey around the galaxies of the universe in a simplified manner that suits children and adults in two languages, English and Arabic.
The planetarium is named after the Thuraya (Seven Sisters) which is a cluster of seven bright stars (the Pleiades M45).
It is considered one of the most beautiful sights in the sky which Arabs call the Thuraya (Wealth in Arabic) which was of great significance to them in the ancient times.
The operating system of the planetarium (Digistar) has very unique features such as an amazing tool to process 3D illustrations projected to the main screen of the dome.
The system also features live domecasting, which enables similar theatres and domes in the world that are equipped with the same Digistar system to broadcast live presentations between each other, which enables other galleries to meet and watch live performances and experiment simultaneously, and live presentations to be broadcast on the Al Thuraya.
In addition, the planetarium features information on Earth Science which contains more than 200 unique data sets in astronomy, atmosphere, geology and the oceans.
This includes more than 25 terrestrial weather data, solar data sets and a number of awareness presentations by professional trainers.
There is also a museum within the Planetarium displaying astronomical figures and history such as the story of the split of the moon in the era of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), and a number of models of the planets of the solar system in various sizes, in addition to models of space shuttles and astronaut suits.
National Museum of Qatar
