Dubai Design District inspires next generation of Emirati women

DUBAI / Emirates Business

Dubai Design District (d3) launched a campaign to inspire the next generation Emirati Women, encouraging them to shape their future with their own hands. The leading business hub partnered with three of its leading Emirati entrepreneurs, and they will be featured in a new campaign for Emirati Women’s Day.
Shafia Alkhyeli, founder of interior design practice Soul Interior Studio; Fatma al Khoori, owner of gift-wrapping concept store Maska; and Hanadi Al Hawi, founder of modest fashion line The Kape, will star in a video celebrating Emirati women in d3 – a global business district home to more than 500 business partners including more than 100 Emirati-owned companies.
Celebrity henna artist Dr Azra also joins d3’s The Future in Your Hand campaign. She has created stunningly intricate, bespoke and beautiful henna designs representing what each creative entrepreneur does. These images have been used for a series of inspiring and motivational social media posts and large-format posters that will displayed across the business district for the community of close to 10,000 professionals to see.
A video has also been produced for the campaign, which features testimonials from the three Emirati creatives sharing their personal thoughts on inspiration, progress as entrepreneurs and vision for the future.
Khadija Al Bastaki, Executive Director, d3, said: “Emirati Women’s Day holds an important place in my heart, and it is a privilege to work with leading Emirati women entrepreneurs to realise our aspiration. Through this campaign, we aim to promote and empower homegrown talents reshaping the role of womanhood in the UAE because we believe that women, the mothers of our nation, are the foundation of a bright and prosperous future.”
Emirati Women’s Day takes place August 28. HH Sheikha Fatma bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union, Chairwoman of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, and Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation, announced this year’s theme is Women: Ambitions & Inspiration for Next 50 Years. The UAE is ranked as the region’s leading country on gender equality and providing equal opportunities to all is intrinsically linked to the continued development of an inclusive society.
The Future in Your Hand is in line with the overall theme and promotes talent who will empower Dubai’s knowledge and innovation-based economy. A series of on-ground activations also took place across d3 to celebrate Emirati Women’s Day, including free henna designers for all Emirati women who were given the chance to write their future on their hand.
As Middle East’s premier creative ecosystem dedicated to design, fashion, architecture, art and retail, d3 organises a year-round calendar of events, including strategic partnerships with key platforms like Dubai Design Week that have helped to cement its position with local and international audiences. Today, the business district is home to leading regional and international players such as Dior, Burberry, Zaha Hadid Architects and Foster + Partners. It is also where the Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation, the region’s only university dedicated to design and innovation, is based.