Abu Dhabi University honors participants of ‘Kunooz Year of Zayed’ competition

Abu Dhabi University (ADU), the largest private university in the UAE, today honored participants from the Kunooz Year of Zayed competition. With over 400 students and faculty staff from 10 universities and 35 participating schools from across the UAE, the celebrations took place during a closing ceremony which was held at the university’s Abu Dhabi campus. Held as an open call during May of this year, the competition encouraged students from across the UAE to promote knowledge on the Late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan’s legacy.

Held as part of the university’s initiatives marking the Year of Zayed, the competition drew entries over three categories; Research, Work of Art and Information Contest. Over 135 submissions were submitted within the Research category by students who submitted 75 research papers, some of which were shortlisted and showcased at the ceremony. The competition also drew 108 submissions in the Work of Art category presented by nearly 155 participants, which were also showcased at the ceremony’s art gallery. Additionally, 31 participants took part in the Information Contest category, forming nine teams out of 40 participating teams comprised of shortlisted participants from the first and second round of the competition.

Salem Al Dhaheri, Executive Director of Community Relations at ADU, honored all participants and awarded the top three winners from the Research and Work of Art categories as well as the top two winners from the Information Contest category in addition to jury members and winners across all categories.

During his speech, Al Dhaheri said: “It fills us with a great amount of pride to witness the success of this competition and the scale of participation in this national initiative. This initiative is part of ADU’s many social, cultural and scientific initiatives that the university continued to launch this year in support of the Year of Zayed with the aim to celebrate our founding father’s life, achievements and legacy. Through this initiative, we are seek to promote a culture of social responsibility and philanthropy in addition to instilling the values of kindness and compassion within our students and faculty.”

Al Dhaheri extended his thanks and appreciation to sponsors and partners of the competition as well as jury members and event organizers. He also congratulated winning students and applauded the educational institutions they represented.

The jury was made up of notable figures from the private and public sector as well as the academic community in the UAE, including: Dr. Huda Al Matroushi, member of the executive council for UAE business women, Dr. Aisha Bel Khair, Director of Research and Information Services at the National Archives, Dr. Khaled Gamal Al Suwaidi, Chief Executive Officer of Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research, Mr. Mourad Abdullah Al Bloushi, Head of Conferences at the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research, Dr. Noura Al Dhaheri, General Manager Al Maqta Gatewa, Salama Al Mazrouei Dr. Mohamed Al Mansouri, Consultant at ADNOC group, Mr. Najeeb Abdullah Al Shamsi, Senior Advisor at Ras Al Khaimah Government, Abdullah Al Murr Al Kaabi, researcher in UAE heritage and  Fahad Al Jaber.

Dr. Sherine Farouk, Assistant Provost for Academic Projects commented: “It was a great honor to work with the organizing team to bring an event of this scale to life for both school-aged and university students. One of the event’s core objectives was to reinforce a deeper understanding and awareness of the Late Sheikh Zayed’s legacy, ensuring that this knowledge is instilled as part of the local education culture for generations to come”.

Abu Dhabi University launched the Kunooz Year of Zayed competition for students and faculty members from public and private institutions as part of a university-wide agenda set up by the university in 2018 for the Year of Zayed. The agenda contained a number of initiatives and social projects that shed light on the historical milestones and national achievements of the UAE during the late Sheikh Zayed’s reign.