Over the extended National Day weekend I had the opportunity to do some sightseeing around the UAE, from a day out in the desert to an afternoon out on the beach.
It felt great to be able to take advantage of the beautiful weather and explore some of the stunning and varying landscapes on offer but my stroll on the beach and my star gazing sessions were spoiled by seeing piles of cups, bottles, food containers and cigarette butts strewn all around – often right next to a rubbish bin. Nothing ruins the beauty and serenity of being out in nature quiet like an abandoned styrofoam container.
Ever since moving back to this country, the people I’ve run into seem to fall into two general categories: those who throw away rubbish without any apparent concern about what will happen to it and those who have pretty strong views against littering. I fall in the latter category and it is most definitely one of my biggest pet peeves.
When I was growing up, I was taught the importance of cleaning up after myself. Despite always having help in the house, my parents never allowed my siblings and I to use that as an excuse to keep our rooms messy, not pick up after ourselves, or not dispose of rubbish appropriately.
At food courts I get funny stares for picking up my trays and throwing my rubbish away. I understand that there are people employed to clean up, but with such little effort required, I think it is a good habit to have.
For those times when there is nowhere designated to dispose of rubbish, you should just make sure to clean up after yourself. This country goes to great lengths to provide us with beautiful public places such as parks and beaches and I find it disrespectful to leave it dirty, especially for others who want to enjoy the space after you.
Respect for the environment is a big component of Emirati culture and heritage. Our ancestors lived off of the land and its natural resources and showed respect for the land by maintaining its cleanliness. Even from a religious perspective, the Prophet Mohammed highlighted the importance not only of personal hygiene but also of cleanliness in the home, mosque and the community as a whole. There are hadiths that even suggest that cleanliness is half of the faith. It is part of our tradition to do what we can to maintain the beauty of our city by looking after it in every way that we can.
After witnessing examples of carelessness during the long weekend, it made me happy that this week coincided with an Emirates-wide initiative: “Clean Up UAE.” This is an annual week-long clean-up effort held by the Emirates Environmental group and is going strong in its 13th year.
Earlier this week, thousands of volunteers all over the country came together to clean up over 60 sites. In just two days, volunteers in Abu Dhabi and Dubai collected 21 tonnes of rubbish.
A lot of progress has been made by initiatives by the Environmental Agency and the recently-launched Clean up the World Campaign launched by Dubai Municipality. The latter is a partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme that aims to achieve zero waste by promoting the reuse, recycling and reducing of waste. These clean-up efforts are vital in preserving the environment of the UAE for future generations.
Volunteering for such an event is not only a great way to give back to the communities that we belong to, but is also a way for us to take ownership and responsibility. But even more important, I think these efforts help to instil good habits that avoid generating large amounts of waste in the first place.
These are habits that should be taught everywhere, from schools to households. Even if we have yet to get to a point where recycling is a natural habit, at the very least we can ensure that each of us does our part to keep our environments clean. The municipalities and those they employ to collect rubbish do their best, but we should help to carry the weight too.
Fatima Al Shamsi is a globetrotting Emirati, foodie, film buff and football fanatic
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Scores
Scotland 54-17 Fiji
England 15-16 New Zealand
How Voiss turns words to speech
The device has a screen reader or software that monitors what happens on the screen
The screen reader sends the text to the speech synthesiser
This converts to audio whatever it receives from screen reader, so the person can hear what is happening on the screen
A VOISS computer costs between $200 and $250 depending on memory card capacity that ranges from 32GB to 128GB
The speech synthesisers VOISS develops are free
Subsequent computer versions will include improvements such as wireless keyboards
Arabic voice in affordable talking computer to be added next year to English, Portuguese, and Spanish synthesiser
Partnerships planned during Expo 2020 Dubai to add more languages
At least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment or blindness
More than 90 per cent live in developing countries
The Long-term aim of VOISS to reach the technology to people in poor countries with workshops that teach them to build their own device
The five pillars of Islam
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MATCH INFO
Day 2 at the Gabba
Australia 312-1
Warner 151 not out, Burns 97, Labuschagne 55 not out
Pakistan 240
Shafiq 76, Starc 4-52
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Fund-raising tips for start-ups
Develop an innovative business concept
Have the ability to differentiate yourself from competitors
Put in place a business continuity plan after Covid-19
Prepare for the worst-case scenario (further lockdowns, long wait for a vaccine, etc.)
Have enough cash to stay afloat for the next 12 to 18 months
Be creative and innovative to reduce expenses
Be prepared to use Covid-19 as an opportunity for your business
* Tips from Jassim Al Marzooqi and Walid Hanna
Everybody%20Loves%20Touda
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Apple product price list
iPad Pro
11" - $799 (64GB)
12.9" - $999 (64GB)
MacBook Air
$1,199
Mac Mini
$799