Al Bayan daily newspaper, in cooperation with the Arab Thought Foundation, is organizing a special symposium to discuss the second Arab Report on Cultural Development. The symposium entitled "Indicators in the Arab Thought Foundation's Arab Report on Cultural Development". The event will be held at 11.00am on Wednesday morning, 3 February 2010, at the premises of the Dubai School of Government Performance.
Participants in the symposium include: Habib Al Sayegh, Chairman of the Emirates Writers Union; Dha'en Shaheen, Editor-in-Chief at Al Bayan; Dr. Soliman Abdel Moneim, Secretary-General of the Arab Thought Foundation; Sami Al Riyami, Editor-in-Chief of Emirates Today; Dr. Fatma Al Sayegh, History Professor, UAE University; Dr. Mohammad Abdullah Al Mutawa, Member of the Board of Trustees, Al Owais Foundation; Dr. Ayesha Abdullah al-Nuaimi, Journalism Professor, UAE University; author Ali Obaid, Board Member, Culture and Science Symposium; Dr. Hamad Ali, Information Advisor to H.H Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President's Representative; and moderated by author and journalist, Hussain Darwish, Head of the Cultural Section at Al Bayan. Participants will present readings and commentary concerning the report.
The agenda of this periodic symposium includes a welcome speech and a forward by the Arab Thought Foundation. The working papers for this symposium will then be presented, following which the floor will then be open for discussion by participants, and invited guests including intellectuals, authors, researchers, and leaders in the media sector. It is also expected that the Arab Thought Foundation will present 50 copies of the Second Arab Report on Cultural Development.
According to the information on its website, the Second Arab Report on Cultural Development issued by the Beirut-based Arab Thought Foundation for the second consecutive year will be "laying open questions about culture and its current state in the Arab world, opening this issue for research and analysis. It will also look into researching the five basic files closely linked to indicators of cultural growth and levels of development in our societies in an attempt to shape the map of culture in the Arab world, to pinpoint its weakness and strength, to establish a comprehensive methodology for cultural efforts, and to monitor environments conducive to Arab cultural development."
While the annual report for this year continues to present a comprehensive and systematic work in itself, "it also offers a timeline of the reality of higher education and related crises in the Arab world. It puts us face to face with our reality in terms of our own technological progress and the levels of progress of our Arab societies in this vital area. The report also presents visions and thoughts on creative endeavors and research efforts, and the challenges they face. The main themes of the report are: IT, media, education, creativity, and the annual review."
The report also presents an annual review of a full year's intellectual efforts. The report highlights the most important events of the past year, notably the debate among intellectuals and cultural institutions concerning the free flow of information caught between human rights imperatives and the requirements of national security and social stability. This topic is particularly timely as Arab life is greatly impacted by the media revolution, and with the availability of an increased space for dialogue within the Arab community which remains, nonetheless, full of heated arguments. Another vital issue which brings to the forefront the fundamental question about the problematic ethics of dialogue in our contemporary culture.
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