(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Qatar Foundation (QF) has continued to play a strategic role in education, research and innovation in the past three years. It also enables young people to acquire the necessary skills necessary for the knowledge-based economy, though its campuses and world class research facilities. The achievements of QF includes from establishing new schools to encouraging global dialogue on pressing issues.
'Qatar Foundation has always drawn inspiration from the Qatari community and its ability to adapt, resist and deal with crises, and even turn challenges into opportunities. This is a key part of QF's mission to unlock human potential. Human potential is crystallized in times of challenges, as people take crises as an incentive for creativity, innovation and the pursuit of sustainability and moving forward in achieving the accomplishments that they aspire to achieve, Khalifa Essa Al Kubaisi, Manager of Media Relations and Press Office, Qatar Foundation told The Peninsula.
'Since the beginning of the unjust blockade, we have proven at Qatar Foundation, our readiness and ability to deal with challenges at various levels, through our prior preparations and our immediate and efficient response to ensure that education for our students of different nationalities continues at the same quality. Also, to continue to work on research, development and innovation that is beneficial to the State of Qatar and the region. We have also moved forward in launching more community initiatives and projects aimed at building societies, he added.
QF's Pre-University Education
In the beginning of this year, H H the Father Amir, and H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation officially opened Tariq Bin Ziad School, under the umbrella of QF's Pre-University Education (PUE)
Tariq Bin Ziad School, which came under the umbrella of QF's PUE at the start of the current academic year, offers a bilingual co-educational Primary Years Programme that follows the International Baccalaureate curriculum, with additional aspects that reflect the importance and the enduring relevance of Qatari heritage. In February 2019, QF launched Academiyati, A progressive school offering a globally unique learning model of education. It is the first of its kind in Qatar.
QF announced the launch of a new Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) school under the umbrella of QF's PUE, in April 2018. Qatar Academy for Science and Technology (QAST) offer a program focused on STEM learning, hands-on science skills, and innovative thinking, which will allow students to apply their knowledge to real-world challenges using both traditional and modern methods.
Hamad bin Khalifa University
Hamad bin Khalifa University (HBKU) QF's homegrown university celebrated the graduation of its Class of 2018, witnessing the graduation of its first cohorts of science and engineering PhD students and Juris Doctor law program graduates. The university also reinforced its year-on-year growth by graduating its largest class to date.nHBKU also announced the launch of six new academic degrees, including both Master's and Doctoral programs. The new degrees under HBKU's College of Islamic Studies include a Master of Science in Islamic Art, Architecture and Urbanism; a Master of Arts in Islam and Global Affairs; and a PhD in Islamic Finance and Economy. The new programs under HBKU's College of Science and Engineering are a Master of Data Analytics in Health
Education City Golf Club
The Education City Golf Club opened in March this year as it hosted its first international tournament, the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters 2020. Comprising 18-hole, nine-hole, and six-hole courses, the Education City Golf Club also houses a state-of-the-art learning and practice facility within its Centre of Excellence, which combines modern technology with expert training opportunities and includes a women-only tuition area, as the club seeks to support the growth of women's golf in Qatar. Its nine-hole course is floodlit, enabling people to enjoy a round of night-time golf, with the club also providing a range of fitness classes and offering golf lessons for individuals, groups, and children.
Equine Veterinary Medical Center
Equine Veterinary Medical Center (WVMC) a regionally unique facility designed to provide the highest caliber of healthcare for horses while also advancing veterinary science, opened on March 7. The EVMC houses an equine referral hospital, a veterinary diagnostic laboratory, and a clinical research laboratory, with its team of veterinarians employing advanced treatments and techniques to care for horses. Its specialized services include surgery, internal medicine, rehabilitation, dentistry, diagnostic imaging, and pain management, with the center also offering a round-the-clock emergency service. Meanwhile, EVMC's research program is aiming to make scientific advances in the field of equine medicine through collaborations and clinical research projects, while the center also offers educational programs.
Sidra Medicine
Sidra Medicine, a brand new children's and women hospital welcomed its first patients to the main hospital building in January 2018.One of the most ambitious greenfield hospital developments of its kind, addresses the growing need for specialist children's and maternity care by offering services previously unavailable in Qatar and, in many cases, across MENA region.
WISH
Building a healthier world through global collaboration is the goal of the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH), a QF initiative that has created an international healthcare community united in its dedication to addressing today's most pressing health challenges. In November 2018, almost 2,200 healthcare experts, innovators and entrepreneurs, health ministers, and policymakers, lent their voices to these conversations at the 2018 edition of the WISH Summit in Doha, the largest to date. Its opening ceremony reflected Qatar's commitment to healthcare innovation and the advancement of precision medicine, as H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser was presented with the first ‘Q-chip', highlighting the progress made by QF's Qatar Genome Programme and Qatar Biobank in developing the first gene array based on data from thousands of Qatari genomes.
Unfolding over seven days immediately before the WISH 2018 Summit, and attended by more than 10,000 people, the festival's 54 activities raised awareness of health resources in Qatar and encouraged the local community to embrace healthy, active lifestyles.
WISE
In the context of education, the world came together at QF in November 2019 for the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) 2019 with the goal being to explore how the future of learning can be reimagined. More than 3,200 educators, decision-makers, and experts, representing 100-plus countries a record attendance - attended the latest edition of the WISE Summit, held under the theme UnLearn, ReLearn: What It Means To Be Human.
DIFI
Through its research, its role in influencing policy, and its capacity to create international networks of knowledge, QF member Doha International Family Institute (DIFI) is integral to ensuring a cornerstone of Arab society the family unit remains robust, cohesive, and equipped to deal with the challenges that modern life presents.
In 2018, DIFI initiated and funded a book on Arab family studies, with contributions from 28 scholars, to help bridge gaps in global knowledge in this area; and unveiled its Civil Society Statement on Parenting, later presented at the United Nations Headquarters in New York as DIFI hosted a ‘Doha Briefing' panel at the 57th Session of the Commission for Social Development.
Doha Debates
A new dimension on global dialogue is now being provided to the world by QF, through the relaunched Doha Debates bringing fresh voices and viewpoints to topics and themes that shape our world.
Six years after the last airing of the original Doha Debates, the QF production returned in February 2019 with its inaugural live event, showcasing its innovative new concept and its goal of unlocking solutions to global challenges through diverse, rigorous, and honest debate.
Doha Debates' approach includes live debates, digital videos, a TV series, blogs, podcasts, and majlis-style conversations designed to bridge differences, build consensus, and tackle urgent global issues through discourse and the exchange of perspectives.
Its debut event at Qatar National Library saw speakers from Qatar and abroad share and debate suggestions for alleviating the global refugee crisis. Further debates have since focused on whether Artificial Intelligence's benefits outweigh its risks; the arguments surrounding globalization; water scarcity; capitalism; and loss of trust in institutions.
As well as taking place in Qatar, Doha Debates' live events have been held in Edinburgh and Cape Town, and at the Paris Peace Forum 2019. Each debate sees an international audience have the opportunity to suggest their own ideas and solutions, before the live audience vote on those proposed by the debate participants.
In February 2019, Doha Debates also hosted a series of talks, in partnership with TED, during the TED Salon ‘Up for Debate in New York City. Speakers in the US city were joined by five groups of people from Qatar, Rwanda, Afghanistan, the US, and Mexico, who shared their views in real time via walk-in shopping containers equipped with audiovisual devices, known as Portals - another example of how Doha Debates is combining the Arab tradition of discourse with innovation and technology to inspire a new generation of change-makers.
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