The Dubai Culture and Arts Authority; its birth:An important first step in this direction was the launch of The Dubai Culture and Arts Authority in March 2008. This was part of the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai and a key element of the Dubai Strategic Plan 2015. In tune with the dynamic and progressive spirit of Dubai, in March 2009, the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority was re-branded as Dubai Culture. Since its inception, the Authority has dedicated itself to leading a renaissance of the cultural scene in Dubai and making it a vibrant hub of culture, arts and heritage.Creating a creative community that is socially and economically healthy:Culture, arts and heritage are vital to the success of Dubai’s expanding economy because they are the key building blocks of civil life and public dialogue. Encouragement of cultural activities in the community improves the quality of life of the city’s residents. It also improves the quality of education and fosters creativity, which leads to innovation in other areas such as hospitality management and entrepreneurship causing a positive impact on the economy.But above all, Dubai’s cultural scene defines this great city’s soul, building its reputation as a world class cultural destination, thus enhancing the Dubai brand and the city’s current standing as the cosmopolitan hub of the Middle East.200 Cultures. One city. One Dubai:Dubai Culture is committed to nurturing and enhancing the unique cultural blend of over 200 different nationalities living in the city by promoting intercultural exchange and understanding. It encourages public dialogue and broad civic engagement with the cultural sector through creative new developments coming from within the city. But, Dubai Culture is also keenly focused on building on Dubai’s Arabic character and protecting its national heritage. It has formulated policies to preserve and foster the Islamic heritage and traditional elements and assets of Dubai by offering legal incentives to engage the private sector in this effort. By attracting the best artistic talent from the region and the world, Dubai Culture exposes talented Emiratis to new ideas and inspires them to express themselves in new and innovative ways. It also strives to initiate dialogue with other global art centres by developing a Dubai Culture and Arts blueprint and spreading it across the region and the world through the establishment of partnerships to enhance the diffusion of cultural knowledge and adding to the world’s Culture and Arts dialogue in the 21st Century.
