Theme: Think Deeper, Time to break barriers

The idea to reinitiate TEDxFujairah came from the UAE’s initiative and constant support of our youth. This event will focus on a targeted audience which are the youth of our community and our country in general. We believe in youth empowerment, we believe that the youth are the future of this country’s development in all aspects, technology, medicine, engineering, sustainably and so on.
The event falls under the theme “Think Deeper, Time to Break Barriers”. Today, most of the youth have ideas, have passion and niche towards something but lack the push or the mindset and procedure to go after achieving what they want and this is what this event is about. Our speakers are going to be motivational figures in our society, we are inviting some of the most influential characters in the UAE who went over and beyond breaking barriers within this society to achieve what they wanted, and because they had a combination of passion and niche, they have become the best at what they do and what they have started.
We want the people that are going to attend our event to go back to school, university or place of work with 100% energy and passion in what they are doing. We want them to create, we want them to imagine and accomplish what they thought was impossible, that is TEDxFujairah.

Fujairah Chambers of Commerce
Fujairah
Fujairah, Al Fujayrah, 0000
United Arab Emirates

Adam Baluch

Musician

UAE based singer / multi instrumentalist Adam Baluch combines acoustic guitar, keyboards, trumpet and a soul friendly falsetto to create a unique style, that defines his own genre. Adam was accepted into the highly acclaimed Carolina youth symphony by his early teens and continued to develop his talent through classical training, finding new influences in other musical genres such as hip hop and evolving his songwriting skills, creating new sounds through the encompassment of beatbox and more advanced musical production. His raw acoustic style is prevalent in early tracks such as ‘Charlie’ while later recordings in this period, e.g. bring it on down to love, show a definite movement towards incorporating additional instruments.

Afra Atiq

First Emirati spoken word artist

Afra is the first Emirati female spoken word artist who and slam poet. She has been featured on local and international stages (including the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, USA). She was named Best Performer for 2015-16 by Rooftop Rhythms and, most recently, the first Emirati to ever perform at the legendary Nuyorican Poet’s Cafe in New York. In addition, Afra is the only Emirati to perform at the Bowery Poetry Club and win the PoetsNY poetry slam at the same venue. She enjoys giving back to the community through workshops and mentorships. She has been a featured performer/speaker at platforms like the Salama Bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Foundation, TedxAUS TedxTCHS, NYUAD, Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation, and Sheraa Sharjah. She holds a master’s degree in international relations and diplomacy (specializing in Middle Eastern politics, gender policies, and power dynamics) and is currently pursuing her PhD at UAE University; however, performing takes center stage in her life.

Amal Murad

Fitness and Parkour coach

Amal Murad’s career started off as monkey business. As a young teenager she would play outside jumping across rooftops for fun. Now, she’s a rising star in the UAE’s parkour scene, with coaching classes at Gravity Gym in Al Quoz, an avid social media following, and a starring role in a new regional campaign.

Blank Canvas

Blank Canvas blaŋk/ˈkanvəs noun 1. any surface that has not yet been filled with art. 2. a celebration of creativity; an experiment in communal art; a state of mind; an event encouraging the raw and thoughtless collaboration between creatives. "Work together as one artist, collaborate in motion, complete and begin each others tangible expression. Rather than a 'subject/object' focus, draw instinctively; capture precisely the moment when your intuition speaks to you right before your mind interrupts!" This initiative has been created to promote Communal Art within society, to support freedom of creative expression on all levels and a platform to build community through Art.

Fatima Al Kaabi

Youngest inventor in the UAE

While visiting the desert with her family during winter, 13-year-old Fatima Al Kaabi realised that there were no facilities to charge her mobile phone. “Then I started working on a solution and invented a solar bag,” she told the audience at the second Eco Club Summit organised recently by the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD). Her solar bag can charge electronic devices, power lights and a fan for trekkers in remote areas. Fatima, one of the youngest Emirati girl innovators, narrated the stories behind many of her inventions to a packed audience of students and teachers from around 120 schools in Abu Dhabi emirate. She was the first-place winner in the Robot Olympics in UAE and invented a printer for the visually impaired. Her other inventions include a photographer robot, cheerleader robot and an electronic belt for the hearing impaired. Fatima has won the Shaikh Hamdan and Sharjah Awards for excellence and first prize in ‘Draw he future of Abu Dhabi 2030’.

Nayla Al Khaja

Movie Director and Producer

Nayla etched herself into the region’s film industry by Producing and Directing award winning shorts such as “The Neighbour” and “Malal” which went on to be nominated and receive awards from notable festivals such as the Dubai International Film Festival, Florence Middle East Film Festival and Abu Dhabi Film Festival. To date, her films have participated in over 42 festivals world-wide. In addition to becoming an ambassador for Canon Middle East, Nayla ‘s accolades include being ranked amongst the ‘Top 50 most powerful personalities in Arab cinema’ and ’100 most powerful Arabs under 40’ by the ‘Arabian Business’ magazine, in addition to being awarded ‘Visionary of the Year’ at the ‘Arabian Business Awards’.

Rashed Al Nuaimi

Musician

Rashed AlNuaimi is an aspiring Emirati singer and filmmaker, who is pursuing his passion in the creative fields by creating high-quality musical films that are inspirational to people all around the world. His Instagram page is filled with a cappella-inspired music — AlNuaimi shows himself in several forms, which sing along with each other to create a beautiful and soothing end results. Even though most of his musical videos are funny, you can see how talented, dedicated and passionate he is about being in that moment and giving the viewers his all.