ABU DHABI (WAM)
The Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD) has announced the launch of the Abu Dhabi Pearls Festival, which will be held for the first time in the emirate from January 17-23.
The festival aims to celebrate the marine environment and pride in Abu Dhabi’s pearl heritage, while building bridges between the past and the present to transfer knowledge to future generations.
The seven-day festival will take place at the Abu Dhabi Pearls Centre in Al Mirfa City, providing visitors with the opportunity to learn about the centre – established in 2007 as a pioneering regional facility for the sustainable aquaculture pearl of local oysters – with the aim of preserving and reviving the emirate’s rich heritage of pearl diving and its traditions.
The festival offers a variety of interactive educational, entertainment and heritage activities and workshops that enable visitors to learn about the emirate’s deeply rooted maritime and pearl-diving traditions; through these experiences, the festival aims to strengthen national identity and connect different generations by celebrating this authentic heritage.
Commenting on the launch of the festival, Ahmed Al Hashemi, Executive Director of Terrestrial and Marine Biodiversity Sector at EAD, said, “We are pleased to launch the Abu Dhabi Pearls Festival, which supports the emirate’s vision to promote ecotourism and raise public awareness about the pivotal role played by the Abu Dhabi Pearls centre in Al Mirfa City – the first of its kind in the region.
The centre’s objective is to sustainably farm pearls by adopting the latest technologies and innovations while highlighting the UAE’s traditions and heritage, focused on four main elements: awareness and education, marketing, studies and research and ecotourism, under which we aim to establish Abu Dhabi Pearls Centre as an ecotourism destination in the region.”
Moreover, the festival features several engaging discussion sessions with participants from the UAE and other Gulf countries with experience and knowledge of diving, pearls and the environment to discuss the marine cultural heritage of the Arabian Gulf.
The sessions discuss diving methods of the past and associated traditions, explore how the profession developed over time, highlight different types of pearls found in the Gulf, and discuss ways to educate young people about this ancient heritage.