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Just another WordPress.com weblogREUSE 2.0 Event Announced for Q4 2008
The Metal and Recycling Company (MRC), a leading commercial waste management company and Zain Telecommunications Company , the leading mobile telecommunications provider, announced that they would jointly host the REUSE 2.0 recycled art exhibition in Kuwait, under the patronage of his Excellency, the Minister of State for Municipal Affairs, Dr. Fadel Safar.
REUSE 2.0 is a unique event that set to be held for the second consecutive year in Kuwait, and will be hosted at Bayt Lothan in Salmiya district from November 30th to December 2nd 2008. In addition to guest speakers and local professional artists from Kuwait, the exhibit will feature internationally recognized artist Hassan Hajjaj and will serve as an opportunity for aspiring creative talents from various high schools and universities to showcase their accomplishments in the fields of art, design, photography and more. The exhibition will be open to the public from 6pm to 9pm in addition to an allocated time for student trips during 10am to 1pm.
Commenting on this occasion, Omar Tarek Issa, Public Relations Manager at MRC said: ‘The aim behind this exhibition is encouraging the youth to fully comprehend the importance of recycling, since it can produce beneficial material as well as end up being aesthetic decorative paintings.’
‘We at MRC are delighted to be offering recycling solutions, which helps in providing a healthy and safe environment for Kuwait. As part of its corporate social responsibility program, MRC is keen on undertaking a recycling awareness program, addressed through its lectures within Kuwaiti schools,’ added Issa.
MRC operates in three primary sectors, which are waste management and recycling, energy sectors, which focus on oil infrastructure projects, and the industrial sectors.
MRC also supports recycling programmes and has initiated a wide range of local projects to generate more awareness of the importance of waste management. These include the ‘Don’t Throw It, Recycle It’ and the ‘Environment Friends’ campaigns.
Khuloud A. Al-Feeli, Corporate Communications and Relations Department Manager at Zain Mobile Telecommunications Company Kuwait said: ‘The underlying principles of REUSE 2.0 are very much in line with what we are trying to do within Zain Mobile Telecommunications Company here in Kuwait – make the best of what we have in order to minimize waste and help reduce any negative impact that we have on our environment. Large organisations inevitably leave a larger carbon footprint and at we feel strongly about taking decisive positive action to deal with this issue.
Zain was one of the leading companies that took part in the national conservation energy campaign, ‘Tarsheed’, which was promoted throughout different Zain Telecommunications Company
Zain Group buildings and branches. We adopted a plan to minimize electricity and water consumption, as well as the ‘Don’t Throw it, Recycle It’ and the ‘Environment Friends’ campaigns, where thousands of recycled paper bags were distributed throughout Co-ops all over Kuwait, added Al Feeli.’
After the success that was achieved in the first exhibition, which was created by The en.v initiative (a subsidiary of elboutique.com), to raise awareness about the importance of recycling in Kuwait was renewed.
Zahed Al Sultan, managing partner and CEO of The en.v Initiative said: ‘We are delighted to be managing and organizing REUSE 2.0, and to be hosting both MRC and ZAIN. This exhibition unveils the beauty that can result from recycled objects and all of the artists’ artistic products on display will be on sale this year via auction – adding excitement to the exhibition.’
A carbon footprint is a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment, and in particular climate change. It relates to the amount of greenhouse gases produced in our day-to-day lives through burning fossil fuels for electricity, heating and transportation etc.
http://www.carbonfootprint.com
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For more information please contact: MRC Tel: +965 24577773, Fax: + 965 24672168, Web: www.mrc.com.kw
Zain Phone: +965 2464-4444, Fax: +965 2464-1111, Web: www.kw.zain.com
The en.v Initiative Tel: +965 2245-8445, Fax: +965 2245-8445, Web: www.envearth.com |
Zahed’s Ventures Go Carbon Neutral
El Boutique Creative Group (www.elboutique.com) would like to announce the launch of en.v (short for environmentally friendly) – an initiative dedicated to raising awareness about issues relating to social responsibility in the Middle East region.
The en.v Initiative is based in Kuwait with the prime objective of seeking out individuals as well as multinational companies in the region, and documenting their efforts towards creating a more thought-conscious society using formats that are appealing to the masses. Moreover, en.v strives to develop mediums that entities can utilize as platforms for publicizing their social efforts (thus presenting themselves to stakeholders in an entirely new light).
The first platform of The en.v Initiative was the launch of a quarterly bilingual publication for the GCC. This has translated into a strong GCC retail presence as well as distribution agreements with over 40 educational establishments and corporations.
The second platform of The en.v Initiative is an interactive online portal and archiving system to follow by summer’s end. The portal will feature an electronic magazine, audio, video, image libraries as well as numerous functions for users to interact with and share their opinions.
Building on El Boutique’s experience as a branding consultancy, en.v’s third platform is creative advocacy. The en.v Initiative will act as an advocacy and advisory body on social responsibility campaigns, programs and events for various corporations and community-minded organizations.
Additionally, it is with great pride and pleasure that the El Boutique Creative Group and The en.v Initiative announce that both entities are officially going carbon neutral – among the first in its respective fields to do so in the region.
With this corporate pledge, El Boutique Creative Group and en.v reviewed, under consultation of an external audit agency, all its day-to-day corporate activities; and committed to do its best to reduce, reuse and recycle. Given the unavoidable obstacles to maintaining a wholly sustainable organization, all damage that is inflicted on the environment will be offset by investing in regional carbon neutral projects.
About El Boutique Creative Group:
El Boutique Creative Group is a creative house devoted to raising design standards and environmental consciousness. El Boutique offers a range of services to the commercial sector in the realm of sound design, visual design, brand consultancy and more. El Boutique Creative Group strives to invigorate businesses with creative energy via conscious thought.
For more information on El Boutique Creative Group
Tel: +965 2524614
Fax: +9652524615
Email: info@elboutique.com
Website: www.elboutique.com
For more information on The en.v Initiative
Tel: +965 2524614
Fax: +9652524615
Email: env@envearth.com
Website: www.envearth.com
For further inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Marie Claire Milan Discusses en.v With Zahed
In a collaborative interview held in Kuwait, Marie Claire (Milan edition) discusses The en.v Initiative with Zahed Sultan and featured excerpts from this discussion in their July 2008 edition.
These excerpts can be read online at:
www.marieclaire.it/magazine/mondi-nuovi/invi-t-ato-speciale#pag-3
About en.v:
en.v, a subsidiary of El Boutique Creative Group (http://www.elboutique.com/), is a regional initiative based out of Kuwait that is dedicated to raising awareness for issues relating to social responsibility. en.v’s objective is to seek out individuals as well as multinational companies and document their efforts in a format that is appealing to the masses. Moreover, en.v is striving to develop mediums that entities can utilize as platforms for publicizing their social efforts (thus presenting themselves to stakeholders in an entirely new light).
For more information on El Boutique Creative Group
Tel: +965 2524614
Fax: +9652524615
Email: info@elboutique.com
Website: www.elboutique.com
For more information on The en.v Initiative
Tel: +965 2524614
Fax: +9652524615
Email: env@envearth.com
Website: www.envearth.com
For further inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Clientele in Conversation With Zahed Sultan
Zahed Sultan – an enigma!
Clientele Kuwait in conversation with Zahed Sultan, a young and upcoming Kuwaiti entrepreneur.
Zahed Sultan is imbued with a strong leaning towards the creative realm and is set upon making a career of it. This passion, says Zahed, “Stems largely from the fact that I was born into a creative household as my father is an architect and my mother is a landscape designer. My multi-cultural background further fuels my creative urge. It drives me to channel creative ideas into successful business ventures”.
Zahed has had most of his early education in Kuwait and on completion of his degree in business he journeyed down the career path and after a year of formal employment with Agility, he moved on.
He relocated to London from where he earned a diploma in audio-engineering from the SAE Institute. Here as part of the orientation programme, students were required to undergo a month- long graphic design workshop, a course requirement. This paved the way for Zahed’s future and prepared him for where he is today. In retrospect, he finds himself completely drawn into the complex world of creating and being creative.
Zahed is today the founding partner and Chief Executive Officer of El Boutique Creative Group, a creative house devoted to raising design standards and environmental consciousness. El Boutique offers a range of services to the commercial sector in the realm of brand consultancy, visual design, sound design, and more. It strives to invigorate businesses with creative energy via conscious thought. The website for this venture is www.elboutique.com.
Another venture is en.v [pronounced envy], a subsidiary of El Boutique Creative Group. It is an acronym for “environmentally friendly”. en.v is a magazine as well as an online portal dedicated to creating awareness for environmental, educational, societal, corporate and governmental initiatives for a more thought-conscious tomorrow. Suitably enhanced by visual renderings, en.v will serve as a platform for personal commitment to the community as well as an instrumental reference for corporate Arabia. For more information on en.v log on to www.envearth.com
Zahed’s third venture, scheduled for launch in the 2nd quarter of 2008, kilshay is planned as an online resource portal designed to give presence to entities that have a talent or service to offer, from multinationals to freelance individuals. Powered with a host of interactive features, kilshay endeavours to develop a tightly knit community of advice seekers and professional contacts. More details can be found at www.kilshay.com.
“Looking back on my school days, I confess my current entrepreneurial drive owes a lot to my high school hobby of DJ-ing,” says Zahed. “I enjoyed playing music for parties, gatherings and lounges abroad. I never thought I’d actually pursue music or choose any other creative field as a career. Fortunately, I discovered early enough that being decisive is a powerful character trait to possess. I capitalised on my strengths, worked [and am still working] on my weaknesses and fortunately things are falling into place,” says Zahed.
He adds, “I lose a lot of sleep weighing the merits of one idea over another. At times, I wish there were two of me. On the one hand, it’s a curse to want to do so much as it consumes you. On the other hand, creating something, in whatever form or manner, gives me a real sense of accomplishment. I don’t have a clear action plan with regards to setting up a new business. I am driven by instinct. If an idea excites me enough, I take the necessary steps to minimize risk and achieve pre-planned objectives.”
There are many things that inspire Zahed’s creative drive, although primarily he feels that “Ambition inspires me immensely. Interacting with people who pursue their dreams [no matter how outrageous] courageously and with passion is what drives me to pursue my own with the same enthusiasm”.
With talents that span across a whole range of creativity, Zahed is also musically gifted in the non-traditional sense, “My foray into music as a career has been very limited. I have only released one track on the American TV Hit Show CSI. My choice of music is eclectic and I don’t necessarily want to be pigeon-holed into any specific genre of music. I love the idea of being dynamic. Being a producer, I am confident I can make an impact through my music in the near future. Ideally, people’s honesty will give me a clearer direction and allow me to strike a good balance between artistic integrity and mass appeal”.
The traits that symbolise Zahed’s work are attention to detail, a keenly artistic mind set, consciousness of the environment and of the social milieu in which he lives and the ability to think logically and independently.
Although music is a major passion, Zahed tells us that “My music has been sidetracked for the past two years as all my energies were devoted to my entrepreneurial ventures. I was eager to ensure they were founded on a secure platform so they continue to enjoy sustained growth in the years ahead”.
On a personal level, Zahed simply cannot ignore his desire to create music, which is why for his plans for the near future he tells us that “I look forward to releasing an mini album [ an e.p.] sometime in the current year. And on a professional level, I aspire to further develop my business ventures to acquire regional and possibly global presence in the years ahead as well as establish new ones that can both engage and inspire others”.
More details on Zahed Sultan can be had from his personal website: www.iamzahed.com. This is a virtual domain designed to document his creative ventures in a variety of professional fields. Through mediums such as music, film, online, print, and more, Zahed strives to inspire differentiation in others and push the envelope on predetermined routes to achievement.
Through iamzahed.com, you’ll discover commitments to the environment and community as well as numerous entrepreneurial journeys that stem from an inherent desire to innovate and involve. With such a creative and truly innovative mind, this is merely the beginning for what Zahed Sultan has to offer the world.
Author : Clientele Magazine
For furthur inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Zahed Speaks To Al Watan Daily About en.v
When Zahed Sultan and some like – minded friends created El Boutique in 2006, it was a first for Kuwait. Not just another advertising and marketing agency, but a creative house devoted to raising design standards and environmental consciousness, El Boutique offered a dizzyingly broad spectrum of services to the commercial sector in the realm of sound design, visual design, brand consultancy and far more. Having founded an innovative and dynamic company with an excellent and growing reputation, some entrepreneurs might have been content to rest on their laurels.
Not Sultan, however. In May of last year, driven by the feeling that more could be done to raise local and regional awareness of the need to create and promote educational, societal, corporate and government initiatives to benefit the environment, he and the El Boutique team came up with the idea of en.v (pronounced as `envy’, a truncated form of the term environmentally friendly), a bilingual Arabic and English quarterly publication and interactive portal for the Middle East North Africa(MENA) region.
Aimed at individuals, students, scholars and corporate Arabia, en.v is dedicated to promoting and enhancing regional awareness of environmental issues and encouraging a proactive approach to tackling them, from an individual, group and corporate perspective.
In an exclusive interview with Al Watan Daily, Sultan explained more about how en.v got started. “In May last year, El Boutique staged an exhibition with MRC [the Metal and Recycling Company] at the Sultan Gallery. Local designers and artists were invited to come up with innovative furniture and house ware products produced entirely from scrap, and recycled materials from MRC’s Amghara facility. The stuff they came up with was fantastic. It was a great launch and it got me thinking – what more could we do to change people’s minds, raise environmental awareness?”
Thus, after discussions with colleagues and friends, the concept of en.v was born. “We adopted a two-pronged approach,” explained Sultan. The first part – or prong – was the magazine, en.v. Aware of the tremendously worthy, but somewhat stuffy general image of environmentalism, the en.v team wanted to change this to something dynamic, actively involving the wider community. “Our initiative is to engage people,” said Sultan, “so we wanted to make them think about all aspects of the environment, to raise key issues, change people’s minds, but not in a preachy way – to make it almost like a lifestyle magazine. Our goal from the beginning was to engage the average person; we wanted people flicking through it to be made aware of the [environmental] issues.”
The magazine covers a broad variety of environmental topics, with each quarterly issue focusing on various aspects of one specific subject. The first issue, for instance, from December 2007, dealt with water, the second, due shortly, will focus on education, specifically on the need for Kuwait and other Gulf nations to invest their oil profits into the educational field, and the third will deal more broadly with `green’ issues.
The second, equally important, prong of en.v’s strategy is its online portal (www.envearth.com), with internet usage in the Gulf region set to double in the next one and a half years and continuing to increase thereafter, as Sultan points out, this is definitely a growth market and audience. Not just a website but shortly to feature an online cover-to-cover electronic magazine that users can read online or download, envearth’s primary purpose is to inform, inspire and engage with users, “to create an interactive discussion that everyone can access and become involved in”, as Sultan puts it. Offering news, editorials, arresting and thought – provoking imagery and much more, the site actively invites users to become part of its community, as contributing members or on the discussion boards it will soon feature.
“We want to reach out to all sorts of people, for everyone to feel part of the community,” Sultan explained. “Its important that people know what efforts are being made and that they are actively contributing to and involved in it – and there are so many amazing, creative people around in Kuwait and regionally who become part of this. Also, you can comment on every article, you’ll have instant messaging, links to friends. The idea on a large scale is to make people feel involved, part of the community.”
Reactions to date have been hearteningly positive. “The feedback’s been great,” said Sultan. “We’ve already learnt and grown and we want to keep on growing.” With students and scholars being among its core target audience, en.v has already signed up 20 universities in Kuwait and the wider Gulf region, which will be stocking the magazine and promoting the Website, and is also working with a number of national and regional print and other media, to spread the word on both.
And as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) becomes the buzzword (or buzz acronym) du jour in the business community, advertisers are also keen to promote their environmentally friendly credentials.
“We want to work with socially responsible advertisers,” Sultan explained, “we’re actively seeking out forward thinking organizations who are working to improve their surrounding through activities like carbon offsetting.” In return, advertisers get to be involved with a young, growing and dynamic, creative and progressive entity with a multimedia reach spanning the MENA region.
Contributing Sponsors will also have their company or individual names prominently featured on en.v’s `Tree of Hope’ on page three of the magazine’s print and online editions.
El Boutique itself is an environmentally responsible company, doing as much as it can to minimize its carbon footprint, utilizing as little paper as possible, saving energy, using `green’ suppliers and trying to cut down on unnecessary travel by using video-conferencing where practical, for example.
“We can’t do everything,” said Sultan, “but we’re doing whatever we can do.”
Title : Inspirational Environmentalism From en.v
Author : Ruth Rielger
For furthur inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Zahed Invited To Speak At GreenPrint Dubai
On behalf of El Boutique and en.v, Zahed Sultan has been invited to speak at GreenPrint Dubai.
Greenprint is an event created by Traffic to raise awareness of green issues in relation to design and will take place on the 20th of January at the gallery. The evening will start at 7pm and will involve a number of international bodies who will take the stage highlighting how development and design can be green.
Environmental events are taking place around the world including GLOBE, International Solar Cities and the WFES, which lead Rami Farook the founder of Traffic who understands the importance surrounding the issues to use the gallery as a platform to encourage discussion.
The seminars will take place on the evening of January the 20th, with guest speakers hosting presentations and workshops throughout. Each speaker will cover different aspects of design and how they themselves are working towards a greener future.
Traffic will also showcase an exhibition made entirely from recycled waste, which was originally created in Kuwait by local designers, the inspiration behind this came from EN.V a Kuwait based magazine who used the exhibition to launch a brand. It will be displayed here for the first time in Dubai.
www.viatraffic.org
For furthur inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Zahed & Partners unearth en.v
El Boutique Creative Group unearths en.v magazine, issue 000, to the general public with positive feedback. en.v is available at major bookstores & news stands in Kuwait and soon within the GCC. Furthermore, en.v is distributed as a complimentary resource to select schools & universities within the GCC.
en.v [pronounced envy] is a simplification of the term “environmentally friendly”. en.v is a magazine and online portal dedicated to establishing regional awareness for environmental, educational, societal, corporate & governmental initiatives for a more thought-conscious tomorrow. Compounded by artistic inspiration, en.v will serve as a platform for personal commitment to your community as well as an instrumental reference for corporate Arabia.
Thank you to all companies and individuals that support our initiative as we embark on our journey to raising awareness.
log on to envearth.com to subscribe.
For furthur inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Zahed Invited To Speak At Pecha Kucha Nights
On behalf of en.v, the publication, Zahed Sultan will speak at Pecha Kucha on the 5th of December in Dubai.
Pecha Kucha Nights is a unique space for creative and experimental ideas by young designers, students, artists, musicians, fashionistas, architects and cultural critics to
show their work and cross-pollinate. Pecha Kucha Nights is an international network of events spread to over 80 cities across the world.
This is the first Pecha Kucha event in the Middle East. The night’s 20×20 format allows each of 10-12 presenters 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before switching to the next participant. This keeps the talk concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to be involved. The first event will be in early December.
Pecha Kucha in Dubai will be held at The Third Line and is organized by the Architectural Association in the UAE (aaUAE), S*uce (a high end fashion boutique), Traffic (a design gallery), 9714 (an events and design company), and The Third Line (a gallery of contemporary Middle Eastern artists).
Originally devised by Klein Dytham architecture, Pecha Kucha (Japanese for the sound of
conversation – or ‘chit-chat’) began in Tokyo in 2003.
www.pecha-kucha.org
For furthur inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Zahed Invited To Speak At BSK
In a two part series, Zahed Sultan has been invited to speak to the senior design class at the British School of Kuwait. During his first visit, Zahed will give students insight to creative design in the commercial world. For his second visit, he will critique student’s submissions for a project entitled ‘icons’. Two outstanding students from the class will be invited to participate in conceptualizing and delivering en.v’s launch event in January 2008.
www.bsk.edu.kw
For further inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
Zahed To Launch An Eco Venture, en.v
en.v [pronounced envy] is a simplification of the term “environmentally friendly”. en.v, is a publication and online portal exclusively dedicated to establishing regional awareness for environmental, educational, societal, corporate & governmental initiatives for a more thought-conscious tomorrow. Compounded by artistic inspiration, en.v will serve as a platform for personal commitment to your community and surroundings as well as an instrumental reference for corporate Arabia.
Launch Date: December 2007
Contact Details:
Tel/Fax: +965 22458445
E: env@elboutique.com
W: envearth.com
For further inquiries please contact : info@iamzahed.com
