UAE’s Minister of Tolerance & Coexistence will help sustain the legacy

United Arab Emirates,  October 05, 2020:   The Zay Initiative is delighted to announce that H.E. Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister of Tolerance & Coexistence, is now patron of the organization. As a patron he will act as a figurehead of the organization in the UAE, supporting with speeches and events. 

The Zay Initiative a non-profit, UK registered initiative is dedicated to the preservation of cultural heritage through the collection, documentation and digital archiving of Arab historical attire and their stories. Its’ goal is to empower and sustain global cross-cultural dialogue to inspire creative minds.

“I am very happy to offer my support to an organization that builds up public awareness and appreciation of this unique heritage, and reaches out to like-minded individuals and institutions nationally, regionally and globally,” said H.E. Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan.

LAUNCHES FOR THE ZAY

This summer, The Zay Initiative launched five webinar series, during which The Zay’s founder, Dr. Reem el Mutwalli, and a cultural expert discuss relevant topics on a bi-weekly basis. To date they have covered jewellery, faith and the hijab, dress and diplomacy and more, using the webinars to explore the various links to culture and fashion. They will run until April 2021.

The Zay’s “Collection” is now live; a unique regional digital archive of Arabic dress, free of charge for everyone to explore. Easy to navigate, you can search the archive by decade, by country, by garment and more. The documented detail, the digital glossary and scale of the collection itself is painstakingly impressive, and it is an invaluable source for research, reference or academic requirements; an excellent and unique asset to fashion designers, historical or design studies and cultural relations. There will be 1350 itemized articles in the Collection by the end of this year.