Arts and culture seminars at WYF

CAIRO – 7 November 2017: Arts and culture in the coming period will open dialogue between Egypt and other parts of the world, said the head of the Actors' Syndicate, Ashraf Zaky, on Tuesday.

Zaky stressed that according to what was discussed in the World Youth Forum's (WYF) sessions, art will support tourism and spread Egyptian culture.

‘’On Monday I attended a discussion called “Differences Among Cultures and Civilizations: Conflict or Integration?” It was a very rich discussion. Suddenly, we were all surprised to find president Abdel Fatah al-Sisi joining the discussion and giving a very important speech,” Bushra recounted.

This session stressed the vitality of integration and coexistence among different civilizations and cultures through discussions and communications in light of the contemporary digital age and globalization. The session speakers admitted that terrorism benefited from the idea of a civilizational clash. Sisi explained the essential role young people play in improving communication and discussions that are built on respecting different cultural identities and accepting cultural diversity.

During the session a disabled youth gave an important speech, demanding that people stop describing disabled people with the word “handicapped” or “incapable”, and instead substitute these hurtful words with “people with special abilities.”

“I attended another important discussion called "How Literature and Arts Mend What Conflicts and War Destroy," that highlights the role of arts and literature in solving international and humanitarian problems,” added Bushra.

During the session, Egyptian actress Esaad Younis stressed that creativity and art play an important role in raising the awareness of nations and revitalizing national ideas to address chaos caused mainly by extremism and terrorism. This discussion was attended by a group of foreign guests from France, the U.S. and Tunisia.

Younis further explained how through her program, “Sahbat Als’ada” [the Lady of Happiness], she managed to face the challenges and crises with creativity, by encouraging national industries and reviving heritage.

Different actors and actresses including the U.S. actress Rose Dawson also attended the session.

In the light of the session, Dawson said that art is important for connection and for helping people to solve problems, having expressions and creating different paths and way of thinking. Creativity and art are just about expression.

She further explains that people know a lot about themselves because art is vital for future generations to understand the diversity among people.

Dawson added that they are at a global world forum specifically because they are utilizing all the technologies around them to talk about their past and explore that past to promote what the future could look like. So they start these dialogues before anything happens so that they can be prepared for what is coming.

She confirmed that people across world should have access to as much information as possible so that they can have dialogue and break the barriers of isolation.

On Monday there was a session titled “Towards a World United by Literature ‎and Arts, a Vision for ‎Achieving ‎Peace ‎Through Culture.” The famous Egyptian script writer and song writer Medhat el Adl discussed arts and culture in the formation of international discourses. “Arts and literature play a vital role in building peace,’’ Adl added.

A session titled “the Cultural Dimension of Globalization and its Impact on Youth’s Cultural Identity’’ took place on Tuesday. The session discussed the effect of globalization on the cultural identity of young people.
The WYF kicked off on Sunday in the tourist city of Sharm El-Sheikh in South Sinai under the auspices of President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi. The forum will run until November 10; representing Egypt’s first experience at organizing such an international youth event.

The WYF was first announced during the National Youth Conference in Alexandria in July, which was also attended by Sisi. According to the WYF’s official website, the forum is “built by promising youth that sends a message of peace, prosperity, harmony and progress to the entire world.” The WYF attracted more than 3,000 participants representing 113 states, with 52 official international delegations as well as youth representatives from various countries.

The forum includes various pillars aiming to tackle subjects of interest to both national and international youth, including youth global issues, sustainable development, technology and entrepreneurship, civilization and culture, and preparing future leaders.