Book highlights achievements of 42 mentors in Qatar

Qatar UTM (Unlocking the Mentors) event 2019 was held yesterday at Qatar National Library, highlighting the achievements of 42 mentors in Qatar.  The event also saw the launch of a book titled, Connecting today’s doers with tomorrow’s achievers that features the achievements and activities of the 42 mentors. The event was held in collaboration with the College of Humanities and Social Sciences of Hamad Bin Kahlifa University (HBKU). “We started this initiative some months ago and we wanted to do something for youth empowerment. Along with my colleague, we planned something about Qatar as we have lived in Qatar for sometime. “Qatar has an amazing number of inspirational stories from across the board and we thought that Qatar should be the first country to start with this book,” Clara Figares, co-founder and content producer of UTM told Gulf Times. “The focus is on the empowerment of youth and our mentors have achieved several things that can inspire the youth. We had chosen more than 42 but many of them were not comfortable talking about their personal lives,” continued Figares. “We selected people who had some inspiring stories to tell. “They had to be of different ages and from both genders. The book has equal number of male and female achievers. The youngest among them is 19 years old while the oldest is in the 50s,” explained Figares about the selection criteria of the mentors. According to the book, the mentors come from different walks of life and include CEOs to chefs, artists, sportspersons, entrepreneurs, leading women among others. All of these mentors have a real tale of success to inspire the youth in Qatar and with true restless minds behind each life story. Gulf Times Editor- in-Chief Faisal Abdulhameed al-Mudakha is one of the 42 mentors, featured in the book. Several of the mentors who were present on the occasion narrated their journey so far and highlighted how they had done something different in their lives which might have helped the community and shaped the youth for the better. Dr Amal al-Malki, founding dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, HBKU as well as one of the mentors featured in the book said that mentorship is something that comes naturally to her as part of her profession as a university professor.  “The book features 42 mentors and many are pioneers in their fields. While some are fighters and trendsetters, many others are inventors and innovators and all of them are worthy of admiration. It also highlights the diversity of our society which is essential for shaping and articulating its modern identity. It introduces new experiences and emerging realities that would help the young generations to break free from the outdated restrictions,” added al-Malki.