The American University in Cairo's Sony Gallery will host a group photography exhibit entitled "Searching for Unity: Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine and Israel"; by 20 students and activists from the AUC carrying their own perspectives and their own cameras, as they undertook a 12-day voyage through Lebanon, Jordan, the occupied West Bank, and Israel. Led by Chairman of the Ibn Khaldun Centre for Development Studies in Cairo and professor of political sociology at AUC Saadeddin Ibrahim, the group directly experienced verbal and visual narratives of the political discourse of the Middle East. The exhibit will run through 30 May. In cooperation with USAID and the Egyptian NGO partners: Friends of the Environment and Development Association (FEDA) and the Community and Institutional Development Association (CID), The American Embassy in Cairo celebrated the Earth Day at Al Azhar Park. The celebration included approximately 100 middle school-aged children: 50 Cairo American College children and 50 Egyptian school children from Al-Marg , Gamaleya,and other districts. Activities included the distribution of T-shirts, a presentation on the history of Al Azhar Park and educational programmes on environmental awareness. To mark this day, children also enjoyed planting gardens under the guidance of the horticultural staff of Al Azhar Park. Oman's Ambassador to Cairo and permanent representative of his country to the Arab League Abdel-Aziz bin Abdallah Al-Hanaai held a celebration on occasion of inaugurating the headquarters of the first Omani Cultural Academy in Egypt. The academy, opened under the auspices of the first Under-secretary of the Omani Foreign Ministry Badr bin Hamad bin Hamoud Al-Bos'aadi, is the first comprehensive cultural, media, scientific and educational institution to be established outside the borders of Oman. At the spectacular, newly restored Gold Room of the Manial Palace on Roda Island, the world-renowned jewelry designer Azza Fahmy presided over the launch of her new book, Enchanted Jewelry of Egypt, published by the American University in Cairo Press. During the event, a display case featured Fahmy 's own personal collection of traditional Egyptian jewelry, all of which is featured in the publication. The event was inaugurated by the author in the presence of high-profile figures, with mesmerising Oriental music in the background. In collaboration with the Embassy of India in Cairo, the Egypt-India Friendship Association (EIFA) organised a cultural event to mark "Orphans' Day" with pop singer Hamada Helal spending time with children from various orphanages. The famous Al-Tannoura whirling dervishes performed alongside traditional Indian dancers, while the Indian Ambassador to Egypt A.Gopinathan, EIF president Alieddin Helal as well as movie star Dalal Abdel-Aziz attended. Hoda Maher, the wife of former Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher and other members of the Nefertiti International Club gathered for their annual meeting at the Malak Moussa villa in Palm Hills. Topics included cooperation and friendship among peoples, with the wives of the Head of Shura Council Safwat El-Sherif, Minister of Defense and Military Production Hussein Tantawi, Minister of Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Moufid Shehab and Minister of Social Solidarity Ali Moselhi all attending. The event was also graced by the presence of Editor-in-Chief of Kol Al-Nas magazine Mona Serag, Al-Ahram back page editor Mona Ragab and Editor-in-Chief of Al-Beit magazine Sylvia El-Naqadi. Present as well were members of the Egyptian society Aziza Abdallah, Magda Moussa, Aziza El-Tanani, Mona Moussa and Nani Saleh. To celebrate "Orphans' Day", Hayati Society, presided over by Awatef Serageddin, organised a party at the Children's Park in the neighbourhood of Shubra Al-Kheima, just outside Cairo in Qalyoubia. Present were Qalyubiya Governor Adli Hussein, actress Youssra, singer Nadia Mustafa and society members Sanaa Aouni, Bahiya Youssef, Wafaa Farid and Samiha Hamed. The American University in Cairo (AUC), in cooperation with the Breast Cancer Foundation of Egypt (BCFE), organised a seminar entitled "Breast Cancer: Early Detection Saves Life", which was coordinated by the wife of AUC President Sherry Arnold. Chairman of the BCFE Mohamed Shaalan talked about the means to early detection and the importance of raising awareness of breast cancer. Afterwards, actress Youssra discussed cultural and educational factors that might help get rid of this malignant disease. At the end of the day, the student club Anti-Cancer Team presented the charity "Concert of Hope" by the well-known musician Marawan Saada and his band Helwa Ya Balady. Many prominent figures besides Youssra were there: actors Athar El-Hakim, Lebleba, Nour El-Sherif, Moustafa Fahmy, Mahmoud Qabil and Tamer Hagras; along with footballers Emad Miteb, Essam El-Hadari and Mohamed Abou Treika. The Anti- Cancer Team honoured Sahar Tharwat, among others; who had detected the disease early enough, and a fundraising campaign for early detection equipment was held on the fringe. photo: Sherif Mahmoud Last week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) launched its first international road safety week. The event was held in collaboration with various WHO-affiliated bodies, ministries of health, population, information, transportation, education and interior affairs, as well as the Rotary Act Club of Nasr City and various interested NGOs, in the presence of United Nations Good Will Ambassadors actor Khaled Abul-Naga, and actress Youssra. In his official speech, the regional director of the WHO East Mediterranean Regional Office (WHO/EMRO) Hussien El-Gaza'ery spoke of addressing road accidents as one of the main causes of death worldwide. photos: Ayman Barayez At the Cairo University Graduates Day, University President Ali Abdel-Rahman honoured the president of MSA University Nawal El-Degwi for her distinguished efforts in improving higher education. The Minister of Civil Aviation Ahmed Shafiq and the Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry Khaled Abul-Fadl were among the attendees.
