São Paulo – Fifteen students from public schools in São Paulo and Curitiba are going to Qatar for an exchange course for educational and cultural exchange. They were the best students in the Arab Culture Language and Literature course promoted by the Library and Centre of South American and Arab Research (BibliAspa) and they travel on the 18th, with all expenses paid by Qatar Foundation. The Arab foundation sponsors the BibliAspa course. The youths will stay in Doha up to January 28th.
The students selected were the best ones in the groups that completed the basic level of the language course. BibliAspa is headquartered in São Paulo, but also offers Arabic lessons in a space made available in the city of Curitiba, capital of the state of Paraná.
The schedule of the students includes visits to the Islamic Art Museum, the Modern Art Museum, Education City, a site that covers 14 square kilometres and houses teaching institutions, and also visits to schools, meetings with students and with the ambassador of Brazil to Doha, among other activities.
“The trip to Doha will be an experience to change the lives of these youths and it will allow them to learn more about others and themselves,” said Paulo Daniel Farah, the BibliAspa director, in a press statement by the organisation.
“Among the main themes, we will cover intercultural dialogue and digital training. We are also going to work on fundamental matters like ‘How can experiencing a different culture teach me more about my identity and my culture?’ and ‘How can my experience in Qatar help me communicate more efficiently with people from other cultures?’,” added Farah, in the press statement.
The trip will be filmed by a National Geographic team, which will also develop a photography workshop and a video with the Brazilian and Arab students, so that they may make their own records of the exchange experience.
The organisations
BibliAspa brings together works about the Middle East and North Africa in Portuguese, Arabic, English, French and Spanish and promotes cultural and educational activities.
Qatar Foundation was established in 1995 by the Emir of Qatar, Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani. His wife, Moza Bint Nasser, presides the institution. The organisation promotes activities in Qatar for the development of the areas of education, science and communication, both in Qatar and in other countries.
*Translated by Mark Ament
