Minister Dubs Dubai An Entrepreneurial Paradise

The Hult Prize regionals in Dubai featured prestigious judges from the region, including the Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan. Addressing the competitors in a rousing speech, the Minister said that his country connected with the purpose of the prize even more because â€Å"the very development of the United Arab Emirates has been an entrepreneurial project.† He also praised the values shared by all the Prize’s partners, including Hult International Business School, as â€Å"efficient business practices and the wise expenditure of funds to improve the quality of life for all.† Read his rousing speech in full below. Distinguished Guests, Aspiring Social Entrepreneurs, Ladies and Gentlemen: I don’t know how you are going to do it. It seems like an impossible task. I have trouble believing that anyone could build a social healthcare enterprise, that by the year 2019 serves the needs of 25 million poverty-stricken slum dwellers suffering from chronic diseases. And yet I am assured that this audience is filled with 46 teams of university students who actually have plans for just such an enterprise. You are examples of what the Nobel Prize winning biologist Albert Szent-Georgi once said, and whom I paraphrase: â€Å"You have seen what others have seen, and thought what they have not!† I am impressed, and have the deepest admiration for the depth of thinking and innovation that you and your global colleagues, who are now here to celebrate your success, have shown in this Hult Prize 2014 competition. To those of you who have journeyed to the United Arab Emirates from abroad, I offer a special welcome. You are in a city that recognizes and celebrates your entrepreneurial spirit. Dubai is an entrepreneur’s paradise. In fact, the very development of the United Arab Emirates has been an entrepreneurial project. And we connect even closer to your work because our project, while always seeking economic success, has sought prosperity and the social well-being of our population, no matter their country of origin. His Highness the President, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahayan, has firmly linked government policies and national laws to social action when he said: â€Å"Our country respects human rights and provides ways to dignified living to all who live on our lands.† Those actions never end because the concerns of society, about health, safety, education, employment, utilities, recreation, housing, and aging are perpetual. Vigilant and empathetic leaders must not only be social entrepreneurs themselves, but they must be catalysts for others to engage in important social entrepreneurship activities. The Hult Prize provides just this type of catalyst to you and others as aspiring young social entrepreneurs. National leaders around the world have a great deal to learn from you and your colleagues who have submitted such imaginative proposals to address this year’s Hult Prize theme of non-communicable diseases that affect millions of our poorest and least healthy people, and who have limited access to proper health care. First, the Hult Prize competition relies on crowdsourcing. Some governments have on occasion sought solutions to social problems by soliciting contributions from the online community. But governmental crowdsourcing worldwide is quite rare. Quite common, however, is a government without the ideas or the funds to deal successfully with serious social problems. Second, the Hult Prize competition relies on a combination of enlightened generosity and keen business sense. History shows that governments often expend funds irrationally, do not routinely operate as efficient businesses and too often pay too little attention to the poorest of their people. On the contrary, Bertil Hult, the primary benefactor of the Hult prize, has always valued efficient business practices and the wise expenditure of funds to improve the quality of life for all. Those values guide Hult International Business School, the Clinton Global Initiative, and the Center of Innovation, Excellence and Leadership—the three Hult Prize partners. Third, the Hult Prize competition relies on youth. The late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahayan, the wise and vigorous social entrepreneur who founded the United Arab Emirates, strongly believed that â€Å"A countrys only true resource is its youth.† His wisdom has been our strength. All governments should ensure that their young people benefit from the finest education and enter an economy that welcomes their learning, their new ideas, their social awareness, their compassion, their technical competence, their ambition and their dreams. The Hult Prize competition extends that welcome, and you contestants have responded brilliantly. Here is my message to all participants in the Hult Prize 2014 competition: remain true to your commitments to improve the quality of life for all of our global brothers and sisters. Press forward into the dismal slums of our world with your social healthcare enterprise. And remember that after the proposal that wins this year’s Hult Prize meets its goal to serve the needs of 25 million ailing slum dwellers, a staggering number of other slum dwellers—225 million, to be specific—will remain without healthcare for their chronic diseases. Do not abandon your work or your ideals. Become the social entrepreneurs that our world must have. Our world needs you as the catalysts to improve the quality of life for all on this planet. I am sure each of you here tonight is confident that your team’s proposal deserves the one million dollar prize, because I too am confident that you are right. And to those other teams who cannot be with us here, I extend my appreciation for the creativity, energy and deep thought that you gave to the ideas that you submitted. You, too, have exhibited the kind of social entrepreneurship innovation that this world needs. Thank you, as well. Thanks again to Ahmad Askhar and his associates on the Hult Prize team for a grand celebration of crowdsourcing, social entrepreneurship, and youth. And thanks to you, young competitors.  You are  are  our world’s future. Thank you. Hult offers a range of highly skills-focused and employability-driven business school programs including a range of MBA options and a comprehensive one year Masters in International Business. To find out more, take a look at our blog Student perspective: Adjusting to life abroad and how I knew Hult was right for me. Download a brochure or get in touch today to find out how Hult can help you to learn about the business world, the future, and yourself. Hult Rotation offers you a chance to study in a truly global way. Our rotation program allows you to study and be immersed in some of the finest cities in the world. 📠¸: @jasminmanzano . Hult Rotation offers you a chance to study in a truly global way. Our rotation program allows you to study and be immersed in some of the finest cities in the world. 📠¸: @jasminmanzano . Each year, Hult seeks to enroll a talented and ambitious incoming class from all over the world. We look for diverse students with a wide range of experiences, perspectives, and interests—students who will thrive in our unique educational atmosphere. Are you ready for a truly global experience? 📠¸: @iambrunadiniz . Each year, Hult seeks to enroll a talented and ambitious incoming class from all over the world. We look for diverse students with a wide range of experiences, perspectives, and interests—students who will thrive in our unique educational atmosphere. Are you ready for a truly global experience? 📠¸: @iambrunadiniz . We’re excited to start 2020 on a ranking high! Hult is proud to have been placed #28 in Poets Quants 2020 rankings for Best Undergraduate Business Schools in the US. Taking a huge leap of 32 places from our 2019 position, we’re also very happy to have secured top positions in key categories like: life-changing experience, practicality of the degree, and global immersion. . With five global campuses, a student body of over 130 nationalities, and a learn-by-doing approach—Hult offers a student experience like no other. . We’re excited to start 2020 on a ranking high! Hult is proud to have been placed #28 in Poets Quants 2020 rankings for Best Undergraduate Business Schools in the US. Taking a huge leap of 32 places from our 2019 position, we’re also very happy to have secured top positions in key categories like: life-changing experience, practicality of the degree, and global immersion. . With five global campuses, a student body of over 130 nationalities, and a learn-by-doing approach—Hult offers a student experience like no other. . â€Å"I’m from an engineering background and needed a whole new skill set for the industry I wanted to switch to. I learned a lot about myself and how I deal with being out of my comfort zone. I learned both soft and hard skills, from how to work in very diverse teams to key accounting metrics and strategy. I was surprised by how weak I was at certain tasks in English or how strong I actually was in other areas. Hult gave me opportunities to try new things and meet people from places I never thought I would have friends. . My internship experiences gave me the chance to broaden my view of different cultures and different companies. I had the opportunity to work and live with people whose values differed from people in my home country. I thought that this would be difficult, but it gave me the chance to reflect on my own values and assess if they were a result of my home country environment or if they were intrinsically mine. . Diederick ter Kulve (@diederick.terkulve) Netherlands Masters in International Business . â€Å"I’m from an engineering background and needed a whole new skill set for the industry I wanted to switch to. I learned a lot about myself and how I deal with being out of my comfort zone. I learned both soft and hard skills, from how to work in very diverse teams to key accounting metrics and strategy. I was surprised by how weak I was at certain tasks in English or how strong I actually was in other areas. Hult gave me opportunities to try new things and meet people from places I never thought I would have friends. . My internship experiences gave me the chance to broaden my view of different cultures and different companies. I had the opportunity to work and live with people whose values differed from people in my home country. I thought that this would be difficult, but it gave me the chance to reflect on my own values and assess if they were a result of my home country environment or if they were intrinsically mine. . Diederick ter Kulve (@diederick.terkulve) Netherlands Masters in International Business . Say a big hello to our Bachelor of Business Administration program cover star, Elisa Orus Plana âÅ" ¨ . â€Å"I’m excited for the future—especially that I cant predict whats going to happen. Maybe Ill end up in Mexico working for a trading company or maybe in Africa, developing my own business. Everything is possible, and the options are constantly changing. I love the idea that Im never going to be stuck doing the same job until the end of my life if I dont want it to be like this. . Hult really supports me and my ambitions and truly believes that we deserve to be considered as professionals as well as students. Here, I get to express not just my opinions but all elements of myself. From my creative side with the Fashion Society to my finance and business sides in Trading Club and the Management Consulting Club. We get a different type of learning here. Not just essential knowledge and theory, but practical skills and mindset. The school is always evolving. We’re encouraged to innovate and to always look for new ways of doing traditional things. We learn how to be more confident and become aware of how we can impact our environment. The school aims to help you become a better version of yourself and to stand out from the crowd.â€Å" . Elisa Orus Plana French Bachelor of Business Administration Class of 2021 Say a big hello to our Bachelor of Business Administration program cover star, Elisa Orus Plana âÅ" ¨ . â€Å"I’m excited for the future—especially that I cant predict whats going to happen. Maybe Ill end up in Mexico working for a trading company or maybe in Africa, developing my own business. Everything is possible, and the options are constantly changing. I love the idea that Im never going to be stuck doing the same job until the end of my life if I dont want it to be like this. . Hult really supports me and my ambitions and truly believes that we deserve to be considered as professionals as well as students. Here, I get to express not just my opinions but all elements of myself. From my creative side with the Fashion Society to my finance and business sides in Trading Club and the Management Consulting Club. We get a different type of learning here. Not just essential knowledge and theory, but practical skills and mindset. The school is always evolving. We’re encouraged to innovate and to always look for new ways of doing traditional things. We learn how to be more confident and become aware of how we can impact our environment. The school aims to help you become a better version of yourself and to stand out from the crowd.â€Å" . Elisa Orus Plana French Bachelor of Business Administration Class of 2021"> During the final days of 2019, you probably reflected on what you’ve accomplished this year—and even this decade—and what you’d like to achieve in 2020. Let us know in the comments below. During the final days of 2019, you probably reflected on what you’ve accomplished this year—and even this decade—and what you’d like to achieve in 2020. Let us know in the comments below. â€Å"The first time we did group work on the program, I went head-to-head with a colleague. It taught me a lot about how I see people, how people see me, and how conflict can be resolved in a kind and productive way. The best feedback you get, when delivered constructively, is the most critical because it really feeds into how you lead. I’ve completely reversed my leadership style—the result is so much richer and more powerful when you lead from behind and lead with strength. . Studying in tandem with working, whilst challenging, gave me the perfect platform to directly apply learning concepts into my business environment, the competitive landscape, and the real-estate industry as a whole. When I started the program, I was very happy in my corporate role. But my courage and aspirations grew to the point that I took on a whole new direction. Having my career coach, Joanna, as a sounding board allowed me to really be strategic and get to know myself. She coached me thro ugh all the interviews, the research, and the questions. It went in parallel with what I was doing academically and after six months everything just clicked. . I went into the EMBA knowing I had nothing to lose and I’ve come out with everything. Great strength, global friends, amazing learning, mentors from professors, a job I love, and the knowledge that I can set my mind to achieve anything and with the right support and resources I’ll get there.† . Kashani Wijetunga British, New Zealand Sri Lankan Associate Director Senior Strategy Consultant CBRE EMBA Class of 2019 . â€Å"The first time we did group work on the program, I went head-to-head with a colleague. It taught me a lot about how I see people, how people see me, and how conflict can be resolved in a kind and productive way. The best feedback you get, when delivered constructively, is the most critical because it really feeds into how you lead. I’ve completely reversed my leadership style—the result is so much richer and more powerful when you lead from behind and lead with strength. . Studying in tandem with working, whilst challenging, gave me the perfect platform to directly apply learning concepts into my business environment, the competitive landscape, and the real-estate industry as a whole. When I started the program, I was very happy in my corporate role. But my courage and aspirations grew to the point that I took on a whole new direction. Having my career coach, Joanna, as a sounding board allowed me to really be strategic and get to know myself. She coached me thro ugh all the interviews, the research, and the questions. It went in parallel with what I was doing academically and after six months everything just clicked. . I went into the EMBA knowing I had nothing to lose and I’ve come out with everything. Great strength, global friends, amazing learning, mentors from professors, a job I love, and the knowledge that I can set my mind to achieve anything and with the right support and resources I’ll get there.† . Kashani Wijetunga British, New Zealand Sri Lankan Associate Director Senior Strategy Consultant CBRE EMBA Class of 2019 . â€Å"It was now or never. I knew that I’d have likely stayed in my neighborhood for years to come if I didn’t take this opportunity. I’d not lived or studied outside of the U.S. before. So I left my job as a global strategist at an advertising agency and moved halfway around the world. I’ve come back a more culturally aware, well-versed person. I’ve realized that everything is a learning experience and an opportunity for growth. Ill definitely carry this mindset with me into the future. Technology and social media allow us to be different people in several places at once. Im excited to see how I can establish myself in whatever city Ill be lucky enough to call home and still maintain deep connections with people all over the world. I’m inspired by my classmates every day. Hearing some of their life stories and how getting this degree fits into their greater mission has been very humbling. My biggest challenge has been finding the ‘right’ path for me. There have been rooms Ive felt like I shouldnt be in, but now Im proud to feel as though I truly belong, wherever I am.† . Dwayne Logan, Jnr. American MBA Class of 2019 . â€Å"It was now or never. I knew that I’d have likely stayed in my neighborhood for years to come if I didn’t take this opportunity. I’d not lived or studied outside of the U.S. before. So I left my job as a global strategist at an advertising agency and moved halfway around the world. I’ve come back a more culturally aware, well-versed person. I’ve realized that everything is a learning experience and an opportunity for growth. Ill definitely carry this mindset with me into the future. Technology and social media allow us to be different people in several places at once. Im excited to see how I can establish myself in whatever city Ill be lucky enough to call home and still maintain deep connections with people all over the world. I’m inspired by my classmates every day. Hearing some of their life stories and how getting this degree fits into their greater mission has been very humbling. My biggest challenge has been finding the ‘right’ path for me. There have been rooms Ive felt like I shouldnt be in, but now Im proud to feel as though I truly belong, wherever I am.† . Dwayne Logan, Jnr. American MBA Class of 2019 . Happy New Year, Hultians! . Happy New Year, Hultians! .