Alf Hewar initiative launched to inspire Saudi youth

Nadeem Bakhsh and Sebastian Stricker at the Alf Hewar launch in Riyadh. (AN photo by Iqbal Hossain)

RIYADH: Alf Hewar, which means “a thousand dialogues,” was launched in Riyadh on Monday night with the aim of inspiring Saudi youth and creating a positive impact on society.
It is the latest initiative from Alf Khair, a social enterprise founded in 2013 by Princess Reema bint Bandar.
Abeer Al-Fouti, chief operating officer at Alf Khair, said Alf Hewar will be a forum where local and international entrepreneurs are brought together to inspire others.
“Our latest initiative Alf Hewar... is aimed at inspiring a generation through dialogue,” she said.
Each speaker invited to the forum will share with the audience their personal story, struggles and accomplishments.
The first topic of discussion was on apps and design, featuring two successful developers, the Saudi-based Nadeem Bakhsh and Sebastian Stricker from Germany.
Bakhsh established the UXBERT Usability Lab in 2013 with the goal of building a one-of-a-kind digital research, design and engineering team. Its clients now include Saudi Telecom Co. (STC), Aramco and Accenture.
Stricker is the founder of ShareTheMeal, a crowdfunding app to fight global hunger through the UN World Food Program. With a tap of their smartphones users can donate $0.50, the global average cost of feeding one person for one day.
This was the first of four Alf Hewar talks taking place in 2017. Future talks will be held on concepts in the food and beverage industry, the role of sport in shaping the economy and society, and film in Saudi Arabia.