Dubai: The second edition of the Emirati Women’s Forum, held today at Madinat Jumeirah, featured six specialised workshops designed to enhance Emirati women’s future readiness and ability to create lasting impact. The workshops provided participants with practical knowledge, skills and interactive learning experiences across sustainability, leadership, media, negotiation, culture, financial empowerment and entrepreneurship.Held under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the UAE Gender Balance Council (UAE GBC), President of the Dubai Women Establishment (DWE), and wife of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Presidential Court, the Forum brought together Emirati women from diverse professional backgrounds.The workshops were organised in collaboration with Forum partners, including the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), DIB Academy,Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), Dubai Media Academy at Dubai Media Incorporated, and the New Economy Academy.Designed to provide participants with practical learning experiences, the workshops offered opportunities to exchange expertise and explore tools and practices that can help them keep pace with developments across vital and future-focused sectors.Her Excellency Naeema Ahli, CEO of the Dubai Women Establishment, said the range of workshop topics reflected the breadth of the Emirati Women’s Forum 2026 programme and the Establishment’s commitment to delivering practical content that combines knowledge with application. She noted that the workshops respond to the needs of Emirati women throughout their professional journeys and enhance their readiness, participation and influence across vital and future-focused sectors.She added that the workshops equipped participants with practical tools and skills to translate knowledge into action, opportunities into initiatives and ambitions into lasting impact.Women and sustainabilityDEWA’s workshop, titled ‘Women and Sustainability’, was presented by Maryam Abdulaziz Khansaheb, Manager of Corporate Sustainability, and Reem Al Mansoori, Acting Manager of the Excellence Department. The workshop traced DEWA’s sustainability journey from vision to global leadership and explored its efforts to embed sustainability as an institutional culture and integrated practice. It also highlighted women’s role as key partners in advancing sustainability and contributing to related decisions, strengthening their participation in an area that remains central to the development agenda.Creating lasting impactDubai Media Academy presented a workshop titled ‘How Can Emirati Women Create an Unforgettable Impact?’, led by Dr. Walaa Al Shehhi, writer, trainer and consultant.The workshop explored impact as an extension of professional and leadership success, highlighting how lasting influence goes beyond a position or an immediate achievement to create enduring value for institutions and society. The session addressed the role of values, purpose and leadership identity in building an influential professional presence, as well as the transition from achievement to legacy.During the workshop, an interactive ‘Impact Lab’ enabled participants to define the contribution they hope to make over the coming years. The session concluded with a ‘Letter to the Future’ exercise, encouraging them to reflect on how they would like future generations to remember their impact.Negotiating with confidenceDMCC’s workshop, titled ‘Negotiating Smart: How Emirati Women Can Become Stronger Negotiators’, was presented by Suhaila Al Dhaheri, Associate Director of Corporate Legal Affairs at DMCC.Participants began with a practical negotiation exercise based on a workplace scenario before analysing the experience and exploring the principles of interest-based negotiation. These included separating people from problems, focusing on interests rather than positions, developing options that deliver mutual benefit and using objective criteria. The interactive approach enabled participants to apply these principles to situations they may encounter in the workplace and daily life.Preserving Dubai’s cultural heritageDubai Culture presented a workshop titled ‘Our Museum, Our Stories: From the Community, for the Community’, led by Maryam Mohammad Mudhaffar, Manager of the Collection Section, Museums Department at Dubai Culture.The workshop explored the Museums and Heritage Sector’s approach to preserving, interpreting and activating museum collections. It showcased two of the sector’s key cultural assets, Al Shindagha Museum and the upcoming Al Fahidi Fort Museum, and highlighted the recently completed rehabilitation of Al Fahidi Fort and its transformation in preparation for its next chapter as a museum. The session also explored how museums preserve and bring Dubai’s heritage to life for local and international audiences.Financial empowermentDIB Academy delivered a workshop titled ‘Financial Empowerment Programme’, featuring Muna Al Maazmi, Vice President and Head of DIB Academy, and Marwa Abdelmonem Ali, Senior Relationship Manager for Aayan Banking at DIB.The workshop introduced key concepts and tools for managing financial resources, planning for the future, setting goals and developing sustainable financial habits. It also covered the fundamentals of saving, investing and risk management.The session sought to strengthen participants’ ability to assess available options and make more informed financial decisions in their personal and professional lives, supporting greater financial stability and confidence in pursuing financial opportunities.From ideas to enterpriseThe New Economy Academy presented a workshop titled ‘Seizing Opportunities: From Idea to Entrepreneurship for Emirati Women’, led by Sheikha Al Nuaimi, Business Development Consultant at the New Economy Academy and a business development expert.Attended by entrepreneurs and women interested in developing startups and entering the business world, the interactive workshop explored how needs and challenges can be identified and transformed into opportunities. It also introduced practical questions for evaluating entrepreneurial ideas and developing them into viable ventures that create genuine value.The session highlighted emerging opportunities for Emirati women across promising sectors, including technology, the digital economy and the creative industries, and examined their potential to develop ventures with local and global impact.
