The 2012 TEDxMuscat was held in the Millennium Hotel Mussanah, so after a drive from Muscat it was great to get a nice cold drink – and snacks. Later TEDx organised a buffet and as usual at the Millennium it was excellent – Chinese style.
Oman does seem to be trying to develop a workforce who will be able to thrive in the new economy of today’s world. It seemed that the objectives of the day were to illustrate the power of creative thought, endeavour and importantly provide role models for the future entrepreneurs of Oman.
Dr Abdullah Al-Zakwani the Executive Director of Industrial Innovation Centre of Oman set the tone by emphasising some critical requirements of innovation and entrepreneurship.
The standouts of the day for me were two people; Dr Adhra Al Mawali who is researching leukaemia and how to target the individual ‘stem’ cancer cells; her presentation was straight from the heart and didn’t disguise the strain that reaching to achieve Sucess; not by luck and not by chance, can take on a person.
The other was the ‘Master of Ceremonies’ Jamal Al Asmi whose presentation was fluid, very assured and kept some 200 peoples well organised throughout the day.
The other presentations were a mix of people with products that, I guess, might be needing funding. Sultan Al Amri who showed images of a sports car body shell in development, called the ‘Nur Majan’. It will house a battery capable of running it for 2,236 miles (according to earlier reports) on a charge. It would have been interesting to see the battery needed to do that. Mustafa Barami who wished to set up a project producing Date Palm Leaf paper similar to that in the Craft Centre Gallery in Manama Bahrain.
Other speakers included Eythor Bender who demonstrated his ‘body suit’, which is a development of a military application, helping a young Omani with spinal injuries walk and brothers Niels and Keld Hansen who have developed equipment to harness energy from ocean swells and .waves.
Resul Pookutty Oscar winner for the sound of “ Slumdog Millionaire and Shayma Al Mughairy who sketches using desert sand as a medium gave an insight into the mind of creative artists. The event was interesting – though with a relatively small audience & a non-participatory passive format, how much impact it will have could be argued.
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