Kutubna Cultural Center to Hold 2nd Dubai Humanities Festival

Kutubna Cultural Center, Dubai’s latest independent bookstore and cultural hub, is set to launch the second edition of its Dubai Humanities festival, a celebration of regional scholarship. The festival, which runs from November 2024 to May 2025, will spotlight the work of scholars and academics based in the Gulf, offering a platform for engaging with emerging research and innovative ideas.

This year's Dubai Humanities festival will bring together scholars and thinkers from the region and beyond to explore a wide array of topics across history, philosophy, literature, art history and other disciplines. The festival, unique in its format, invites both academic and non-academic audiences to join discussions on research relevant to current global challenges. Unlike conventional academic conferences, Dubai Humanities is designed to be accessible to families, offering activities such as sensory play and painting sessions for children, enabling parents to participate without leaving their kids behind.

The inaugural festival, organized by Budoor Al Rahma, an Emirati student now studying at Harvard, drew a diverse crowd of young Emiratis eager to engage in scholarly discussions. This year’s theme centers on scholarship in times of war, with panel discussions and talks in both Arabic and English addressing the complexities and dilemmas facing scholars today.