ARAB TIMES, TUESDAY, AUGUST 6, 2019

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Toastmasters modernizes its education program with PathwaysKUWAIT CITY, Aug 5: Toast-masters International, the world leader in developing communication and leadership skills, has recently launched the Pathways learning experience. The launch marks the fi rst complete redesign of Toastmas-ters’ education program since the organization was founded in 1924.

Toastmasters is recognized globally for empowering individu-als to develop and improve their public speaking and leadership skills through local club meetings offering practice, evaluation and mentoring. Pathways builds on that foundation by helping mem-bers build the competencies they need to communicate and lead in a range of situations.

Highlighted by interactive, customized and fl exible learning, Pathways offers expanded skill development and competencies that users can apply in their careers, personal lives and in the com-munity. Since the launch of the Pathways program last year, users

have leveraged the skills learned through the program to advance their careers. And employers around the world are using Pathways as an inexpensive option to retain their employees and enhance the skills of their workforce.

“The tools I’ve learned through Pathways have enhanced my ca-reer,” says Adrian Jefferson Chofor, a marketing operations consultant at Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, Calif. “The training has made me more focused and disciplined at work and improved my interaction with colleagues.”

Fortune 500 organizations like Google, Sony, Caterpillar, Coca-Co-la and Bank of America all recog-nize the benefi ts of the Toastmasters program and sponsor clubs for their employees.

This is the first complete rede-sign of Toastmasters’ education program in the organization’s 94-year history. Toastmasters’ Board of Directors called for the education program to be revital-

ized with a renewed focus on leadership learning, competencies that have immediate real-world applicability and online acces-sibility. After extensive research, Toastmasters created Pathways, offering contemporary skills that can be applied in a variety of prac-tical settings. The program’s three most popular paths are Innovative Planning, Presentation Mastery and Dynamic Leadership.

Since the Pathways rollout began in last year, more than 100,000 unique users from 135 countries have participated in the program, completing 64,000 projects with another 70,000 projects in progress.

Pathways program highlights include:

● 11 different learning paths to choose from

● More than 14 projects in each path

● 5 core competencies (Public Speaking, Interpersonal Commu-nication, Management, Strategic Leadership, and Confi dence)

● More than 300 unique compe-tencies

● Content available online and in print materials

Pathways remains consistent with the original vision of Ralph Smedley, Toastmasters founder, and main-

tains what members love about the organization, which is the supportive Toastmasters club experience.

“Our Board of Directors recog-nized that it is critical to the organi-zation’s long-term sustainability to evolve our education program

and deliver an experience that is fl exible, competency-rich and meets the demands of a contemporary workforce,” says Balraj Aruna-salam, Toastmasters 2017-2018 International President.

“Pathways delivers this, and more; our members are able to ap-ply the communication and leader-ship skills they are building in their personal as well as professional lives. Pathways is the most signifi -cant change initiative ever under-taken by Toastmasters International, the result is a major increase in the learning opportunities available to our current and future members.”

MACE Springs Toastmasters club meets every 2nd and 4th Fridays of each month from 2.15 pm-4.30 pm at SPCL, Rumaithiya. It offers a positive and collaborative learning environment, where members feel that they are more capable than they thought of themselves as they build confi dence with like minded people. They learn to communicate effec-tively and lead by example.

Organization’s new program delivers skills needed in the workplace

A photo from Toastmasters meeting.

One of historical crown jewels

Bazaar in Syria’s Aleppo making slow recoveryBy Bassem Mroue

Bit by bit, Aleppo’s centuries-old bazaar is being rebuilt as Syrians try

to restore one of their historical crown jewels, devastated during years of brutal fi ghting for control of the city.

The historic Old City at the center of Aleppo saw some of the worst battles of Syria’s eight-year civil war. Government forces fi nally wrested it away from rebel control in December 2016 in a devastating siege that left the eastern half of Aleppo and much of the Old City – a UNESCO world heritage site - in ruins.

The bazaar, a network of covered markets, or souks, dating as far back as the 1300s and running through the Old City, was severely damaged, nearly a third of it completely de-stroyed. Most of it remains that way: blasted domes, mangled metal and shops without walls or roofs.

But planners are hoping that by rebuilding segments of the bazaar and getting some shops back open, eventu-ally they re-inject life into the markets. Before the war, the historic location drew in Syrians and tourists, shopping for food, spices, cloth, soap made from olive oil and other handicrafts.

Renovated The latest to be renovated is

al-Saqatiyah Market, a cobblestone alley covered with arches and domes dotted with openings to let in shafts of sunlight. Along it are 53 shops, mostly butchers and shops selling nuts and dried goods. This souk had seen relatively less damage, and the $400,000 renovation took around eight months, with funding from the Aga Khan Foundation.

One butcher, Saleh Abu Dan, has been closed up since rebels took over the Old City in the summer of 2012. Now he’s getting ready to open again in the next few weeks. He said he’s happy with the renovation, which added a solar power electrical system, though he still needs to spend about $2,000 to fi x his refrigerator and buy a new grill and meat grinder.

“I inherited this shop from my grand-father and father and I hope that my grandchildren will work here,” he said.

The market’s offi cial inauguration is scheduled for later this month. But rebuilding is one step – bringing life back is another. Al-Saqatiyah is the third souk to be rebuilt in Aleppo, after the Khan al-Gumruk and the copper market.

A year after their reopening, both those souks still struggle to attract customers. Most days they are largely empty.

“I open for few hours a day but rarely sell anything,” mourned the owner of a cloth shop in Khan al-Gumruk.

Many of the customers who used to throng the markets before the war have either left the country or got used to shopping in other parts of the city since business stopped in old Aleppo

after rebels stormed eastern and cen-tral neighborhoods seven years ago, and tourism is non-existent. Getting into the opened markets in the souk today is still diffi cult as many of the alleys are closed and deserted.

Aleppo, Syria’s largest city, was the country’s main commercial center before the war. Reconstruction of its devastated eastern sector has hardly begun.

Basel al-Dhaher, the architect who

led renovation of al-Saqatiyah Market, said it will take tens of millions of dollars to rebuild the entire bazaar. Western sanctions that block money transfers to and from Syria are delay-ing work, he said.

He said al-Saqatiyah was chosen for renovation because the work could be fi nished quickly and inspire others to rebuild in other parts of the bazaar.

Some shopkeepers are hopeful

that strategy can work. In the copper market, Ahmad Zuhdi Ghazoul used his hammer to gently tap an embossed decoration into a copper piece. Across the alley, workers were fi xing the ceil-ings in two other shops.

“Thank God they are all coming back to renovate,” said Ghazoul, who has been a copper worker for three decades. “Business will be stronger than before.” (AP)

This combo of two photographs shows a Jan 21, 2017 photo, (bottom), shows the debris of al-Saqatiyah Market, and the same market after has been newly-renovated on July 27, 2019, in the old city of Aleppo, Syria. (AP)

A photo from the event

Agreement allows transfer

GUST and Algonquin College Kuwait ‘reaffi rm’ partnershipKUWAIT CITY, Aug 5: Gulf Uni-versity of Science and Technology (GUST) and Kuwait’s Canadian Col-lege – Algonquin College – Kuwait (AC-Kuwait) – have renewed their agreement and created clear pathways for AC-Kuwait graduates to enter and complete degree at GUST.

GUST originally signed a general articulation agreement with AC-Ku-wait in 2016, and the addendum signed in July this provides clear pathways for students in Accounting, Business and Computer Science to begin their stud-ies at AC-Kuwait, complete a diploma, and then transfer credits towards a de-gree program at GUST.

Dr Dave McHardy, AC-Kuwait President, said, “We are extremely grateful to President Bouhamra and his colleagues at GUST for the time and effort they put into reviewing our pro-grams and providing our students with pathways towards degrees.

“As educators, we are here to pro-vide students with opportunities to learn, become contributing citizens, and achieve the credentials they need to pursue fulfi lling careers. In order to do this, we need to provide students with fl exible options and multiple path-ways to success. And this agreement

with GUST allows us to do this.”Professor Walid Bouhamra, GUST

President, said, “For some students this will represent a change for students to improve their chances in their future professional lives. By beginning their academic pathway at AC-K and com-pleting a diploma, they would have proven their ability to study at a higher education level and have gained valu-able knowledge and skills that they can now bring to their studies at GUST. Everyone wins in this scenario – the students, Algonquin, GUST and the country as a whole because this helps us have a better-educated population and workforce.”

This agreement is an excellent ex-ample of how institutions can be both competitive and collaborative. It dem-onstrates the potential for the private colleges and universities in Kuwait to work as a system for the betterment of students, the local economy and work-force. By combining competitiveness with collaboration, standards remain high, fl exibility increases, and the fo-cus remains squarely on the students in Kuwait.

For more information about the de-gree completion pathway, contact the Registrar’s Offi ce at either institution.

GeneralContinued from Page 14 According to these age groups:Age group: 5 to 9 years old: Morning:

60 visitors max; Evening: 20; 10 to 15 years: Morning: 100 visitors max; Even-ing: 45; 16 and above: Morning: 140 visitors max, Evening: 105:

Tour language: Arabic- English- French; Arabic (English upon prior request); Arabic- English- French; Ara-bic (English upon prior request); Arabic- English- French: Arabic (English upon prior request)

Rules and Regulations:■ Please arrive in time for your visit.■ All visitors are kindly required to abide by the mosque’s dress code. Male visitors should wear long pants. Shorts and sleeveless shirts are not allowed. Female visitors: should wear head cover and long loose clothing (available at the mosque).■ Foods and drinks are not allowed inside the prayer halls.■ For school visits, teachers are respon-sible for their students and are required to cooperate with the staff members of the Grand Mosque.■ Photography is allowed inside the Grand Mosque (please note that disre-spectful poses are strictly prohibited).

If you would like to book a tour, please contact us:

Tel: 22980813/ 22980815/ 22980812 Email: gmvisits@gmail.com Fax: 22473708

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Share your story with Amricani: Do you or any of your family members, acquaintances or friends happen to have a story with the American Missionary hospital in Kuwait (Mustashfa Lemrai-cani) during the years from 1914-1967, the offi cial period of offering medical services in Kuwait?

Please share with us your story or your memory during those old days by writing the event and sending it to the

following email address: Mystory@darmuseum.org.kw

Notes: 1. Please send your story only to the above mentioned email. Story shared in Instagram, Facebook or Twit-ter will not be considered.

2. Please write your story or memory and sign it with your full name, and your contact number.

3. It will be great if you send us your personal photos or those of the place related to the story (optional).

Your story will be part of a new book to be published by DAI.

I am confi dent that your contributions will be an essential part of the history of Amricani. Share with us!

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NYF offers free yoga classes: NYF Kuwait offers free yoga, breath-ing, meditation and reiki classes by a well-experienced female yoga teacher for all age groups. Classes are given on the basis of different health prob-lems, stress and other problems by different techniques. Contact: 99315825.

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Leadership Excellence Course: The Leadership Excellence Course (LEC) is a course modeled on the Seerah of Rasoolullah who is the best model of leadership for all mankind. The LEC focuses on the lessons that we can learn from the Seerah of Rasoolullah and see how we can apply them in our lives to become winners in this world and the next.

The objectives of the course are 1. Understand what leadership is from the Seerah of Rasoolullah and how to apply it in our lives today 2. Under-stand the purpose of our lives and learn to live that purpose with confi-dence 3. Understand the importance of connecting to Allah and learn how to do it 4. Understand how to leverage your strengths and overcome weak-nesses 5. Understand how to articulate your life goal and create a road map to achieve it.

For more information please visit www.leckuwait.com or call 99514995 / 66363310.

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‘The Game of Powder’

Horseback show keeps Morocco tradition aliveEL JADIDA, Morocco, Aug 5, (AP): Thousands of visitors descend on the Moroccan coastal city of El Jadida each July to attend the largest eques-trian show in the kingdom – a breath-taking horseback performance that combines synchronized riding with decorative guns.

The competitive event is known as Tabourida, or La’ab Al-Baroud, “The Game of Powder”. The display mim-ics and pays tribute to military pa-rades performed by Arab and Berber tribes since the 15th century.

It has become an integral display for many festivals across Morocco and has developed into a cultural tradition, sur-viving time and change and practiced today by hundreds of troupes – young and old, men and, recently, women. Famed French artist Eugene Delacroix popularized Tabourida on canvas in the 19th century, dubbing it “Fantasia”, and the name has stuck.

It is a risky display blending cour-age, skills and tradition. Professional and amateur groups travel to El Jadida

from across the kingdom to perform, in their distinctive uniforms with traditional ornamentation, matching headscarves and embroidered chaps.

They gallop down an arena, bran-dishing their carved and patterned rifl es, and, as the fi nish line approaches, they fi re in unison. Gun smoke fi lls the air.

Each troupe is led by a muqadim, a leader, usually the most experienced rider, who gives instructions and signals to keep the troupe working in synchronicity. The performance is judged by the enthusiasm of the crowd – the more synchronized the performance, the louder the cheers.

It also is an expensive and danger-ous sport. Arabian or Berber horses of the highest stock can cost as much as 300,000 dirhams ($30,000). Inex-perienced riders frequently fall, and troupes run the risk of hitting a bar-rier at the end of the track if they are unable to stop their horses in time.

Still, the spectacle continues. By the end of the day, there is barely an empty seat as the competition intensi-fi es and the sun sinks into the Atlan-tic Ocean. Boys climb old ramparts to get a top view and families cheer for the local troupe.

A brief pause takes place as the call for sunset prayers is heard from the nearby minaret, and shortly after, a gallop – then a boom!

In this July 25, 2019 photo, a troupe charges, fi ring their rifl es during Ta-bourida, a traditional horse riding show also known as Fantasia, in the

coastal town of El Jadida, Morocco. (AP)