####Merger of Three Abu Dhabi Universities Approved In a meeting on Oct. 13, the Abu Dhabi Executive Council approved the decision to unify three major Abu Dhabi universities, along with funding the development of multiple infrastructure projects. The purpose behind merging Khalifa University, Masdar Institute and the Petroleum Institute is to allocate resources more efficiently, along with championing the unified institute as among the world’s best. The new university will combine the schools’ respective focuses on energy, technology and engineering. The university merger comes amid the merging of other semi-government-owned organizations in the UAE in the energy and banking sectors this past year.

####New Law Aims to Protect Abu Dhabi’s Cultural Heritage In an effort to protect and promote Abu Dhabi’s cultural heritage, Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the president of the UAE, issued a law regulating the ownership and acquisition of cultural artifacts. The new law extends the mandate of the Tourism and Culture Authority, granting them the exclusive right to archaeological excavation. Sheikh Khalifa hopes to incorporate the city’s cultural heritage into school curricula.

####UAE Charity Helps Malawian Teenagers Go Back to School An educational programme funded by a UAE charity has been helping teenage girls in Malawi to go back to school. The pilot project by Dubai Cares was developed to encourage the re-enrollment of teenage mothers in the Malawian village of Khwethemule. Dubai Cares continues to fund workers in the region to convince more villages to take up the program, with the goal of improving literacy and gender equality in the region.

####Forum Explores the Future of the Arabic Language Organized by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development on Oct. 13, the Arabic Language Forum examined how media and the arts safeguard Arabic for future generations.

Afra Al Sabri, undersecretary of the ministry, shared that Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak is pushing for the ministry to work on maintaining the status of Arabic at the forefront of cultural development programs in the UAE.

As part of the event, several discussions were held for younger scholars, exploring media and its influence on classical Arabic.