"For a Better Life" Wins the First Place at CHIP Project in Zayed University
May 14, 2015
In a glittering awarding ceremony, Hessa Al Shaibi and her team members were recognized for their project “For a Better Life,” which was launched to inform and educate parents and students on the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle and identifying potential health risks.
The awarding ceremony was attended by Professor Reyadh AlMehaideb, Vice President of Zayed University (ZU), who congratulated the winning teams and praised the students’ level of health awareness that they have reached during years of study at ZU.
The event has also seen the presence of Dr Brigitte Howarth, Chair of the College of Sustainability and Humanities, Dr Chris Southgate, Dean of the College of Sustainability and Humanities, Dr Usama Al Alami, Assistant Dean at the College of Sustainability and Humanities and Leader of CHIP2 project, Dr Sabrina Joseph Associate Dean of the College of Sustainability and Humanities, Zelda Rooyen, Recreation Coordinator at the Department of Students Affairs as well as students and their parents.
The ceremony came to honour creative projects that participated actively in the second phase of Creative Healthy Initiatives Project (CHIP), which was kicked off earlier by the College of Sustainability and Humanities to spread health awareness and instill good practices among youngsters.
Out of four competing teams, ‘For a Better Life” project was ranked as number one project and Hessa Al Shaibi has been selected as the first place winner along with her team members Huda Majid AlMajid, Shaima Nader Badri, and Aisha Rashid Lootah.
“As the number of cardiovascular diseases is increasing, the awareness campaign entitled ‘For a Better Life’ was launched and implemented in Al Khaleej National School in Dubai and Mirdif Private School with hopes to protect both school children and university students from potential health risks,” Hessa, who studies public health and nutrition and leader of her team, said.
“Our project targets parents, children, and adults and aims to define healthy food, which is high in fiber, natural vitamins and fructose and that can reduce cholesterol, risk of stroke, and help control glucose,” she added.
“Mysterious boxes activity aims to educate people on how to estimate their calories intake. Also, several workshops were conducted to educate people about pediatric surgeries and inform them on the negative consequences of diet pills that can be dangerous to health,” Hessa, who has also participated in the previous version of CHIP campaign, explained.
The second place went to “Transition to Healthier Lifestyle” project, which studied the effect of the transition from high school to university.
Ayesha Khoory, a junior student at the College of Sustainability and Humanities, was named as the second winner in the competition along with her team members Meera Al Suwaidi, Dhabia Al Zaffin, Hessa Kharbash and Afra Bin Ghalita.
Ayesha’s project has targeted students at the age of 16-18 years old and implemented in Dubai International School and Dubai National School.
The third place went to “Exercise, Sweet Syrup for Lectures” project, which aimed at encouraging regular physical activity that can bring major health benefits and reduce mortality, cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease and stroke.
The fourth place went to “Sweet Tooth” project that was designed to raise awareness and identify ZU students’ daily intake of sugar.
Dr Usama Al Alami said: “The award ceremony celebrated the students’ achievements and was a way of saying thank you for all the hard work they put into their projects. It was a very difficult decision to announce number one winning project. However, “For a Better Life” earned it and it is a well-deserved achievement. They have used innovative tools to promote healthy lifestyles among two different age groups.”
Prestigious prizes were distributed to the winners of CHIP2 project during the ceremony.
