The Basel Mohammad Ghalayani (BMG) Foundation launched a water conservation awareness competition for Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) students at Al-faisal University in Riyadh on Saturday. The competition will tour various GCC universities including the University of Dammam on Feb. 7, the American University of Sharjah on Feb. 19, Abu Dhabi University on Feb. 20, the Gulf University of Science & Technology in Kuwait on Feb. 23 and Dar Al-Hekma College in Jeddah on Feb. 25. The competition and tour is designed to urge young people to protect the environment. Saudi Gazette interviewed Basel Al-Ghalayani, chairman of the foundation, in Jeddah on the reasons for the competition and his work. Saudi Gazette: Why did you launch the water conservation project? Basel Al-Ghalayani: The reason behind starting the water initiative was to embark on something that would change the way we think. What I mean by that is we're trying to change the lifestyles of people that are negatively affecting the most important resource of our life, which is water. SG: Why and when did you start the foundation? BG: It started more than 15 years ago when I met Prince Charles at a charity polo match. He was quite surprised that the sport of polo had no presence in the Kingdom, so he got me working on creating an East-West cultural bridging initiative through a polo match, which was the foundation's first-ever event. We donated funds to the ECA of Saudi Arabia and the Prince's Trust of the United Kingdom. SG: Why polo? BG: Polo is an equestrian sport which is part of the Arabian culture. It requires a lot of skill, horsemanship and precision. I thought of it as a good sport to introduce to our young people. The Polo Cup kicked off 15 years ago with the Prince of Wales captaining his team, which established the royal platform of our event for the coming years. Later on, Her Majesty the Queen graced us with her presence which added even more clout and stature to this cup, making it a unique event on the British summer sports calendar. SG: Are the foundation's activities more recreational or does it target certain social issues? BG: It was never meant to be mere recreational, it was targeted towards East-West cultural bridging, to support noble causes. SG: Who inspired you to do this type of work? BG: I was inspired by my father; he would always encourage me as a child to donate a percentage of my pocket money to the needy. I have therefore always been proactive in helping the needy. SG: In which countries have you held events? BG: Mainly in the United Kingdom, but we also hosted events in Damascus, Beirut, Amman, Jeddah, Al-Khobar and Dubai. SG: What is the aim of Art Alive? BG: To give talented men and women the platform to be recognized internationally. Since the BMG Foundation's mission is East-West cultural bridging, we thought that by staging the BMG Classics we would make two major contributions to society: Firstly to counter the commercially driven music that has negative influences on our youth and secondly to promote talented Arab composers by having them conduct world-renowned orchestras. SG: Is there any form of coordination with new initiatives which are also trying to bridge the East-West divide? BG: No, there isn't, but it makes me happy to see such new initiatives, which are trying to follow in our footsteps by copying our vision and mission. As the famous saying goes: “Imitation is the highest form of flattery!” SG: What would you want to say to young Saudi businessmen to encourage them to explore the world of philanthropy, sports and the arts as part of their corporate social responsibility? BG: As businessmen we all owe our societies the maximum possible contribution, to help with their growth and development. __
