The 18th Emirates Airline Festival of Literature celebrated young literary talents through six prestigious annual awards, recognizing exceptional achievements in reading, writing, and creative expression across a series of student competitions organized by the Emirates Foundation for Literature, the festival's organizer. Under the theme of 'Hope', this year's competitions invited students to imagine a brighter future, explore empathy and resilience, and express their ideas through the written, spoken, and visual word. This annual competition, in its ninth edition, celebrates the art of poetry recitation through a meticulous evaluation process. Participants are assessed based on their understanding of the text, clarity of performance, and fluency of expression. This year's edition showcased outstanding examples of poetry recitation from 1,609 students, honoring the rich heritage of Arabic poetry and preserving it. The 2025-2026 Chevron Reader's Cup tested skills in comprehension, memory, mindful reading, and critical thinking, while promoting sportsmanship and teamwork. The competition saw a record level of participation, with over 5,000 students competing in 1,464 teams. The 'Beloved Letters' competition, supported by the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi, returned, celebrating the distinguished calligraphic skills of youth across the UAE. Students were invited to write a handwritten letter to a significant person on the theme of 'Hope', and the entries demonstrated high aesthetic quality and creative expression. The 'Al-Futtaim' award for the visual word challenged students aged 12 to 18 to use modern tools to tell stories by producing short films inspired by their favorite Arabic books or poems. The initiative also opened the doors of imagination to primary school students across the country, who competed in creating artistic dioramas depicting scenes from their favorite books using recycled materials. From 354 entries, 20 outstanding artworks were selected for display at the festival, where they were evaluated by a panel of elite international illustrators.
