The fifth edition of the A.R.M. Holding Children’s programme began in UAE schools on Monday 21 April, coinciding with World Creativity and Innovation Day. The programme is set to expand to all seven Emirates to 80 schools, reaching over 6,400 students who will take part in more than 320 creative workshops until June. 

Led by Emirati artist and educator Alia Hussain Lootah and renowned Nigerian artist and poet Peju Alatise, this edition, titled “Future of Water”, explores ecosystems and water’s creative and cultural significance through hands-on, creative workshops. 

This year’s theme “Future of Water” invites children to explore local ecosystems, specifically water as a resource. How might these workshops encourage children to reconsider their relationship with water?

Alia Hussain Lootah: Through interactive, hands-on workshops, we guide children to think of water not just as something we consume but as something we live alongside. It’s about engaging with water creatively and emotionally, and recognising its role in shaping our culture, environment, and identity.

How did you decide on this theme?

Peju Alatisse: Over the last decade, water has been a recurring element in my work—both as a physical presence and a spiritual force. It flows through my stories of children, mythology, politics, and escapism. So, when it came time to choose a theme for a children’s programme in the UAE, The Future of Water felt like a natural extension of my practice. In 2024, I held an exhibition titled We Came with the Last Rain, where water and children were central. Interestingly, the UAE also experienced significant environmental events related to water that year, making it a powerful intersection of personal narrative and shared experience.

Respectively, how have your experiences as artists informed the way you are approaching this programme? 

AL: As an artist and founder of local educational space Medaf Studio, I’ve always used creative expression as a tool for connection and education. This programme reflects my belief that art should engage the senses, challenge norms, and help children discover new ways to understand their surroundings.

PA: My artistic process often begins with storytelling, especially from the perspective of children—blending mythology, memory, and social commentary into tangible, immersive worlds. I build narratives that invite both escape and reflection, often layered with symbolic materials and sensory experiences. The A.R.M. Holding Children’s Programme aligns beautifully with this approach. It values imagination, hands-on exploration, and encourages young minds to think critically about the world around them, just as I do in my own work. It feels like an extension of my studio, only with many more curious, brilliant collaborators.

How does this theme translate into creative workshops? 

AL: We’ll use clear plexiglass sheets as a base, on which children can paint or collage their vision of water’s future. As water is added, it transforms what they’ve made. This dynamic process lets them witness how water itself becomes a living part of the piece, echoing its changing nature and its role in shaping our lives.

Why do you think this theme might resonate with children in the UAE? 

AL: Water holds a unique place in our environment and our culture. It’s both precious and symbolic. In the UAE, where water is scarce, its value is deeply understood. Through hands-on activities, storytelling, and materials rooted in our landscape like sand and water, children will explore how it has shaped our lives, architecture, and traditions. This theme encourages them to see water not just as a necessity, but as a reflection of who we are and where we live. It’s a powerful way to foster cultural pride and environmental awareness at the same time.

How do you hope that children respond to the workshops?

PA:  We hope the children leave with a deeper understanding of their relationship with water, and how vital it is to their lives and the planet’s future. Hopefully, they will see themselves as custodians of the Earth’s resources, with the power to protect and preserve. Most of all, we hope they experience the magic of turning a simple idea into something tangible through art, a reminder that their imagination holds real, transformative power.

What do you see as the importance of creative education for developing young minds? 

AL: Creative education teaches children to be curious, resilient, and empathetic. It gives them tools to navigate life, not just school. Art is how they can reflect, express, and imagine, and those are the seeds of innovation and change.

PA:  In my experience, when children engage in art inspired by diverse cultures, they build empathy, curiosity, and a deeper appreciation for the richness of human experience beyond their own. Workshops often create spaces where children can explore not just materials, but meanings; stories, symbols, and traditions that come from different parts of the world. Through creating and sharing, they begin to understand that culture isn’t something distant; it’s something we all carry, shape, and express.