On the 21st May 2006 the first all female multi-national/Pan Arab team from the UAE will fly to Morocco and head to the High Atlas Mountains of Marrakech for a pioneering summit trek up Mount Toukbal, North Africa's highest peak.
The first event of a series that are the initiative of Mountain High, which is supported by the Dodge brand, the "Reaching New Heights" project is the brainchild of Julie Amer, founder of Mountain High and Suzanne Al-Houby, Director of the Dubai Bone and Joint Research Centre who will both head the project and, with the support of local mountain guides, lead the trek in the High Atlas Mountains of Marrakech. Both Julie and Suzanne are keen mountain trekkers and have completed several high altitude treks in the Middle East, Europe and Africa.
"Having completed the Everest Base Camp trek back in 2003 with Suzanne it's great to have the opportunity to join forces with her again, and we look forward to recruiting and preparing the team to trek to the summit of Mount Toukbal and make modern day adventure history," said Julie Amer. "The mix of women we are aiming to recruit will be an ideal way to further develop cross cultural understanding between Arab and Western women and bridge the knowledge gap between cultures and generations. We will have the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with Moroccan women after the trek and the added deeper purpose of supporting a women's empowerment project makes it all the more special. I look forward to sharing the mountain experience with the team."
The support from the Dodge brand is fully in line with its "Grab life by the horns" positioning, which is all about adventure and living life to the full, and the official Mountain High/Reaching New Heights vehicle is, quite appropriately, a Dodge Durango 5.7 HEMI.
"We're delighted to support Mountain High and the exciting programme of events that they have planned," said Craig Hardie, Marketing Manager - Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge, DaimlerChrysler Middle East. "There couldn't be a better reflection of everything that's great about the Dodge brand - freedom, adventure, spirit and a real 'can do' attitude - and even better from our point of view is the fact that it encourages empathy between the cultures and benefits the community in general by raising awareness and, importantly, funds to assist people and communities that are genuinely in need."
The team flies out to Casablanca on the 21st May then on to Marrakech for one night before heading to the Atlas Mountains for the start of their 6-day trek. The team will follow well-established trails led by local professional Mountain Guides and a support team. Trekking up to 6-8 hours per day, the team will encounter a good deal of ascents, descents and zig-zag trails on scree and diverse terrain as they pass through the traditional Berber villages. The team will stay in simple village homes and mountain refuges along the route and can expect a warm welcome all the way to the summit at 4,167m.
"I am so thrilled to be part of this project and looking forward to be with Julie again and to be able to help more gutsy, determined and adventurous women reach new heights... heights that sometimes we doubt we are able to reach. To be above the cloud level using only our hands and feet is extremely rewarding. We hope to first enjoy and endure the hardship, secondly, to encourage others, specifically Arab women, to pursue their own individual adventurous dreams instead of pushing these dreams aside. Finally, and most importantly, we hope to increase awareness and help less fortunate women to survive and provide for their families, by raising philanthropic donations that would empower women and assist them to start their own little projects. This to me is a symbolic ascent, women going to the highest point in the Arabian Peninsula where women are still trying to make a significant change in women's role. An ascent by women for women" said Suzanne Al Houby.
After the challenge of the trek the team will head back to the vibrant city of Marrakech and have the opportunity to explore the famous souks and the amazing Jemaa El Fna square, meet with Moroccan women, ease any aching muscles with a traditional Hammam and discover the sights and sounds of Marrakech before heading back to Dubai.
The trip is open to women of all nationalities and both Julie and Suzanne are especially keen to encourage a mix of Arab and UAE Nationals to join them. The aim is to have a total team of sixteen to complete the trek. Women keen to join should contact Julie for more information and an initial application form designed to assess the participants current level of fitness, health and trekking experience before committing to the project. A good level of general fitness, positive, attitude, sense of adventure, commitment to training and to the team and the campaign make a great start.
Contact details: Julie Amer 050 6595536 (jules@mountainhighme.com) or Suzanne Al Houby 050 6465238 (suzalhouby@gmail.com).
-Ends-
About the selected charity for the Reaching New Heights project
The Palestinian Children's Relief Fund (www.pcrf.net). The fund is an American non-profit organisation. Back in 2001 the fund launched a new project to provide start up economic grants to poor mothers of large families in the West Bank and the Gaza strip. The fund provides grants to women enabling them to begin small businesses or economic efforts that will provide them with a continued income and will help them to feed and take better care of their children.
Through the Reaching New Heights project the team headed by Julie and Suzanne hope to raise funds and secure donations from companies to support the Women's Empowerment Programme and thus make a positive difference to the lives of many for generations to come.
About The Dodge Brand
Dodge sold more than 1.4 million vehicles worldwide in 2005. With a U.S. market share of 7 percent, Dodge is the fifth-largest nameplate in the United States, the eighth-largest nameplate in the automotive industry and is expanding to volume markets outside of North America with the international launch of the Dodge Caliber, which follows the highly successful introduction of the Dodge Charger at the end of 2005.
For further information, please contact:
Neil Tyrer
Partner
Integra - Integrated Marketing Communications
Office #502, 5th Floor,
CNN Building,
Dubai Media City,
Dubai,
United Arab Emirates
t: +971 4 3672886,
f: +971 4 3661076,
m: +971 50 6532854
e: Neil.tyrer@integramarcoms.com
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© Press Release 2006
