The Founder

Among the orders bestowed upon her are: The Commander of the Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic, bestowed by H.R.H. Juan Carlos, former King of Spain, under the order of H.R.H.Felipe VI, King of Spain; the Medal of Civil Merit of Spain bestowed by H.R.H. Juan Carlos, King of Spain; the Order of the British Empire (OBE), bestowed upon her by the late Queen Elizabeth II; Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Bundesverdienstkreuz); Commendatore dell’Ordine della Stella della Solidarieta of Italy; Order of the Star of Italy with the rank of Grand Officer; Chevalier de l’Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur of France; Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France; the Belgian Officer of the Order of the Crown, bestowed upon her by H.R.H. Philippe, King of Belgium; the Gloria Artis Medal of Poland.

Among the many international recognitions received, she is the first recipient from the Middle East of the prestigious Ed Bradley Award for Leadership in Jazz by the Jazz at Lincoln Centre, New York. In addition, she has received the UN-affiliated Women Together Award, Aspen Institute Emerging Voice Award for Cultural Stewardship, Puccini Festival Foundation Award; an honorary doctorate from the American University of Paris; the Middle East Institute Visionary Award; and the highest recognition in arts and music from the Reina Sofía School of Music bestowed upon her by Queen Sofía of Spain.

Huda serves on the board of the UAE National Orchestra; the Middle East Institute Board of Governors and International Advisory Committee; the International Leadership Board of Cleveland Clinic; the board of the Lang Lang International Music Foundation; the International Circle of the Reina Sofía School of Music; the International Advisory Board of Edinburgh International Festival; the Middle East North Africa Acquisitions Committee – Tate Modern. She is also a founding member of the American Ballet Theatre Global Council; sits on the National Advisory Board of Zayed University – College of Arts and Creative Enterprises, and. In 2025, she was appointed to the board of directors of the Grand Theatre of Rabat by H.M. King Mohammed VI of Morocco.

An Emirati National, the daughter of a pioneering Saudi businessman and a Syrian mother, Huda was born in Beirut, Lebanon. Raised at a crossroads of cultures, her education took her to the American College of Paris, where she studied French literature and art history. Huda returned to the region and settled in Abu Dhabi. She is married to businessman Mohamed Abdul Latif Kanoo, a leading member of the prominent business family and the Yusuf bin Ahmed Kanoo Group, with whom she has three children, Abdul Latif, Noor and Abdul Rahman.

“Invest in the young. Create the future. Partner with the world.”

Huda Alkhamis-Kanoo