The American University in Dubai campus has people of diverse backgrounds, cultures, nationalities, and professions, and along with such great diversity, comes a variety of interesting personal stories. This multimedia series is created to tell the stories behind the many faces that make up the AUD family. It is a space where familiar faces become known on a deeper level. Learning about the stories of those who surround you on a daily basis, creates a greater form of understanding and tolerance in a community.
We were particularly interested to know why all these people decided to come to Dubai, learn about the obstacles they encountered in their life and if tomorrow they could go back to their homelands, would they?
The hero of our fourth short podcast and photo essay is Tammam Tannous, Head of Security at AUD. Through a couple of photographs, you will get to know him better, understand why he chose to move to Dubai, and learn about some of the struggles he went through and the certificates he received.
“I was born and raised in Kuwait, but I did not choose to go back there; instead I chose to move to Dubai when I was 22 years old,” says Tammam Tannous, a 42-year-old Syrian, in the UAE on March 15, 2020. Caline Hage.Tannous has been working as the Head of Security at AUD for 18 years. “I chose Dubai because the level of service that I received in the UAE wouldn’t be offered to me in Syria because of the conditions there,” Tannous says in the UAE on March 15, 2020. Caline Hage.
“I will never think of returning back to Syria, but I’m thinking of moving to another country and getting the passport,” said Tannous about the standard of living in Syria, in the UAE on March 15, 2020. Caline Hage.“Since I’m the only child to my parents, I faced hardships and nervousness in adapting, since the lifestyle here is very different,” said Tannous about the hardships he faced in the first two years after he moved to Dubai. He added that he missed his mother a lot in the UAE on March 15, 2020. Caline Hage.“I received many certificates, one is in security management training from a British company, a certificate from Dubai police, a license certificate from the civil defense to the university, and an appreciation certificate from the university’s president in 2017 for my services in the university,” Tannous said as the University’s Head of Security, in the UAE on March 15, 2020. Caline Hage.
