Creative Women Forum 2025
Empower • Engage • Sustain
Three Days of Creative Power, Insight and Connection in Riyadh
From November 4th to 6th, I had the privilege of attending, and speaking at, the Creative Women Forum Saudi Arabia 2025 in Riyadh. Under the powerful theme Empower • Engage • Sustain, the event brought together extraordinary women from around the world to exchange ideas, elevate creativity and shape new visions for the future.
I had the pleasure of meeting the first inspiring ladies already on November 3rd, right after my arrival, during the Welcome Dinner at the beautiful Jareed Hotel, a warm and promising start to an unforgettable week.
What unfolded was far more than a conference, it felt like a movement, a community and a celebration of women’s leadership across disciplines.
A Royal Patron & A Historic Setting
The forum opened with inspiring words from Her Royal Highness Princess Noura Bint Saud Bin Nayef Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the patron of the Creative Women Forum Saudi Arabia 2025.
Her presence set the tone for the days ahead: confident, purposeful and deeply committed to elevating the role of women in the creative economy of Saudi Arabia and beyond.
The setting made it even more powerful: the Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, the largest women’s university in the world. Standing in a space built entirely for women’s learning and leadership was impactful and symbolic, the perfect place for this gathering.
A Stunning Art Experience
One of the highlights for me was the remarkable art exhibition curated as part of the forum. The works, bold, emotional, innovative, showcased the depth, vision and courage of artists from Saudi Arabia and across the region.
Floral camouflage in front of the artwork «Fiori» by Sofia Cacciapaglia
It was a reminder that art is not only a reflection of culture, but also one of its strongest engines of transformation.
The Visionaries Behind the Forum
None of this would have been possible without the remarkable women who built the Creative Women Forum Saudi Arabia 2025 with passion, dedication and a deep belief in women’s creative power.
At the heart of it stands
Olga Balakleets, Founder & CEO of the Creative Women Platform,
a visionary who has spent years creating global spaces where women can exchange ideas, uplift one another and spark meaningful change.
Alongside her,
Rebeca Riofrio, Executive Director of the Creative Women Forum Saudi Edition 2025,
played a crucial role in crafting this year’s edition in Riyadh. Together with her team, she created an experience that was thoughtful, inspiring, seamless and deeply empowering.
Their dedication, often behind the scenes, is what transformed the forum into the world-class platform it has become.
My Panel: Creativity, Futurism & Sustainability
I had the honour of speaking on a panel guided by futurist and filmmaker Maxim Jago, alongside four exceptional women, each contributing her own perspective on creativity and the future:
• Prathibha Prahlad – Founder Chairperson of the Prasiddha Foundation & the Forum for Art Beyond Borders; Founder & Festival Director of the Delhi International Arts Festival
• Yasmeen Gailani – Deputy Director, MENA & Middle East Specialist at Sotheby’s
• Martha Fiennes – Filmmaker, Screenwriter, Director and Digital Artist
• Norah Alkhursany – Head of Strategic Partnerships, Oil Sustainability Program (OSP)
This diversity made our conversation deeply enriching, spanning performing arts, fine art valuation, digital storytelling, sustainability in energy, and the cultural language of fashion.
When Maxim asked about universal and timeless themes in fashion and creative expression, I shared what I deeply believe:
«Fashion always moves between two forces: change and continuity.
What remains timeless is the human desire to express identity through beauty.
What evolves is the way we choose to express it.»
I then spoke about the profound shift happening within the luxury world and summed it up in a sentence that has become a personal mantra:
«Sustainability is the new black, but only creativity makes it chic.»
For me, this is the essence of where our industry is heading: sustainability as the new baseline, the must-have, and creativity as the force that makes responsible choices desirable, beautiful and emotionally relevant.
I explained how creativity bridges the past and the future:
«Creativity is what makes sustainability desirable.
People don’t change because they are pressured,
they change because they fall in love with a new idea.»
For me, the future of fashion lives precisely at this intersection:
where beauty meets purpose, where innovation honours heritage, where responsibility becomes part of the aesthetic.
Insights I Will Carry With Me
Creativity • Resilience • Emotional Intelligence
One panel reminded us of a key World Economic Forum insight:
these are the three most essential skills of the future.
Hearing this surrounded by visionary women felt like a collective affirmation.
Pleasure vs Happiness
Ida Beerhalter shared a powerful neurological insight:
High dopamine can suppress serotonin,
a reminder not to confuse pleasure with true happiness.
It was a scientific reflection of something deeply human:
short-term rewards often overshadow long-term fulfilment.
Fear Is Not a Strategy
Another perspective stayed with me:
«Fear is never a good advisor.
In investment, and in life, emotional regulation matters.
Sometimes the wisest decision is to pause.»
A timeless lesson, and one that resonated with the entire room.
Gala Night at the National Museum
The forum concluded with a magical gala evening at the National Museum of Saudi Arabia. Surrounded by culture, heritage and the warmest hospitality, we celebrated creativity, community and the power of women shaping the future.
It was a night filled with beauty, conversation, music and elegance, the perfect finale.
A Personal Journey Beyond the Forum
I stayed a little longer in Riyadh, reconnecting with friends and exploring the city’s vibrant mix of tradition and modernity. Every visit reveals something new, and this one was filled with warmth, inspiration and meaningful encounters.
Amazing woman: Adria L. Dunn who launched the global impact foundation, The Vine.
What I Take Home
If I had to capture the essence of these three days, it would be this:
Creativity is our most renewable resource.
When women are empowered, engaged and committed to sustaining change,
the future becomes not only more innovative but more beautiful and more human.
Thank you, Riyadh.
Thank you to every inspiring woman I met.
And thank you to the Creative Women Forum Saudi Arabia 2025 for creating a space where stories, ideas and visions can grow.
LoL, Sandra
We had a lot of fun together: Kiera Chaplin, granddaughter of Charlie Chaplin, who just launched her liquor brand Generation.
Such an inspiring woman and a fellow aquarius: Martha Fiennes.
Photos: © Sandra Bauknecht / Aiman Fekri @aiman.ph
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Cardamom tea as a welcome drink as alcohol is forbidden in Saudi Arabia.
Entry to one of the private rooms.
A very special culinary experience.
Inside Najd Village.
You can find beautiful details everywhere.
Deena Aljuhani Abdulaziz, Editor-in-Chief Vogue Arabia.
