Dina Taji is a Palestinian-born, Qatari-raised online health and fitness coach and clinical nutritionist based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and she is an animal rescuer too. As CEO and founder of FitnessWithDina, established in 2010, she offers personalized fitness and meal programs in Arabic and English, and she coaches online.
Dina also founded the Dubai Street Kitties animal sanctuary, run from a Cat Villa. The sanctuary has rescued upwards of 2,500 stray cats and cares for upwards of 600 cats today. Her fitness mobile application funds the work, because profits from the app go straight to the cats.
Dina Taji Wins the Lovin’ Acts of Charity Award
Dubai has spoken, and the verdict is a happy one! Dina Taji is the winner of the Lovin’ Acts of Charity Award at The Lovin’ Dubai Awards 2026. The winners were revealed on October 26, and her name topped a category of five nominees after the city cast its votes.
Lovin’ described her work as small acts of kindness taken to the streets of Dubai, one cat after another. Her fitness content is her day job, and the cat sanctuary is the mission she runs beside it.
The award celebrates a tally of 2,500 cats rescued and a dedicated rescue facility created to protect and care for them. It celebrates trap-neuter-return initiatives that manage stray cat numbers humanely, and it salutes the compassion that is inspiring care for animal welfare in the UAE.
Lovin’ summed it up beautifully: a difference can begin far from a big organization or a grand plan. A single person who has enough compassion to act can start it. Dina proves that every day. What a win for a woman who saves lives in two very different ways!
The Lovin’ Dubai Awards 2026 Details
The Lovin’ Dubai Awards 2026 are presented by Emirates NBD. MG, Masafi, Solas, The View Palm Jumeirah and V Hotel Dubai are the key partners. The awards celebrate the individuals and businesses making a positive impact in Dubai’s communities.
The first edition, the Lovin’ Dubai Community Awards 2025, recognized 70 nominees and crowned 11 local winners. This year’s edition spotlights 10 categories, from business visionaries to young talents under 18.
Voting was set to close on September 26. The response from the city was so strong that Lovin’ extended it to October 5, and the winners were revealed on October 26.
The Lovin’ Acts of Charity category honours people who go out of their way to support others, from rescuing animals to creating educational opportunities. Dina’s nomination praised her years of caring for stray cats and finding them safe, loving homes. Dubai read her story and voted her to the top.
Life at the Cat Villa
Every great rescue story has a starting line, and Dina’s was a bicycle ride. Cycling around Dubai, she kept meeting strays that were starving or badly hurt, so she started feeding them. Vet trips followed, and she partnered up and founded Dubai Street Kitties alongside a local Emirati friend. Two women set out to help injured and abandoned cats, and that mission grew into a full sanctuary.
The Cat Villa is a seven-bedroom home turned shelter, and its daily routine is a busy one. Cats are separated by health status. Cages are sanitised daily. Every morning, vets send video updates on cats receiving medication. Every cat admitted gets a full panel of disease tests and bloodwork, so the team knows its health from day one.
Ramadan added a fun chapter. Under Al-Futtaim Toyota’s Driven by Heart initiative, Dina borrowed a Toyota SUV to answer rescue calls late at night or after Taraweeh. Its roomy cargo space fit crates and supplies, and its smooth ride gave frightened cats a safe spot to calm down.
Dina Taji’s Fitness Platform Funds the Rescue
Veterinary care in Dubai is pricey, and Dina found a creative answer in her own fitness world. Her coaching platform, FitnessWithDina, became a lifeline. Workout programs and meal plans in Arabic and English rally community support for Dubai’s strays, so a person who signs up gets healthy while a cat gets care.
Her day starts the way any coach’s day does, guiding clients and planning workouts, and then the rescue calls begin. A workout in Dubai can literally help a rescued cat, and that is a fun fact worth telling every gym buddy.
Dina has called the UAE home for two decades. Dubai Street Kitties grew from her wish to give something positive back to a country that has given her so much, a country she sees as a symbol of innovation and compassion.
The Dream for Dubai’s Cats
Dina dreams of a proper cat shelter. The long-term vision for Dubai Street Kitties is a world-class sanctuary and rehabilitation facility in the UAE, a calm and innovative haven made for rescued animals that need long recovery.
She believes the thinking around pet ownership has to change, and she says collective effort can write a new story for every abandoned cat in the UAE. Her tips for anyone are easy. Leave food outside your home for a hungry stray. Foster a cat until a family adopts it. Help an injured cat get medical care. Changing the life of one cat is a win worth celebrating.
Congratulations, Dina! The Lovin’ Dubai Awards 2026 Lovin’ Acts of Charity Award is yours, and we are so proud. You deserve all the praise.
