On the list of UN’s Young Leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals this year is an Icelandic woman by the name of Edda Hamar. Along with the other 16 people on the list, she is recognized for her outstanding leadership in her efforts to achieve the goals. The 17 were selected from a group of more than 18,000 nominations. They will work with the Office of the UN Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth on projects to engage young people in the realization of sustainable development goals.
Edda is a 27-year-old who was born in Iceland. She grew up traveling the world and settled in Australia. She is the co-founder of Undress Runways, an annual fashion show which includes 50,000 people. It’s a movement promoting sustainability and ethics in the fashion industry without compromising style. She also founded The Naked Mag in 2014, a magazine published annually, advocating diversity, respect, equality, sustainability and smart textiles in the fashion industry. “Our purpose is to educate consumers about sustainable fashion and to change the stigma around it,” she stated. She described her goal with Undress Runways, “We are showing people that sustainability is the future, and that you don’t have to compromise your style to be ethical.”
You may be interested to learn that Edda is the granddaughter of Haraldur J. Hamar, the 1963 founder of Iceland Review Magazine and its editor and publisher for 38 years.
