PR NewsWire
Monday July 2, 2018
NEW YORK, July 2, 2018 /PRNewswire-- UNICEF USA has
appointed Somali-American supermodel and activist Halima Aden as the
newest UNICEF Ambassador. The announcement follows Aden's travels with
UNICEF and UNHCR to Kakuma, the refugee camp in Kenya where she was
born. Aden was formally introduced to UNICEF USA via their partnership
with Endeavor (formerly WME|IMG).
As a UNICEF Ambassador, Halima
will use her voice to engage young people across the U.S. to support
UNICEF's mission to put children first. She will bring awareness to
programs that save and protect children's lives and use her platforms to
advocate for children's rights. As a refugee herself, she uniquely
understands the needs, along with the hopes and dreams, of the 30
million children around the world who have been forcibly displaced by
conflict.
"Partnering with UNICEF has been a lifelong dream and is
my proudest accomplishment to-date," said UNICEF Ambassador Halima
Aden. "I've seen the organization's incredible, impactful work for
children first-hand. When I was young, UNICEF gave me an education,
empowering myself, my family and our community in the process. It's an
honor to have this platform with UNICEF USA and I look forward to
advocating for children around the world, just as others advocated for
me."
In
September 2017, Aden traveled to Mexico with UNICEF NextGen to view
UNICEF's programs to support migrant and refugee children at the border
of Guatemala and see ongoing recovery efforts from the 2017 earthquakes.
In March 2018, Aden inspired students at UNICEF USA's Annual Summit in
Washington D.C. by speaking on the Women's Empowerment and Leadership
panel session.This June, she joined TedX, UNHCR and UNICEF for
the first-ever TedX conference from a refugee camp. Aden shared her
personal story to thousands of refugees and emphasized, "Although the
children here [in Kakuma] may be refugees, first and foremost they are
children. They deserve every opportunity to flourish, to hope, to dream,
to be successful."
"To know Halima Aden is to know a fiercely
passionate, intelligent and motivated young woman who pours her heart
and soul into everything she does," said Caryl M. Stern, President &
CEO of UNICEF USA. "Her story is one of resilience and triumph and we
are honored to officially welcome her to the UNICEF family where she
will advocate on behalf of the world's most vulnerable children."
"In
Halima's first meeting with us, she shared a long-standing dream of
returning to Kakuma to help those who are experiencing what she once
did. We believe that by connecting clients within the Endeavor network
like Halima to partners such as UNICEF USA, we can bring often-neglected
stories to new audiences in ways that drive real action. Halima
becoming a UNICEF Ambassador is a full-circle moment, and we could not
be more proud of the journey she has already begun to embark upon," said
Tascha Rudder, Executive Director of the Endeavor Foundation.
As a
UNICEF Ambassador, Aden joins a list celebrities who advocate for
children's rights on behalf of UNICEF including the late Audrey Hepburn,
Selena Gomez, P!NK, Alyssa Milano and Téa Leoni among others.
Aden
was born in Kakuma refugee camp and lived there until the age of seven.
She and her family then relocated to the United States where she became
the first woman to compete in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant in a
hijab. Following the pageant, she attracted national media attention and
became the first hijab-wearing model to be signed with IMG Models. She
has since appeared on the covers of BRITISH VOGUE, ALLURE and TEEN
VOGUE, among others.
About UNICEF The United Nations Children's
Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to put
children first. UNICEF has helped save more children's lives than any
other humanitarian organization, by providing health care and
immunizations, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, education,
emergency relief and more. The U.S. Fund for UNICEF supports UNICEF's
work through fundraising, advocacy and education in the United States.
Together, we are working toward the day when no children die from
preventable causes and every child has a safe and healthy childhood. For
more information, visit www.unicefusa.org.