11. Solveig Sveinbjornsdottir

Sponsor Club: Rotary District 9803

Host Club: Stones Corner

Prior to receiving the Rotary Peace Fellowship, Solveig worked abroad in several countries. In Sudan, she worked with UNICEF in an emergency on child protection as well as in Philippines and in Ethiopia, with focus on children in institutions. With UNHCR in Syria, Solveig´s task was on strengthening social services for Iraqis refuges. In Sri Lanka, she worked with SLMM in a peacekeeping mission and later with the international NGO, EMDH supporting survivors of the Indian Ocean tsunami.

Solveig also went to Haiti one month after the earthquake on a short-term assignment with an IFRC assessment team. Prior to her work abroad, Solveig worked as director of social services in Iceland and with an international NGO, AFS, on intercultural learning’s both in Iceland and later in Brussels with the umbrella organization, EFIL. With this scholarship, Solveig’s aim is to gain additional academic knowledge, hopefully providing more in-depth understanding and capacity that will support her while contributing to her work towards minimizing human suffering.