Hanna Birna Kristjánsdóttir

Hanna Birna Kristjánsdóttir (born 12 October 1966) is the Chair and Co-Founder of the Reykjavík Global Forum. She also serves as a Senior Advisor to UN Women. Hanna Birna is a former politician, Icelandic minister, mayor and parliamentarian.

She was the Minister of Interior after getting elected to the Althing (Icelandic parliament) in 2013, and was Mayor of Reykjavík from 21 August 2008 to 15 June 2010, the President for the city council from 2006 to 2008 and member of the city council from 2002 to 2013. She represented the Independence Party (Sjálfstæðisflokkur).

Hanna Birna Kristjánsdóttir was born on 12 October 1966 to Aðalheiður J. Björnsdóttir and Kristján Ármannsson. She was born and raised in Hafnarfjörður.

She became Minister of the Interior in 2013. Hanna Birna always claimed not having any knowledge of the wrongdoing of her assistant, but her resignation took effect on 4 December 2014 after the assistant pleaded guilty for the Reykjavík district court on 11 November 2014.

In 2015, Hanna Birna Kristjánsdóttir became chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Parliament of Iceland.

In 2016, she became the chair of the Executive Board of Women Political Leaders, Global Forum. She is currently the Chair and Co-Founder of the Reykjavik Global Forum, Women Leaders and also serves as a Senior Advisor to UN Women.