Andrew Leon Hanna Keynote Speaker

Andrew Leon Hanna is a first-generation Egyptian-American lawyer, entrepreneur, and author from Jacksonville, Florida.

Hanna was awarded the 2018 Financial Times Bracken Bower Prize for authors under 35 at the National Gallery in London. His book that evolved from the Prize, 25 Million Sparks: The Untold Story of Refugee Entrepreneurs (Cambridge University Press, 2022), tells the stories of three Syrian women entrepreneurs in the Za’atari camp, and of refugee entrepreneurs around the world. It has been called “a powerful story of hope” by Nobel Peace Prize winner Leymah Gbowee; a chance to “discover humanity at its best” by PBS NewsHour anchor Judy Woodruff; “inspir[ing]”, “sharply topical, “original,” and “novelistic” by the Financial Times; and “uplifting” by Publishers Weekly. 

Hanna is the co-founder and CEO of DreamxAmerica, joining storytelling and impact to highlight and support immigrant, refugee, and first-generation entrepreneurs. As head of DreamxAmerica, which was recognized on Fast Company‘s 2021 World Changing Ideas List, he has connected small businesses to $350,000+ in zero-interest loans during the COVID-19 pandemic and co-created/produced the DreamxAmerica documentary short film streaming on PBS, which was nominated for a Chicago Emmy® Award. He is also founder of Immigrant Love, a venture he founded at Stanford that invests in and showcases brands led by immigrant entrepreneurs, and co-founder of Sawa Impact Labs, a web3 venture that features underrepresented global artists.

Hanna earned his MBA with honors as an Arjay Miller Scholar at Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he was a Knight-Hennessy Scholar and was faculty-selected as one of five Siebel Scholars in his class on the basis of academics and leadership. He received a J.D. with honors from Harvard Law School, where he was an Editor of the Harvard Law Review, and an A.B. with highest distinction from Duke University, where he was Senior Class President. He was named to the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 List, and his work has been featured in or on the BBC, PBS, Fast Company, Forbes, Financial Times, and more.