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Chief Sustainability Officer, School Director, Educator, Yuri Education Centre: The SustainabilityX® Magazine's Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ 2024 Awardee
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"We courageously discuss, actively lead, and collectively act. We are dedicated to supporting the empowerment of youth and women through education and networks." - Yuri Hirayama, Chief Sustainability Officer, School Director, Educator, Yuri Education Centre, Japan & The SustainabilityX® Magazine Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™2024 (#SustXGlobal50) Awardee
Yuri Hirayama, Chief Sustainability Officer, Social Impact Director, and Principal Educator at the Yuri Education Center, is at the forefront of integrating sustainability into educational practices. Deeply committed to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Yuri's mission is to foster a new generation of leaders equipped to tackle global challenges. Through the Yuri Education Center, an independent institution dedicated to active learning, she has developed programs that immerse students in science, sustainability, and English, encouraging them to identify and address pressing environmental issues through proactive, goal-oriented solutions.
In her role, Yuri has pioneered initiatives like the "Waste to Wow!" workshop and the "You Lead" program, where students engage with sustainability challenges creatively, gaining confidence and skills in public speaking, strategic thinking, and responsible consumption. Her vision extends internationally; by establishing partnerships across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America, Yuri has built a global community that supports youth empowerment and sustainable development. Her bold leadership, recognized by the Education 2.0 Conference Outstanding Leadership Award, exemplifies her philosophy: “We courageously discuss, actively lead, and collectively act.”
With over 40 speaking engagements on sustainability, Yuri has become a recognized voice in advancing SDGs in education. She deftly navigates the delicate balance of traditional Japanese values with a forward-thinking approach to learning and sustainability, creating a dynamic environment that celebrates diversity, open communication, and global awareness. Yuri’s impact reaches beyond her institution; she collaborates with organizations like Social Impact Lab Japan and mentors students to champion sustainability in their own communities.
Yuri’s educational philosophy emphasizes the power of unity and collective action. Through initiatives like “Yuria's Happy English” and the proposed international group “We Lead and Act,” she continues to inspire global audiences, particularly women and youth, to drive systemic change. Her work is grounded in the belief that education and sustainability are inextricably linked, making her a true catalyst for transformation in her field.
The SustainabilityX® Magazine Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ 2024
The SustainabilityX® Magazine proudly presents its third edition of the Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ for 2024. This annual recognition celebrates extraordinary female leaders who embrace boldness in their pursuit of groundbreaking sustainability initiatives, reshaping industries, and driving transformative change towards a more just, inclusive, and sustainable future.
This year also marks a broader strategic mission expansion for The SustainabilityX® Magazine, with a stronger focus on aligning with the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) in addition to the original foundation of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This evolutionary expansion reflects the magazine’s ongoing commitment to advancing women's leadership in sustainability while championing social equity, environmental stewardship, and inclusive growth.
“Empowering women to lead in sustainability is at the heart of our mission,” says Supriya Verma, founder of The SustainabilityX® Magazine and one of Corporate Knights' Canada’s Top 30 Under 30 in Sustainability Leadership and one of The Peak's Emerging Leaders. “These trailblazers are breaking barriers and redefining what sustainable leadership looks like—showing that it’s about more than policies and practices, but also about social justice, economic resilience, and a regenerative future.”
Rooted in the magazine's guiding pillars of environmental protection, economic prosperity, social inclusion, and ethical governance, The SustainabilityX® Magazine's Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ showcases women from all sectors, industries, and regions, igniting crucial conversations on the intersection of gender equality and sustainable development.
Amidst global challenges and uncertainties, this year’s awards highlight the critical role of women in steering the world towards a more resilient, equitable future. With a continued digital format, the awards amplify voices across borders, bridging the gap between global sustainability efforts and local impact.
As Verma states, “The future of sustainability hinges on bold, inclusive leadership, and these women exemplify the courage and vision needed to transform our world. The SustainabilityX® Magazine remains steadfast in our mission to celebrate and elevate those who are shaping a future where every voice counts and every effort contributes to a thriving, sustainable world.”
View the full list: The SustainabilityX® Magazine Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards 2024
Read the full press release: The SustainabilityX® Magazine Announces 3rd Annual Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ Under the Theme "Embrace Boldness"
About The SustainabilityX® Magazine
The SustainabilityX® Magazine is an award-winning, digital, female-founded, and female-led non-profit initiative bringing the environment and economy together for a sustainable future through dialogue, and now transforming the environment and economy for a sustainable future through the power of women's leadership. Founded on May 8, 2016, and inspired by the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals by Canada's Top 30 Under 30 in Sustainability Leadership awardee, Supriya Verma, the digital media initiative focuses on approaching the world's most pressing challenges with a holistic, integrated, systems-based perspective as opposed to the traditional and ineffective siloed approach with a single lens on interdisciplinary topics like climate and energy. This initiative ultimately seeks to explore how to effectively bring the environment and economy together through intellectual, insightful dialogue and thought-provoking discussion amongst individuals across sectors taking an interdisciplinary and integrated approach to untangling the intricate web of sustainability while championing women's leadership in sustainability.
The SustainabilityX® Magazine is built upon the four foundational pillars of sustainability: Environmental Stewardship, which emphasizes the importance of improving environmental health; Economic Prosperity, which promotes sustainable economic growth that transcends traditional capitalist models; Social Inclusion, which focuses on equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) for BIPOC, LGBTQ, and other marginalized or vulnerable communities; and Just Governance, which highlights responsible leadership, the equal application of the rule of law, and the creation of fair systems for all.
As we expand our mission to align with the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs), we continue to explore the diverse and interconnected factors that influence sustainability. By recognizing how these elements interact across local, national, and international levels, we aim to accelerate progress toward sustainability goals. In essence, this aligns with The SustainabilityX® Magazine's vision of integrating environmental and economic progress for a more just, inclusive, and sustainable future through thoughtful dialogue.
Whether your background is in science, engineering, business, law, politics, media, entertainment, or beyond, your voice plays a crucial role in shaping this future.
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The SustainabilityX® Magazine is a proud member of the Sustainable Journalism Partnership, serves as a cause-based media partner for various events such as WIRED Impact, and officially delivers remarks at international conferences such as UNESCO's annual World Press Freedom Day Conference.
SustainabilityX® is a brand of the non-profit social business SPSX Group.
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