Sara Hamdan

Sara Hamdan is an award-winning writer, editor, and moderator. She is a former Merrill Lynch banker, New York Times journalist, and editor at Google. Sara’s first journalism role was as a staff writer at Arabian Business Magazine. She later served as the deputy editor of Viva Magazine and the editor of Dubai Magazine. For six years, she was the main writer for The International New York Times in Dubai, covering culture, travel, and business. In 2016, she became the editor-in-chief of the MENA edition of Think With Google, an award-winning insights hub for marketers. Today, Sara writes high-profile interviews and features for publications including Fast Company, Arab News, and The International New York Times, and travel pieces for Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveller Middle East, and more.

• Won a prize in the Stories Competition by the Evening Standard and Netflix for her short story, “Midnight Prayers”
• One of 10 fellows in the inaugural Emirates Literature Foundation First Chapter: Seddiqi Fellowship and is working on a debut novel
• Blogger at Holidaysinheels.com, a luxury hotel review site with a section on beach reads
• Received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of California, Berkeley
• Received a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University