Meet the founder

Hi, I'm Jóhanna

I founded HARTS. I'm a health-education specialist and a neurodivergent advocate, and I turned my own experience of the education system into a mission to change it.

Jóhanna Birna Bjartmarsdóttir, CHES

Founder & CEO

CHES, Certified Health Education Specialist
BA in Education Sciences and Health Promotion, University of Florida
Specialised in inclusive, accessible learning environments

My story

I'm dyslexic and autistic, I have ADHD, and I lived with chronic pain for a decade. I barely finished compulsory school and never went through upper-secondary school the traditional way — yet I went on to earn a university degree, and now I work to make sure other students in the same position don't give up.

I speak and write widely about accessibility, neurodiversity and inclusive education. Below is a collection of my interviews, talks, press and podcast appearances.

01Conference & media

Interviews, talks & press

A running record of my appearances in the media, at conferences and in academic settings.

Vísir

Vísir Interview

Ég er lesblind, með ADHD og einhverf og var talin trú um að skólinn væri ekki fyrir mig. Mér finnst mikilvægt að börn í sömu stöðu gefist ekki upp. Þrátt fyrir að hafa rétt náð að ljúka grunnskóla og ekki farið í gegnum framhaldsskóla útskrifaðist ég úr háskóla í vor. Ég brenn nú fyrir því að hjálpa öðrum í sömu stöðu.

Vísir

Ísland í Dag

Ég var talin trú um að skólinn væri ekki staður fyrir mig — ég er lesblind, með ADHD og einhverf. Þrátt fyrir að hafa rétt náð að útskrifast úr grunnskóla og ekki farið í gegnum framhaldsskóla er ég nú með háskólagráðu og brenn fyrir því að hjálpa öðrum í sömu stöðu.

Watch

University of Iceland

University of Iceland Interview

Researching mental health promotion and its importance in schools — an interview with me and Dr. Gyða about promoting mental health in schools.

Instructure

Student Voice

A case study about me. From 2010 to 2020 I lived with chronic pain every single day. I also have autism, ADHD and severe dyslexia — three compounding challenges that made my school years painful and frustrating.

Instructure

Instructor Interview

In conversation as a Student Voice at CanvasCon Europe 2024, where I share my journey into education and entrepreneurship.

YouTube

Lecture

Kennsluhönnun & aðgengi — a lecture about instructional design and accessibility.

Watch

University of Iceland

Research Presentation

I presented preliminary findings on School-Based Universal Mental Health Literacy Curricula for K-12 Education: Preliminary Results of a Scoping Review at Líf- og heilbrigðisvísindaráðstefna Háskóla Íslands.

University of Florida

Keynote Speech · CanvasCon Europe

I was the keynote speaker at CanvasCon Europe 2024 in Barcelona.

Oxford Abstracts

Menntakvika 2024

I presented preliminary findings on School-Based Universal Mental Health Literacy Curricula for K-12 Education: Preliminary Results of a Scoping Review at Menntakvika.

Vefþing

BUGL Conference

“Að Yfirstíga Hið Ómögulega” is the name of my 8-minute presentation at Iceland's national university hospital's department of child and adolescent psychiatry 2023 conference “Raddir Lífsins eru Margar”.

University of Florida

Scholarship Dinner Speech

I spoke at the 2023 University of Florida College of Education scholarship dinner on September 29th. Below is a link to an article about all the speakers at the event.

University of Florida

Fundur Fólksins

I was a moderator at Fundur Fólksins, a democratic festival in Iceland. I spoke with Dagur B. Eggertsson, the mayor of Reykjavík, Sigurþóra Bergsdóttir, the CEO of Bergið Headspace, and Þröstur Flóki Klemensson about systematic barriers.

University of Florida

UF Online Interview

After overcoming chronic pain that hospitalized me for over two years, I was inspired to increase health education and accessibility in schools across my home country of Iceland.

University of Florida

UF College of Education Interview

I aspire to create a health literacy curriculum for K-12 education, empowering students to lead healthy lives, make informed decisions and overcome adversity.

mbl.is

MBL Interview

“If I don't stand up for others, I'm just like someone else who didn't stand up for me.”

RÚV

Mannlegi Þátturinn

Ég vakti mikla athygli þegar ég talaði um skólavist, hindranir og úrræði á ráðstefnu BUGL. Með þrautseigju og dugnaði legg ég nú stund á nám í menntun og heilsueflingu og vonast til að nýta þekkingu mína og reynslu til að aðstoða krakka í svipuðum aðstæðum. Ég lýsti reynslu minni í Mannlega þættinum á RÚV.

Listen

RÚV

Rúv Conference Interview

“If we are going to offer a good education for all citizens, we need to have a system that can be adapted to the different needs of all students.” The term “school phobia” indicates that something is wrong with the child when in reality it is a sign of failure in the education system to meet students' needs.

ÖBÍ

Impairment or Difference

“Hamlanir eða Fjölbreytileiki” is the name of my 10-minute presentation at The Icelandic Disability Alliance's seminar “Ryðjum Menntabrautina! – ÖBÍ málþing um mikilvægi stuðningsúrræða”.