Hamdi Ulukaya, a Turkish-American businessman of Kurdish ethnicity, was photographed in September on the Greek island of Lesbos wearing a blue UNHCR vest. He was sent there by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees as the UNHCR's newest eminent advocate. The appointment is a serious acknowledgment of his years of work with refugees and other philanthropic efforts.

Ulukaya is no ordinary businessman. At 43, he challenges popular conceptions of billionaire CEOs. First, almost everyone calls him by his first name. His signature simply reads "Hamdi." He is unpretentious and down-to-earth, and wears a kind smile that makes people feel like they have known him for decades.

He is also comfortable with his humble background and manages to make his personal history a source of inspiration, rather than resentment and regret. Born in a small town called Ilic of the eastern province of Erzincan, he proudly claims his identity as Kurdish. Indeed, he has angered Turkish nationalists with comments such as “I left Turkey because I was Kurdish and was very serious about Kurdish rights. A lot of Kurds in Turkey fled the country because their human rights were violated, their villages were bombed.” This statement was taken out of context of a longer explanation of why he cares deeply about refugees from Syria and Iraq. Headlines have also ignored his years of dedication and hard work to help displaced people and establish and contribute to charities in several Turkish cities.

Ulukaya has a big heart, so big that when he first launched Chobani Yogurt, he promised to donate 10% of his profit to international charities. He jokes about that decision: “It was easier to commit those days because I had nothing to lose.” But don't let the joke fool you. He has been hiring refugees to work in his yogurt factories in New York and Idaho for the last five years. Despite warnings against hiring refugees (“They don’t speak English!” “They don't have driver’s licenses!”), Ulukaya has made executive decisions to offer employment to people who have fled from hunger, persecution and fear. He has a firm belief that if a refugee can survive all these hardships, he will have the motivation to be the best. He also sees that variety can be an asset for an establishment.