Dhowre was born in Montreal, Canada, and is of Somali descent. She was the second oldest of her five siblings, raised by a single mother, and moved to Vancouver at the age of 12.[3][4] After graduating from high school, she enrolled at
Simon Fraser University, earning her
bachelor's degree in
philosophy, with intentions of going to law school.[5][6]
Career
Sabrina became a model, and was featured in various magazines, such as British Vogue and Elle.[7][8] She also was crowned "Ms. Vancouver" at a beauty pageant in 2014.[3][7] Her agency is
IMG Models in
London.[1][9]
She worked with her husband
Idris Elba, also a goodwill ambassador, with IFAD to help launch a new $40 million fund intended on lessening impact of
COVID-19 on "farmers and food producers in rural areas".[14] Both later worked with the IFAD on projects in Kenya, Zambia, and Egypt, aimed at helping farmers, and combating hunger and climate change.[15][16]
She also works with
civil society organizations, such as
Conservation International, on issues relating to the environment.[10] and
Global Citizen.[17] At
COP27, in November 2022, she was interviewed about the impact of climate change and the importance of empowering, and investing in, rural areas, to which she stated that there need to be long-term solutions, and said that impact of climate change in rural areas is "devastating".[13] In 2022, she became a co-chair of the European Board of Global Citizen.[17]
In February 2021, it was announced that the companies of Dhowre and her husband, Idris Elba, would be developing an
Afrofuturistadult animated,
sci-fi, series, tentatively titled Dantai, for
Crunchyroll, a series said to be about a time when
biotech has "created an ever-widening gap between the haves and have-nots".[21][22][23] The series was also described as an "
afropunk sci-fi series" by
Anime News Network.[24] In an April 2021 interview with
Den of Geek, Idris Elba said the series is "mainly the brainchild" of Dhowre, who he described as a "super geek when it comes to anime."[25]
In 2022, Sabrina Dhowre Elba and her husband created a lifestyle and wellness brand known as S'ABLE Labs.[11][26]
She met Idris Elba at a
jazz bar in 2017 and she married him in Morocco in April 2019.[3][28][29]
They married in
Marrakech and honeymooned in Tanzania.[30]
^May, Callum (June 18, 2021).
"Crunchyroll Originals Have Been A Disaster". Anime News Network.
Archived from the original on June 18, 2021. Retrieved August 30, 2023. Crunchyroll's latest Original Series include Dantai, an afropunk sci-fi series in collaboration with Idris and Sandra Elba's production studios