This section will focus on companies and large organisations doing interesting things in the area of diversity and inclusion in Ireland.
What does your hiring policy say about you?
Employers For Change are one of the biggest advocates for hiring people with disabilities in Ireland. By giving advice and guidance to its employers on hiring people with disabilities, hosting information resources on its website, providing awareness training and maintaining links with employers who can employ people with disabilities, the programme has come across more than its fair share of myths and reality checks about employing underrepresented groups. I…
Count On Us Recruitment – providing mentoring to family carers and matching them to empathetic employers
Family carers are often forgotten about in terms of advocating for people in the Diversity and Inclusion area. However, Count On Us Recruitment was started by Fiona O’Neill, after her own experiences trying to find employment as a Family Carer, while sticking to the guidelines. The company now works with family carers to provide mentoring and job coaching services, while attracting employers to employ their highly skilled, loyal and…
Techstars Startup Weekend Women Dublin is back!
Hackathons are back! I was delighted to be asked to be a mentor for Techstars Start-up Weekend Dublin. The event, which is taking place in Accenture Song from the 24th to the 26th of March, is aimed at women who are interested in starting a business or being part of a team that will create a business. Over the space of 3 days participants will meet the very best…
The Dyslexia Hub – A hub for people to learn more about dyslexia by providing young people and parents with accessible information
In 2023, The Dyslexia Assocation of Ireland, with funding from The Toy Show Appeal, lauched The Dyslexia Hub, a hub of information for young people and their parents or guardians to learn more about dyslexia and empowering them to understand the condition, in addition to providing information on technologies that could aid them and how parents can access supports and manage the young peoples emotions . I interviewed the…
The Menopause Hub – Helping women of all ages experiencing menopause and training employers on how to support these women
Loretta Dignam created The Menopause Hub in 2018, after going through her own menopause and realising the lack of support and information women receive about the process. Loretta and her team have now developed the company providing clinics for women of all ages experiencing menopause, workplace training and advocating for women experiencing menopause. The company currently employs 15 doctors and staff and works with a number of associates and…
Little Fitness – An inclusive programme for all children and families living in emergency accommodation, or socially disadvantaged
Launched in 2021, Sinead Ryan saw the need for Little fitness after a chance encounter with a pair of brothers who were living in temporary housing and joined one of her fitness classes. She envisioned a programme that would bring primary-age children from homeless families together to learn about their bodies, health, and nutrition, and have fun with their peers. Having graduated from The Social Entreprenuer Ireland’s Idea’s Academy,…
Finedeeds – Creating a ripple effect of goodness for corporations, their employees, donors, and nonprofits
Launched in 2022, Pauline Kwasniak and Rajat Maheshwari conducted research with corporate CSR and social ambition managers and then reached out to not-for-profits to find out if there was a better solution for for-profit companies that match your organisation with verified charitable projects and reputable charities that make a tangible social impact in their communities. By empowering each employee and measuring their impact, monitor your workplace volunteerism and CSR,…
ChatGPT’s version of a Diversity and Inclusion policy
According to the most recent data, almost half (47%) of all companies surveyed by the CIPD in the UK don’t have a Diversity and Inclusion Policy. There’s been so much written about ChatGPT lately I thought ‘what if I asked it to create a Diversity and Inclusion Policy for a large organisation?’ Here’s the result: Introduction: At [Company Name], we believe that diversity and inclusion are integral to our…
Tackle Your Feelings, a campaign that is increasing the mental wellbeing of school students, professionals in the workplace and rugby players at all levels
Formed in 2001, Rugby Players Ireland’s remit is to act as the collective voice for professional rugby players in Ireland. A representative body at heart, the association also boasts a world-leading Player Development Programme (PDP) which has become a reference point for other sporting bodies across the globe. The PDP enables players to fulfil their potential both on and off the field so that they succeed as both professional athletes and successful…
Brent Pope co-founded Elephant in the Room, and he is hoping it will create a real conversation about mental health in the workplace
Rugby coach, TV rugby pundit, entrepreneur and TV personality Brent Pope has been one of Ireland’s biggest advocates for Mental Health. Brent and his colleagues Dave Southern and Eoin Byrne have recently created a campaign called elephantintheroom.ie. They are asking all employees to have a custom designed poly-resin model of a baby elephant in their office which would show that it’s ok for their employees to discuss any mental health…
Mentor Her – the Irish founded mentoring programme that matches Mentors and Mentees in entrepreneurship, corporate careers and self-development throughout the world
Katie Doyle was working in the travel industry until the pandemic hit. Katie had been looking for a mentor while creating her own business but found there was a big gap in the market for female mentors for young people. So, Katie decided to create her own 6 week programme where that match female Mentors and Mentees in entrepreneurship, corporate careers and self-development. In the two years since it…
Irish Podcasts that are powering the discussion around Diversity and Inclusion
Irish people are turning to podcasts as a form of entertainment more and more. According to the Irish Times, a Reuters Institute Digital News Report said “Across a 20-country sample, the Irish topped the podcast-listening leaderboard with 46 per cent saying they had listened to one in the past month, up from 41 per cent in 2021”. There are so many to choose from it’s difficult to know what…
The NCBI working to reduce unemployment amongst the blind community
According to their own data “Of the 55,000 people in Ireland who are blind or vision impaired, just 5% or approximately 2,750 of those are blind. This means that approximately 52,250 people across the country have a form of vision impairment or are affected by sight loss in some way. The impact of vision impairment varies from person to person”. Often employment can be difficult to obtain. However The…
Organisations empowering Diversity and Inclusion through Mentoring
According to Irishjobs.ie “Sun Microsystems implemented a mentoring programme. Mentors were six times more likely to be promoted than those not in the programme. Mentees were five times more likely to achieve a promotion. Mentees were five times more likely to receive an increase in pay than those who did not participate. Mentors have had even greater success in this area. The retention rate for staff not involved in…
Last Minute Christmas Gift Shopping Ideas From Irish Brands Working in Diversity and Inclusion
From people purchasing ethically made, sustainable, organic or mission driven products, to companies created by people with disabilities, there is a wide selection of ideas for a last minute gift to give those more difficult to buy for people in your life Books Often the go-to present for the “difficult to get person”, if you know anyone interested in Diversity and Inclusion, or have a passion for a particular…
Irish Toy brands that are being pro-active in the area of Diversity and Inclusion
More and more Irish consumers are turning to brands that are environmentally friendly, ethically or empowering minority groups. With Christmas fast approaching there are lots of grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends looking for gifts for parents of young children. So in an effort to encourage more consumers to buy Irish this year. Here are just some of the Irish companies doing proactive things in Diversity and Inclusion (All the information…
Companies to follow in D&I from Gifted Craft Fair
For over 50 years, The Gifted Craft Fair has been a staple for many to kick off their Christmas shopping, and this year it’s back at the RDS for 2022. It’s a great way to kick off the festive season, with over 400 exhibitors including over 100 artisan food stalls. 35,000 customers are expected to attend the event over the 5 days of the show and this year there…
Irish brands that can help you with pre-Christmas shopping
A lot of people have begun their Christmas shopping already. But it’s often difficult to know where to shop if you want sustainable, environmentally friendly, ethically made, Irish products, or brands that are doing proactive things in the area of Diversity and Inclusion. Well here is a list of Irish brands that you can buy from for all of your pre-Christmas needs, such as advent calendars, wreaths, notebooks, ornaments…
Access Earth – creating the world’s largest database of accessiblity information, so everyone can plan their adventures and experience what the world has to offer.
Matt McCann founded Access Earth in 2015, as he found it difficult to travel and ensure that the places he’s visiting had the required accessibility information for him to access with his mobility aids. What started out as an idea in the Microsoft’s Imagine cup has now turned into an accessibility enablement platform that will bring all organisations and staff from compliance to excellence in accessibility. Matt, his co-founder…
The Code Institute – helping to bridge the skills gap for underrepresented groups in the tech sector
Created in 2015, The Code Institute is one of the most successful companies in the Edtech sector. It specialises in being a “a global leader in delivering coding skills that help people switch to a career in software development within a year. Demand for software developers is rapidly escalating as digitisation accelerates, and hundreds of thousands of new roles open up every month. Our online-programmes give learners a direct…
Products and services that can assist people with Dyslexia in education or the workplace
It’s said that dyslexia affects approximately 10-15% of the population. While there are many negative stereotypes about the condition, LinkedIn has recently added “dyslexic thinking” as a skill on their website, due to the positive effects the condition can give a person. Two of the most viewed articles on my website area ‘Irish Start-up Founders Embracing Their Dyslexia’ and ‘Leaders of Medium or Large Organisations in Ireland who have…
CWIT – An Irish company that’s reducing the gender gap for women in technology-based companies now, and for generations to come
A unique business, CWIT was created in 2009 by the Irish subsidiaries of Accenture, Dell Technologies and Microsoft in order to address the gender imbalance in technology companies. 13 year on, it’s grown to over 20 members, with most of the major technology companies in Ireland within that membership. The company is now on a mission to support women currently in the workforce, to assist the next generation in…
The B!G Idea – Equipping transition year students with a creative mindset to tackle the biggest problems society faces.
Launched in 2021, The B!G Idea was created by Kim Mackenzie-Doyle with a vision to challenge Ireland’s 15-19 year olds to learn new skills that would help them create ideas for solving problems in their local schools or communities. The 12-week programme looks at all areas of creativity. In 2022 over 2500 young people from Transition Year, LCA and Youthreach have experienced The B!G Idea, supported by 501 industry…
Articulate Digital Business – Helping businesses transform their online presence
Vandita Agarwal always had a passion for story telling and creativity. Having qualified from college with an undergraduate degree in Delhi, Vandita moved to Dublin to complete her masters. Having worked as a freelancer, Vandita then created Articulate Digital Business. an agency that improves clients’ online space through innovative use of new technology My Entrepreneurship Journey was started by the boom of my career as a writer in my…
Websites that are powering Diversity and Inclusion recruitment in Ireland
One of my most successful articles was job coaching services for people with disabilities in Ireland. This article was then published by ThinkBusiness.ie. However, it’s one thing to be coached about how to get a job. The challenge is to find, apply, be interviewed and be welcomed into the company. So where are the best places on the Internet to find a job in Ireland? We all know about…
First Swim – The first purpose built baby and todler swimming facility in Ireland
Colin Mac Andrias is a former diving instructor and course director at Professional Association of Diving Instructors. Having previously been based in London and Egypt, Colin sold his house in London and moved back to their native Dublin to create First Swim, Ireland’s first purpose built swimming factilate built to specifically for babies and toddlers to learn how to swim What’s your origin story for being an entrepreneur? Not…
Chiru making clothes shopping more sustainable, accessible, and enjoyable
Created by two NCAD students, following an idea developed at a hackathon in Dublin, Chiuru is an app that brings fashion into the cirular ecomony by connecting retailers particularly vintage, charity and textile repair shops together with the consumers that want to end fast fashion and purchase clothes in a sustainable way. Having met the co-founders at The Dublin Tech Summit, I interviewed Roisin Marah to find out more:…
2GoCup- reducing single use cups and increasing sustainability in the coffee sector
You often hear of the problem of single use plastic. However another issue Kevin Murphy spotted was good quality compostable paper cups been thrown away by the consumer. He created 2GoCup a reuseable cup solution for coffee shops and other retail outlets to reduce the amount of cups going to landfill and increase sustainability in the coffee shop industry. What was your background before becoming an entrepreneur? I probably…
Down Syndrome Ireland – advocating for people with Down Syndrome, their families and professionals
1 in 444 babies born in Ireland are born with Down syndrome. Down syndrome happens when you are born with an extra chromosome inside your body. Down syndrome affects everyone differently, but it does have an impact on physical, mental, and emotional development and can be diagnosed with other conditions too. With unemployment rates at above 90% for people with Down syndrome I caught up with Aoife Gaffney, Head…
Umoja linn creating a marketplace to make African fashions more accessible to the public
Co-Founders China and Liswa met while studying in NUI Galway. Having spotted a gap in the fashion market for African designed fashion brands the two women decided to create Umoja Production but later rebranded the company to Umoja linn (Umoja means Unity in Swahili, and linn means ‘by us’ in Irish). The pair have created a marketplace for African inspired fashion and now work with more than 15 designers,…
Triest Press – Giving employment opportunities to people with disabilities in Rosscommon
Triest Press is a social enterprise based in county Roscommon. A full service printing service the company specialises in employing people with disabilties. I interviewed Deborah Tierney Business Development Coordinator at Triest Press to find out more What’s the Triest Press origin story? How have you grown since? Triest Press was set up by members of the Brothers of Charity services in 1987 following the expressed desire of their…
ReFunk Upcycling – reducing waste by extending the life-span of furniture through upcycling and repairing.
Having met in Trinity College, the female founded and led company now specialises in repurposing old furniture Refunk Upcycling is now one of Ireland fast growing businesses in the area of Upcycling and Sustainability. Having been accepted into several prestigious accelerator programmes such as LaunchBox Accelerator Programme, Circuleire and ClimAccelerator Programmes, and took part in Enterprise Ireland’s Starting Strong 2022 Cohort. The founders have been featured in The Irish…
Rangam – Global inclusion job coaching service for people from under-represented groups opens in Ireland
The Irish job coaching market has gone from strength to strength in recent times, as companies increase their talent pool by tapping into under-represented groups. I have previously wrote an article for Thinkbusiness.ie about job coaching services available to people with disabilities in Ireland. However Rangam is the latest entrant into the market. ThinkBusiness.ie described Rangam as ” Rangam is a minority, woman, and disability-owned workforce solutions company with…
Irish businesses to follow from The Dublin Tech Summit
After 2 years away, The Dublin Tech Summit took place on the 15th and 16th June. The fastest growing tech summit in Europe and the largest corporate event to take place so far in Ireland since the relaxation of Covid-19 measures. With over 1,000 people in attendance, with 200 speakers, 50 corporate partners and 150 start-up’s from around the world, Padraig Reidy’s Vision X programme for start-up’s was one…
YourY Network is creating a community for social entrepreneurs through events and networking
Leyla Karaha created YourY Network having experienced some of the isolation founders feel when creating their business. The organisation has gone on to create 18 events and had nearly 1,000 attendees. With Your Network annoucing their first hybrid (in-person and online) event on the 28th of June 2022, I interviewed Leyla to get more background about the organisation. What’s your background before you became an entrepreneur? My background is…
Compassion Connects – The utilisation of the science of compassion, based on sensitivity to suffering, wisdom and the commitment to alleviate and prevent suffering.
Having worked across various roles in the UK, Shaun Adams came to Ireland in 2012 to specialise in helping the Diversity and Inclusion sector. Shaun worked for The Psychological Society of Ireland and Aspire Productions, as well as currently with The Irish Centre for Compassion Focused Therapy (ICCFT), before spotting a gap in the market to widen the reach of the science of compassion. 1. What’s your background before…
Shona.ie Helping Irish teenaged girls figure things out
One of the most successful social enterprises in Ireland, The Shona Project works with schools and organisations for young people, to help teenaged girls to in their words “Figuring out who we are, and where we fit into this world is hard, and there are so many challenges; anxiety, depression, body image, self-esteem, boys, family drama, social media, exams stress, hormones, sexuality, relationships, bullying and feeling like we don’t…
Good Day Cork Amplifying un-represented voices in the rebel county
To someone who may not be aware, what is Good Day Cork? What service do you provide? Good Day Cork is a digital magazine that amplifies un-represented voices. It was launched as a print magazine in 2018 through a crowd-funding campaign. Four issues have been published since Sept 2018. In 2020, we moved to the digital space with the goal to publish an annual print magazine in 2023. Good…
TechForGood – Connecting the tech community in Ireland with causes they can empower
Tech for Good Dublin was launched in 2017 as a way to bring people together and explore the possibilities of tech for social impact. Since launching they have gone from strength to strength, holding networking events, highlighting projects with purpose and creating training and hackathon events. A recent event led to the development of online tools to help Ukrainian refugees settling in Ireland. I caught up with co-founders Ellen…
Employers For Change – Assisting employers in employing people with disabilities
Employers For Change was founded in March 2021 and provides advice and guidance to employers who want to hire people with disabilities. We caught up with Christabelle Feeney, Director of Employers for Change to find out more: How did Employers for Change begin? Employers for Change is a project funded by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. The project was launched in March 2021 by the…
Community Finance Ireland – Supporting social enterprise on the island of Ireland
Can you tell us how Community Finance Ireland began? A reduction in grants being made available to community enterprise projects in Northern Ireland and the southern Border Counties subsequent to the Peace Process, sparked a need to develop an alternative source of capital finance to the existing banking infrastructure, which for various reasons was not wholly compatible with the borrowing needs of the Community & Voluntary sector. How has…
Organisations in Ireland that assist Refugees, migrants or people in Direct Provision
According to the Irish Times “There are more than 8,200 adults and children living in direct provision and emergency accommodation centres. These include 5,116 adults and 1,784 children in direct provision with an additional 1,186 adults and 174 children in emergency accommodation centres.” The latest CSO figures suggest there are more than 650,000 migrants currently in Ireland, and often some of the most vulnerable get exploited through economic, legal…
Irish fashion brands in the Diversity and Inclusion sector that you can support this Christmas
The Irish fashion market has never been stronger. One of the breakout areas within this market has been local, sustainable, ethically sourced brands and/or brands in the disability or female empowerment sector. This is just a selection of some of the biggest brands in the area in Ireland: Designed by a person in a wheelchair for people in wheelchairs. Brother and sister team Nathan and Aisling Kirwin, after Nathan…
International Womens Day – Irish companies advancing female empowerment in the workplace
International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. In recent years a number of organisations have been created or continued in Ireland in order to advance women in the workplace and break the glass ceilings that previously existed. It’s these companies, their participants and the support system around them that we celebrate. All information below is taken either from the…
The Reading Academy – Providing extra resource to children who have difficulty reading
With over 45 years of teaching between them, it was while teaching in a special school for children with Dyslexia that Sarah Watchorn and Sarah McGuire realised there was a lack of appropriate teaching materials as well as a lack of trained teachers for children with Dyslexia. This inspired them to write their own programme and to co-found The Reading Academy. 1. To someone who may not be aware,…
Peer.ie – An incusive asstitive technology company for people with dyslexia and other intellectual disabilities
Graham Brocklebank went back to college in his late twenties too study, only to realise that the text to speech and speech to text software he needed hadn’t advanced whatsoever since he had last been in education. As he was studying Computer science in mobile application, he put together an app that helped him with his reading and studying. Once he graduated college he founded http://www.Peer.ie a text to…
Professor Tom Cooney – Providing entrepreneurial courses for underpresented groups
Professor Tom Cooney is one of the biggest supporters of Diversity and Inclusion in entrepreneurship in Ireland today. Through his experience over 15 years specialising in working with minority communities, he and his team have provided entrepreneurial courses for underrepresented groups such as people with disabilities, immigrants to Ireland, ex-offenders and at-risk youth. He believes that this is an untapped resource of significant entrepreneurial potential and offering appropriate support…
Connect4Work Connecting those who have taken time off due to medical leave with the right job, not any job
Mary Finn started Connect4Work having run a pilot programme for people returning to work following illness or being on medical leave. It was here that she saw the need for greater compassion and understanding from employers while at the same time, boosting the confidence and self-belief of the employees. Connect4Work now runs programmes for those who have taken time off due to medical leave along with coaching employers on…
The Sensory Pod – selling sensory room to everyone from Irish schools to Middle Eastern Royal Families
Having left school at 14, Robert Byrne had several unique and interesting careers, before putting together a Sensory Room for his autistic son, he put an image on social media and was blown away from the response of other parents wanting one in their house. After deciding to create a company, he stepped away from his job, but his employers Murray Medical decided to become investors from day 1.…
Her Sport – seeking equality and promoting female sport in Ireland
. In January 2020, Niamh Tallon and Mohammed Mahomed created Her Sport. A website dedicated to the promotion of female sports. Since then they have amassed a huge social media following, created a magazine and developed partnerships with the likes of Life Style Sports. I caught up with Niamh Tallon to find out more about how the company began, where they’re at currently and their plans for the future:…
AsIAm – One of Ireland’s most successful social enterprises
AsIAm is Ireland’s National Austitic Charity. It’s actually an acronym that stands for Ausitic Spectrum Information Advice and Meeting point. It advocates for it’s community by supporting Autistic people and their families and by advocating for their community in the media and with businesses, employers and local communities. Now 8 years old, AsIAm is one of the biggest success stories to come out of the Social Entrepreneurs Ireland. Now…
MECPATHS – Teaching the hospitalty industry how to detect child trafficking
Founded in 2013 MECPATHS works with brands in the Hospitality and Diversity and Inclusion sector such as Dalata, PREM Group and colleges that teach hospitality management to detect and stop child trafficking within Ireland and abroad. I caught up with JP O’Sullivan from the social enterprise to find out more: To someone who may not be aware of it, what is MECPATHS? MECPATHS is the only non-profit organisation working…
Migraine Ireland – Demystifying stigma’s assocated with the condition
With a new CEO Pascal Derrien The Migraine Association of Ireland is providing information to those who have the condition, but also providing coping strategies to their support system (families and friends); as well providing workshops and events to the workplace, to help demystifying and bring more acceptance that migraines aren’t just a bad headache, there’s a lot more to them. What is Migraine Ireland? What is its mission…
The Sanctuary Runners enabling Irish residents to run alongside, and in solidarity with, asylum seekers and refugees in Direct Provision
Following a long and distinguished career as a journalist Graham Clifford saw first hand, the plight of migrants accross the world. Always wanting to do something for them; and being a keen runner himself, in 2018 Graham created The Sanctuary Runners – where members of the local community can run, jog and walk with members of Direct Provision and migrants to Ireland, creating greater solidarity and a community where…
Nook Pod’s – Inclusive enclosed spaces for workplaces and events
Having grown up in Dublin, David O’Coimin relocated to Bristol and then to The Netherlands, where he now splits his time between. Having always had an entrepreneurial streak, in 2015 David set out to create Nook Pods. An inclusive space for meetings or a quite area in offices. Now highly successful, in some of the most prestigious offices in Europe and gaining market traction in the events market Nook…
Alex’s Adventure – A social enterprise that gives non-judgemental drug education information to students, educators and parents
Having qualfied as an engineer, in Janurary 2016 Nicole and her families life was turned upside down when her brother Alex died of an accidental overdose. Nicole created Alex’s Adventure as a Social Enterprise, to give drug information programmes to students, educators and parents, as in her words “in the years I’ve left school the drugs have changed, but the education around drug use in Ireland hasn’t”. Nicole is…
The Dyspraxia Association of Ireland is heading in a new direction
The Dyspraxia Association of Ireland supports the 6-10% of the population that has the condition. Formed in 1995 the assocation is a registered charity and was created to raise awareness of the condition, ensure adequate funds are available to people with the condition, provide information and share and support networks, improve diagnostic services organised meetings for people with Dyspraxia/DCD and their families. and provide a link to professionals for…
jumpAgrade a social enterprise creating a revolution in education by making personalised teaching possible.
jumpAgrade was created in Limerick through two friends Padraic Hogan and David Neville. The founders orginally started out with a mission to democratise the grinds turoring system to make it more affordable for all students, now their mission has expanded to creating a personalised teaching platform to reach the most amount of students as possible, we caught up with the team to find out more: What is jumpAgrade? What…
BT Ireland – putting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the heart of the recruitment and marketing policies
To someone who may not be aware, what is BT Ireland? What areas does BT Ireland specialise in? BT is one of the world’s leading communications services companies, with close to 100,000 people serving customers in 180 countries. We are also one of the leading communications companies in Ireland, retailing to large businesses and the public sector, and wholesaling to other communications companies. In ways the Covid-19 pandemic really…
Business in the community – Driving Diversity and Inclusion Through Sustainability and Employment Programs
Business In The Community (BITC) has been operating in Ireland for more than 21 years. Through their low carbon pledge, matching businesses to schools and community groups throughout Ireland to drive CSR and employment programs for underpresented groups in the workplace. We got in touch with BITC’s digital marketing manager Nathalie Pavone to find out more: To someone who may not be aware of Business in the Community, what…
Stephen Kelly’s Ability Focus is spreading awareness of D&I through Disability Awareness Training Programs
Through the company’s online training courses MD of Ability Focus Stephen Kelly, is increasing the awareness of diversity and inclusion through offering disability awareness programs to public and private sectors. Now being fully remote, with clients such a government minster taking the training, the company is on a mission to address bias and create greater awareness of Ireland’s most diverse group in the Irish workplace. To someone who may…
The Open Doors Initiative – creating pathways to employment for the under-represented workforce
Created in 2020 The Open Doors Initiative is an initiative of over 95 of the biggest companies based in Ireland and NGOs, who work with government to create pathways to employment for marginalised people, nationwide. Having just had their first AGM, CEO Jeanne McDonagh was delighted to report the company helped 2,300 people on pathways to employment and this number grew in one year by 600% to over 14,700…
Sui Mindfulness is using breathing techniques and nature to decrease stress in schools around Ireland
Derval Dunford Director of Sui Mindfulness is a pioneer in mindfulness and breathwork. She has helped thousands of people since 2006, has trained over 9000 Irish primary school teachers, and changed the lives of tens of thousands of children through mindfulness, and well-being. Her partner Mick Hogan also presents a variety of nature-based workshops, walks and talks for schools, and other groups both onsite and on zoom. Since November 2020 Derval has used…
Agri Kids – reducing farm accidents by educating kids on farm safety
After one of the worst years on records for farm deaths in Ireland in 2015 Alma Jordan decided to create her own social enterprise – AgriKids. A company which teaches farm safety to school children. Now a multi-award winning company, providing training, educational app and school talks to thousands of students throughout Ireland, AgriKids is one of Ireland’s top social enterprises. We found out more about Alma’s journey: What’s…
Under The Rainbow is doing diversity trianing with a difference through training and therapy
Describe Under The Rainbow to someone who may not have heard of it before? Under the Rainbow is the Diversity and Inclusion agent of 2021! We are an award winning inclusive Social Enterprise focused on wellness. We help build an authentic workplace culture empowering people to be their true selves. We do diversity with a difference as our training is based on psychology, sociology and equality. We have an…
Mother Tongues is working to promote multilingualism and interculturalism in Ireland.
Mother Tongue’s is on a mission to celebrate multiculturalism in Ireland. As part of this the team have create the Mother Tongues Festival which celebrates all the different languages and cultural identities that makes Ireland one of the most diverse places in to live in Europe. We caught up with Francesca La Morgia, Director of Mother Tongue’s to find out more: What is Mother Tongue’s? What is your mission?…
Ireland’s most successful fundraisers and voluntary campaigns during Covid-19
In 2020 Covid-19 saw the closures of schools, offices, businesses parks and any type of group events. This had a drastically negative effect on charities and not for profits and saw a detrimental effect on the communities of services they provide. However, a number of charities, people and families have come together to raise money for their chosen cause, raising a combined €24 million during this period. In addition…
EmployAbility Service, supporting jobseekers with disabilities and employers who seek more inclusive workplaces
Employability is supported by The Department of Social Protection. It provides job coaching on topics such as CV and Cover Letter building, job searching, and interview practise for people who have a disability and are unemployed. Through the The Department of Social Protection Wage Subsidy Scheme they can also provide a grant to employers of up to €10,748 to anyone who employs someone from the service for a contract…
IADT are offering a ground-breaking Masters and Post-Graduate Diploma in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
In a first of it’s kind in Europe, Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology (IADT) is now accepting applications for a Masters and Post Graduate Diploma in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. We interviewed Dr. Therese Moylan Head of Department of Entrepreneurship at IADT and Chair of the Teaching and Learning Committee in the college to find out more about the courses: To someone who is not aware of it,…
Bank of Ireland; using Diversity and Inclusion to drive hiring policies
From having their own Employee Support Groups for gender, race, lgbt, disability and other advocacy groups, to having received the prestigious ‘Disability Smart’ accreditation from the Business Disability Forum, Bank of Ireland work with a range of outside organisations such as Ahead, Pride or The Open Doors Initiative which is one of the market leaders in Diveristy and Inclusion in Ireland today What’s your background, what did you do…
Irish companies embracing Diversity and Inclusion in the Education Sector
On average Ireland spends approximately 4% of our GDP on the education sector each year. There are more than a million people in Ireland in education at all levels. While the sector is dominated by the state in the recent past a large number of companies have started to provide additional services or reach out to schools to assist the students in their education. Started by Alma Jordan in…
StepUp Ireland are empowering people with disabilties to become entrepreneurs
Step-up Ireland is a platform designed to provide the tools for most people with disabilties to become entrepreneurs in Ireland
Aspire Productions – Giving experience to people with Aspergers Syndrome
A sub-brand of Aspire Ireland, Aspire Productions is a social enterprise that gives real-world experience with the clients such as Bloosom Ireland or Specialisterne Ireland to people with Aspergers Syndrome vital experience, training and education in animation and creative advertising. Encouraging their employees to get jobs in the industry that is notoriously difficult to break into. We spoke to Steven Murray Business Development Manager in Aspire Productions and Melissa…
Specialisterne Ireland – Proving the abilities of people on the autistic spectrum
How Did Specialisterne begin? The Specialist People Foundation, based in Denmark,was set up by an IT Executive, Thorkil Sonne in 2004 after his young son was diagnosed with autism. It has since grown into an international foundation, which owns the Specialisterne concept and trademark. Specialisterne, which translates from Danish as “the specialists”, is an innovative social enterprise providing assessment, training, support, and IT consultancy services, where most of the…
The Grey Matters Network – promoting the value of the mature employee in the workforce
We caught up with Tony Devine from The Grey Matters Network, to see how they go about advocating for the mature members of the workforce. Your workplace should accurately reflect the makeup of society and your customers. We’re talking across all spectrums here – race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, socio-economic background and education. Of course, a diverse workforce makes economic sense, and this is also true for age…
Going Far is empowering non-nationals to open businesses and create jobs
We caught up with Talita Holzier CEO of Going Far, a What area of Diversity and Inclusion do you advocate for?All of them! I really believe that intersectionality is key when advocating for diversity and inclusion. I have always been passionate about it, being a woman in tech and also part of the LGBTQIA community. In 2014 I started to work on a project to promote inclusion to people…
Focusondiversity.ie 