HerStory Made SHINE19

HerStory Made SHINE19

HerStory Made

SHINE19 – A Turning Point for Empowering Young Women of Ireland

HerStory Made SHINE19
2019 celebration of #internationaldayofthegirl which took place in WIT Arena with The Shona Project. Picture: Patrick Browne

– Inspirational female role models discuss mental health and empowerment
– 1,000 Transition Year girls attended the pilot event, with guests including Grace O’Sullivan and Waterford Rose of Tralee, Kirsten Mate Maher
– The Shona Project launches first of its kind ‘Survival Handbook for Girls’, available for free to all first year girls in Ireland
HerStory Made SHINE19
SHINE 2019 celebration of #internationaldayofthegirl which took place in WIT Arena with The Shona Project. Picture: Patrick Browne

In celebration of International Day of the Girl today, Friday 11th October, The Shona Project in partnership with Beat 102-103 and Waterford Area Partnership held a free event for 1,000 Transition Year girls in the South East addressing empowerment, mental health and more, with a view to eventually expanding to Ireland’s other regions.
SHINE19 took place at the WIT Arena, Waterford and featured a host of Ireland’s most inspirational female speakers who discussed topics across mental health, wellbeing, body image, resilience, diversity and equality, along with some guests including Grace O’Sullivan and Rose of Tralee 2018 Winner for Waterford, Kirsten Mate Maher.
Speakers included:

Razan Ibraheem A Syrian journalist, refugee human rights activist and advocate for young people.
Sarah Doyle A life coach and TEDx speaker, returning for a second year by popular demand.
Niamh Fitzpatrick A leading Irish psychologist, and sister of Rescue 116 Captain Dara Fitzpatrick.

The conference featured a musical performance from Soulé, one of Ireland’s leading young pop and electronic music vocalists. She was joined by the viral phenomenon Mount Sion Choir as the event drew to a close.


SHINE19 serves to build on the resounding success of the inaugural RISE 2018 which featured speakers Ellen Coyne, Caroline Foran and Nikki Bradley in a positivity-packed day that ended in a group sing-song and a room full of bubbles.
This year’s event was brighter, bolder and louder than the last one, and with the help of the SHINE19 partners, the booked-out event was completely free for schools and attendees who attended from Waterford, Wexford, Carlow, Kilkenny and Tipperary.

HerStory Made SHINE19
SHINE 2019 celebration of #internationaldayofthegirl which took place in WIT Arena with The Shona Project. Picture: Patrick Browne

This event comes as The Shona Project announces the launch of ‘The Survival Handbook for Girls’, an essential companion for young women which deals with topics including negative friendships, dealing with anxiety and even advice for protecting the environment.
The book is available for free to first year girls, and The Shona Project can print and deliver their copies subject to their school filling in the dedicated form. Otherwise, the book is available at a price point of €7.95 from The Shona Project website.
Tammy Darcy, Founder of The Shona Project said, “It moves me to think that thousands of second cycle students can refer to this book in times of need, or simply to learn more about themselves and the world that they live in.
HerStory Made SHINE19
SHINE 2019 celebration of #internationaldayofthegirl which took place in WIT Arena with The Shona Project. Picture: Patrick Browne

“In writing this, we took special care to address absolutely everything that young women are faced with, including self-esteem, mental health and online safety, to create a comprehensive handbook that is the companion my generation never had,” she added.
The Survival Handbook for Girls has, as of this point, received an overwhelming 20,000 orders and is well on its way to becoming a common talking point amongst secondary school girls.
“We wanted this book to make a real positive difference for young women, but we never could have anticipated this phenomenal demand,” Darcy said.
The Shona Project was announced as a Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Awardee in October 2017, and in July 2018 was invited to speak about its work by their Royal Highness’, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan.
HerStory Made SHINE19
SHINE 2019 celebration of #internationaldayofthegirl which took place in WIT Arena with The Shona Project. Picture: Patrick Browne