Award-winning two-day festival for teenage girls to take place in Waterford

On Wednesday, October 11th and Thursday, October 12th, The Shona Project will host 2,000 transition year students from all over Ireland at the multi-award-winning Shine Festival in celebration of International Day Of The Girl.

Shine Festival by The Shona Project, recipient of the 2023 European Citizen’s Prize, takes place on October 11th and 12th in SETU Arena, Waterford. 

The sold-out event aims to give teenage girls the tools to tackle the challenges they face and will have contributions from some of Ireland’s most inspirational and authentic female speakers. 

Among those who will share their stories at this year’s event are psychologist and author, Katriona O’Sullivan; journalist and sustainable living champion, Fionnuala Moran;  psychologist and musician, Louize Carroll; feminist and LGBTQ activist, Ailbhe Smyth; and Nigerian-Irish politician, Yemi Adenuga.

Last year, The Shona Project conducted research into the issue facing teenage girls in Ireland and discovered that:
80% of teenage girls don’t feel they will have the same opportunities as boys 
● 77% of teen girls in Ireland don’t ‘feel beautiful’ 
● Almost 60% agree that they have worries or anxieties that nobody knows about 
● 84% think negative thoughts about the world around them
● 90% have negative thoughts about themselves 

The Shona Project strives to create a support system for all the girls of Ireland as they navigate their way through their teenage years and Shine Festival is a much-needed empowering celebration the girls and women of Ireland.

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Tammy Darcy, Founder and CEO of The Shona Project said: “Like everyone else, the young women we work with have been hugely affected by recent historic world events. They are feeling more stressed, isolated and anxious than ever before. Shine Festival allows us to provide them with the inspiration they need right now, and invite them to become part of an empowering movement of women who are strong, resilient and authentic.”

In order to make the event and speakers accessible to everyone, The Shona Project has continued to expand its Shine Online platform (www.shinefestival.ie). This student resource hosts over 150 conversations with interesting, authentic and inspiring women with something for everyone covering topics such as mental health, wellness, mindset, career, diversity, individuality, the arts, sports, social issues, and sustainability. 

Online speakers include Sharon Horgan, Daisy Kelliher, Ellen Keane, Louise Quinn, Keilidh Cashell and Amanda Ade. Each of these videos has been curated with class discussions and journal prompts as a way of supporting content on secondary school student's curriculum. 

Shine is proudly supported by Sanofi, Sport Ireland, Her Moves, PLAN International, BAI, Stryker, Custodian, Treacy’s Hotel, Beat 102-103, TodayFM, Newstalk, 98FM, SPIN 1038 and SPIN South West.

The Shona Project is a movement that tackles difficulties facing girls aged 11 and upwards living in Ireland in the era of social media – bullying, low self-esteem, body issues, anxiety, and depression. F

The mission of the Shona Project is to educate, empower and inspire today’s girls to become tomorrow’s strong, confident leaders.

SHINE Festival is The Shona Project’s largest impact-based project with SHINE Festival 2022 winning the European Citizen’s Prize along with being listed as finalists in a number of business awards, online SHINE Festival 2021 winning The Irish Red Cross Innovation For Change Award, The Gold IMRO Award in the Digital Innovation category along with it contributing to The Shona Project Founder, Tammy Darcy, winning The Irish Red Cross Humanitarian of the Year Award in 2021.