Local teens share fund for projects 

STUDENTS from four Northside schools have secured €1,500 in funding under a programme aimed at supporting teenagers’ ideas to tackle social issues. 

The students, who have been working on projects through Young Social Innovators (YSI) since September, impressed the panel of dragons at the YSI Social Innovation Den, with their creative ideas to effect positive change in their communities and wider society. 

Rosmini Community School Dublin, Drumcondra, was awarded €500 for their project, ‘Kindness to the Elderly Counts’, on caring for elderly people. 

They will use their grant to organise events and activities to support a local nursing home and enrich the lives of older people in their community.

The team from Mercy College, Coolock, pitched their project, ‘Turtle Tactics’, which aims to create awareness regarding the effect plastics have on marine life. 

Mercy College were granted €250 for their plans to create reusable products and produce a social media advert to share their campaign further.

The team from Luttrellstown Community College, Clonsilla, pitched their project, ‘Helping by Translating’, on tackling language barriers within the school. 

The team received €250 funding for their plans to work alongside a local company to offer translation services for school letters, benefitting students in their school and families across their community.

Students from Coláiste Bríde, Clondalkin received €500 for their project, ‘Inclusion is the Solution’, to develop an app to encourage people to get more involved in physical activities by tracking their movement throughout the day.

Eleven projects were invited to pitch at the YSI Den in Dublin for a share of this year’s €10,000 social innovation fund. 

Young Social Innovators hosts the den every year to support teenagers’ ideas to tackle social issues in an effort to create a fairer, more equal and sustainable world.

Chief executive of Young Social Innovators, Rachel Collier, said: “It is fantastic to see young innovators developing and implementing creative solutions to create real change on the issues that matter to them. 

“The teams presenting at this year’s den have impressed and inspired with their creative ideas, professional pitches and plans for effecting positive change in their communities and beyond. 

“We cannot wait to see how their social innovation projects progress with the support they have been granted today, provided by a generous philanthropic supporter of Young Social Innovators.”