Research & Innovation

Student social entrepreneurs, business leaders, academics and Enactus alumni from across the country gathered recently in Bank of Ireland, Grand Canal Square to celebrate the official Enactus Team Ireland Launch ahead of the Enactus World Cup in Silicon Valley from 9th-11th October.

Enactus Ireland is one of 36 country organisations around the world that operates an Enactus programme, bringing together students, academics and business leaders who are committed to using the power of entrepreneurial action to solve challenges in local communities.

Earlier this year, Enactus Dublin City University (DCU) was crowned 2018 Enactus Ireland National Champions and will compete on the global stage at the Enactus World Cup, taking place in Silicon Valley in October. At the launch of the Enactus Team Ireland event, the DCU team showcased the three projects that will see them fight off competition from 35 countries around the world at the Enactus World Cup.

Enactus DCU members who presented on the night were: Conor Greene, Ashling McGovern, Ciaran Kelly, Robert Kelly, Josh Clinton and Kate Dowling all of whom will represent Ireland at the prestigious Enactus World Cup in Silicon Valley.

The projects that the DCU team will bring to the Enactus World Cup in Silicon Valley include Threads, a project that empowers people seeking asylum in Ireland through the up-cycling of unwanted jeans to create customised denim clothing; GiveBack.ie, GiveBack.ie is a chrome extension, that directs a portion of the money spent in online retailers towards tackling homelessness; and Second Scoop, a project that provides work experience, training and mentorship opportunities to people seeking asylum in Ireland though a mobile, pop-up ice cream vendor targeting corporate, social and educational events.

Liam Redmond, Country Manager, Enactus Ireland, said: “It is inspiring to witness the commitment Enactus DCU has brought to their projects this year. Through Enactus, we aim to empower students and service users alike through entrepreneurial action and Enactus DCU has consistently understood this and brought it to every element of their projects. Silicon Valley is the home of innovation and where better to showcase and celebrate their achievements than the world stage.”

Terence O’Rourke, Chairman of Enactus Ireland, said: “We are very proud to send the Enactus DCU to Silicon Valley to represent Enactus Ireland on the world stage. The projects the team have worked on this year have been very successful in bringing about change in their communities. The team has shown how they can use their entrepreneurial skills and talents to positively impact others.”

The DCU were selected as the winning team at the national competition in May, seeing off competition from nine other third level institutions; Cork Institute of Technology, Dublin Institute of Technology, IADT Dún Laoghaire, Maynooth University, NUI Galway, Trinity College Dublin, University College Cork, University College Dublin and University of Limerick.

Enactus Ireland is sponsored by KPMG, Bank of Ireland, Abbott, Aer Lingus, AIG, CarTrawler, Enterprise Rent-a-Car, KBC Bank, Merc Partners, Musgrave Group, New Ireland Assurance, The Ireland Funds, Unilever, Havas Dublin, HSBC and Microsoft. Enactus Ireland is supported by Chartered Accountants House, and The Irish Times.

For more information on Enactus, please visit http://enactusireland.org/

CAPTION:

Pictured (L-R): Ciaran Kelly (DCU team), Robert Kelly (DCU team), Ashling McGovern (DCU team), Kate Dowling (DCU team), Conor Greene (DCU team) and Josh Clinton (DCU team) pictured at the Enactus Team Ireland Launch.