800 students from across Ireland compete at the Young Social Innovators Awards 2018 in Croke Park, Dublin

Ulster Bank is the Official Awards Partner of Young Social Innovators

800 students from across Ireland are in attendance at, and competing for the title of, Young Social Innovators of the Year 2018 at Croke Park today. In 2018 Young Social Innovators has supported the development of 329 youth-led social innovations from all over the country. The year’s programme of events culminates in an Awards ceremony this afternoon which will see one of the 33 shortlisted teams become the 2018 Young Social Innovators of the Year.

Students presented their projects to a panel of judges throughout the morning with an Awards Ceremony taking place in the afternoon. 10 Challenge Awards and four Spotlight Awards will be awarded to successful teams as well as the hotly-contested Bronze, Silver and Gold awards. The Gold award, accompanied by the title of Young Social Innovators of the Year 2018, will be presented by Sean Kyne TD, Minister of State at the Department of Rural and Community Development, the lead public partner to YSI.

The teams competing come from all corners of Ireland and tackled a series of issues including domestic abuse, the environment, gender identity, homelessness, Direct Provision, access to education, among countless others.

Some of this year’s projects include:

• Off Grid: This team from St Fintan’s High School, Co. Dublin is exploring the use of renewable energy and more efficient electrical equipment in their school.
• Pier Safety: Students from Scoil Mhuire Secondary School, Buncrana, Co. Donegal created warning signage which was erected at the site of a recent tragic accident at Buncrana Pier and will help to promote water safety.
• Friends of the Forest: This project from Mercy Mounthawk, Tralee, Co. Kerry is about enticing young people and their families to get out into nature and away from technology. The team is working with their local Men’s Shed to build Fairy Houses and create a trail through their local forest.

Speaking at the event this morning Damien Daly, Head of Customer Experience and Products at Ulster Bank, said: “We are delighted to be supporting the Young Social Innovators Awards for a third year. Innovation is a core element of all the work we do at Ulster Bank and the innovation, creativity and enthusiasm displayed by all of the candidates here today is excellent. We are proud to support these brilliant young people as they disrupt the world around them and work to bring about social change, and we take inspiration from the projects that they have presented today.”

Rachel Collier, CEO and co-founder of Young Social Innovators, said: “Every year I am blown away by the work presented by young people in the Young Social Innovators programme, and 2018 has been no different. Young people are one of our most valuable resources for fuelling social change, and at Young Social Innovators we are proud to capture their passion and to provide them with a platform on which to present their ideas and be heard.”

Ulster Bank’s partnership with the programme is part of its ongoing commitment to fostering social innovation and entrepreneurship from a young age, and to build on its strong community legacy of education, evident in its MoneySense and Skills & Opportunities fund programme.

For more information about Young Social Innovators please visit www.youngsocialinnovators.ie.