For more than 80 years, Plan International have been taking action and standing up for every child’s right to fulfill their potential. On a daily basis,their energy is devoted to making a difference for children living in poverty.
Plan International stand up for children’s rights, listen to the children they work with and find the best way forward together. On International Day of the Girl, Plan International works with girls to amplify their voices by staging girl “takeovers” in a mighty display of girls’ empowerment and leadership potential.
Who we are
Young women from the Youth Advisory Panel of Plan International, Ireland staged four take-overs with; Lord Mayor of Dublin Paul McAuliffe, Joe Duffy, CEO of BNY Mellon Bank, Tara McMorrow, Associate Dean of Science at UCD and the Director General’s Office at Irish Aid, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
What we did
This International Day of the Girl was our biggest demonstration of girl’s power and potential yet. 1,000 takeovers. Over 60 countries. A #GirlsTakeover involves a girl stepping into the role of a leader to call for social and political change to tear down the barriers of discrimination that continue to hold girls back.
In Ireland, we worked with our Youth Advisory Panel to organise Girls Takeover events with prominent politicians, CEOs, and senior academics who stepped aside for young women to take over the reins for the day.
Aoife, who is at secondary school in Co Laois, Emily of DCU, and Grace, who is at secondary school in Co Meath, found themselves taking over from the Lord Mayor of Dublin Paul McAuliffe, Joe Duffy, CEO of BNY Mellon Bank, Tara McMorrow, Associate Dean of Science at UCD, and at Irish Aid with Shane Keenan and Emer Groarke.
Women are underrepresented in politics, finance and science. As a result, these takeovers are a direct response to campaign for women to have proper access to leadership and decision-making in areas where they are not usually visible.
Did We Succeed?
Education in schools has the power to shape culture, attitudes and behaviours towards girls and young women. How girls and young women are portrayed through the in textbooks, in the media, in advertising, on screen, and in other forms of communication significantly influences how the world views girls and how they view themselves.
Girls and young women all around the world have said that they are influenced by what they see. Representation matters for young women, especially those who exist on the margins.
Plan International Ireland comments further on the initiative, stating:
Participating CEOs, politicians and academics are using their power to demonstrate what’s possible if we break down gender stereotypes and work to create a world where every girl can realise her potential.”