Kicking off 2025 with an evening of connection and celebration, the ‘Starting Strong with Certified Proud’ event brought companies, allies and activists together in a discussion on how to bring about genuine change in the workplace for LGBTQ+ people.

Organised by accreditation membership body Certified Proud, the event took place on January 16 in the Huckletree building at the Academy in Dublin. Bringing together companies and LGBTQ+ organisations, the evening started off with a delightful food and drinks reception before the core of the event took place.

The main event was a panel hosted by Co-Founder of Certified Proud Eve Kerton, who led a discussion with three guest speakers. Sharing their personal stories, the panellists covered a variety of topics, including how to achieve genuine change in the workplace, hurdles they’ve overcome and how we all have a role to play in making Ireland safer for all.

One of the speakers was global D&I trailblazer and award-winning leader Margot Slattery, who spoke about the start of her activism and how Ireland was a very different country in the 1980s. Recalling the first groups she joined in those years, Slattery opened up about what it was like to find a community and organise to bring about change when allies were scarce. The activist also spoke about the changes she has witnessed since then and how many allies she has found along the way who have supported her and her activism.

 

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Trans activist and educator Benjamin Foley spoke about his work as an LGBTQ+ facilitator and how impactful true allyship can be for queer people, particularly trans individuals. He recalled episodes from his past when he was attacked or verbally harassed, highlighting how the people who intervened helped make him feel so much safer.

The third speaker was Co-Founder of Certified Proud Donya Anvari, who spoke about the work they do and how motivating it is to make an impact for LGBTQ+ staff and customers throughout businesses in Ireland and beyond. The social enterprise works tirelessly to ensure that the queer community is safe in and out of work through training, consultancy, philanthropy, branding, and best practice sharing.

We are beyond thrilled to have attended Starting Strong with @CertifiedProud last night 🌈 Thank you so much for having us! Your generous donation and support is hugely appreciated ❤️ pic.twitter.com/v6nNnIGLFV

— Gay Community News (@GCNmag) January 17, 2025

In addition to this and to give back to the community, the co-founders decided that 40% of each business’ membership fee go straight into the Certified Proud Fund, which supports charities and non-profit organisations. The co-founders announced this year’s winners of The Certified Proud Fund: Shamrock Síoga, Bealtaine Festival and yours truly, GCN.

On behalf of the entire organisation, our Commercial and Fundraising Executive, Aarya Bhutani, thanked Certified Proud for awarding the fund to GCN, which will help us continue our work in informing, entertaining and platforming the LGBTQ+ community in Ireland, both online and in print.

Commenting on last night’s event, GCN’s Manager Stefano Pappalardo said: “A huge thank you to Certified Proud for their continued support towards GCN and for having us at last night’s event. It was a wonderful opportunity to come together, hear powerful speeches, share insights on the work we do, and connect with other organisations that do vital work. The funds we received will contribute to ensuring GCN remains a free, reliable source of information for the community.”

For more information on the work of Certified Proud, visit the official website here.