Two Westmeath-based social enterprises have been announced as finalists for the prestigious Social Entrepreneurs Ireland 2016 awards. “A Lust for Life”, led by Niall Breslin and Susan Quirke, and “Mobility Mojo”, led by Noelle Daly and Stephen Cluskey, are in the running for €600,000 in funding in a final pool of 18 projects from all over Ireland.
Breslin and Quirke’s project, “A Lust for Life” is a national well-being movement utilising a holistic approach, promoting positive mental health, suicide prevention and physical health.
“Our aim is to achieve social impact by providing support at a grassroots level through our website and events to those in need. On a broader level, we are working to raise awareness on issues of mental health nationally,” says Breslin.
“A Lust for Life” has been named a finalist for the Impact Programme with €140,000 of funding and support over two years. The Impact Programme aims to scale projects that have already proven effective in resolving Ireland’s most entrenched social problems.
Additionally, Westmeath project, “Mobility Mojo” has been named a finalist in the Elevator Programme, which provides €30,000 of funding and support over one year. The Elevator Programme focuses on early-stage social entrepreneurs to help them refine their solutions and accelerate the impact of their work.
The prestigious social-funding competition, now in its twelfth year, has supported 190 social entrepreneurs to date and invested €6.2m in direct funding to projects in areas including community and active citizenship, education and learning, environment and sustainability and mental and physical health.
Social Entrepreneurs Ireland received over 170 applications this year and selected 50 to attend the Social Entrepreneurs Ireland Bootcamp at the RDS, Dublin, where participants pitched their project to a panel of judges in a high-stakes, intensive competition. Breslin, Quirke, Daly and Cluskey represent Westmeath strongly and are thrilled to be named finalists.
