Photo exhibition honours women’s grassroots leadership role

It recognises and celebrates the leadership of women in a visual way and serves to inspire others to take an active role in their own communities.

The exhibition, launched as part of International Women’s Day celebrations, features 45 photos and stories showcasing the leadership of Fingal women in their communities.

The project was led by Fingal County Council’s Community Development Office and the She Leads Advisory Committee.

All photos were taken by a volunteer photographer, Monica Manzzi, a member of the advisory committee.

Sinead Wiley, Fingal County Council Senior Community Officer, explained: “Women tend to not recognise themselves as leaders. With the programme we aimed to help them recognise their leadership role and give them the skills to work effectively as leaders.

“I felt that there was value in recognising the leaders we have in our communities, and putting a spotlight on who those leaders are. Monica wanted to do something visual, and it just took off from there. We put a call out across the county and got responses from 45 groups.”

When the 45 nominated women gathered together, Sinéad revealed that some were still reluctant to acknowledge their role as leaders, saying “I don’t know why I’m here”.

“On the opening night the women were saying they felt so empowered, seeing their photographs and seeing themselves described as leaders. Then you had other women looking at this, identifying themselves as leaders as well, they’re saying ‘I do this in my own community’.”

Sinéad says there are currently no other women’s leadership programmes like She Leads We Lead in other local authorities, as it focuses on community groups or local events, rather than on political or council leadership.

The She Leads, We Lead programme aims to strengthen women’s leadership in Fingal and particularly explores the achievements, challenges and opportunities that women experience in community action.

The programme commenced in March 2021 with A Conversation on Women’s Leadership in the Community, a series of online conversations with women active in leadership in Fingal.

In November 2021, Fingal She Leads, We Lead organised a nine-week Women’s Leadership Induction in Blanchardstown. This training was led by local women leaders in Fingal and introduced participants to leadership skills and resources.

A one-day Community Leadership Women’s Programme was subsequently held in Balbriggan in June 2022, focusing on an introduction to leadership including types of leaders, communications skills, supporting volunteers and the challenges of working with teams.

In November 2022, Fingal She Leads, We Lead was joined by Dr Lucy Michael and AwakenHub co-founder Mary Carty in Swords to talk about women’s leadership, the importance of networking and influencing decision-makers.

The programme looks at the various ways women take leadership in their communities, including: Grassroots leadership, which involves organising events, leading neighbourhood groups, or advocating for specific issues; Advocacy leadership, or working to raise awareness about specific issues and advocating for change; and Professional leadership, where women use their expertise by serving on boards of non-profits, mentoring young women, or supporting community-based initiatives.

The photographer Monica Manzzi is a Uruguayan photographer living in Ireland for almost 20 years. She is an active participant of the Fingal She Leads Women’s Leadership Programme, and is also a Spanish/English interpreter, journalist, and self-taught artist.

The exhibition is currently on public display in Fingal County Council, County Hall up to Friday March 31. The exhibition will then be displayed in local Fingal Libraries from April to May 2023. It can also be viewed online at on the Fingal Website