Wear Her Story Project Launch
Wear Her Story, a PEACEPLUS Change Makers-funded project led by Dundalk Institute of Technology in partnership with Glow NI, was officially launched at the Duncairn Arts Centre in Belfast on Friday, 25th September 2026.
The team was delighted to welcome Lord Mayor Councillor Róis-Máire Donnelly, who officially launched the project and met the young women taking part. The Lord Mayor is a great role model for young women, and it was fantastic to have her support for Wear Her Story and its aims.
Wear Her Story brings together young women aged 16–25 from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to explore cultural identity, heritage and wellbeing through digital fashion, digital fabrication and immersive storytelling.
Following the launch, participants took part in a creative induction, and learning more about the programme and its cross-border approach.
The session began with “What’s Under the Surface?”, an icebreaker based around the question: “If your week so far was a weather forecast, what would it be?” Young women used words, drawings and colours to represent how they were feeling and shared their ideas with the group.
Next came “Wear Your Message”, a creative fashion activity exploring Irish textile heritage, visual identity, belonging and connection. Working together, participants created paper fashion pop up using textile-inspired patterns and motifs, alongside their messages and manifesto for the project.
The activities introduced some of the key themes of Wear Her Story while giving participants an opportunity to begin sharing their own ideas and stories.
Co-creation is central to the project. The young women will help shape the programme, contribute their ideas and identify their own goals as they explore digital fashion, 3D printing, digital fabrication, augmented reality, 3D scanning and digital storytelling.
The launch and induction marked the beginning of the Wear Her Story programme, with participants already creating, sharing ideas and making connections across the border.
Jackie Toal highlighted:
“It was great to welcome so many young women, all keen to engage, learn about new technologies and Irish textile and fashion heritage, and meet new people and gain new experiences.”
A project supported by PEACEPLUS, a programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB)
For more information on Wear Her Story follow the Instagram page wearher.story
Or contact [email protected]