LGBTQIA+ Pride 2025: Pride Panel Discussion
We are excited to announce our upcoming Griffith College LGBTQIA+ Pride Event 2025, which is taking place on Tuesday, May 6th, 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM, at our Dublin Main Campus.
Hosted by Griffith College Dublin and marking the major milestone of the 10th Anniversary of Marriage Equality and the Gender Recognition Act in Ireland, this event celebrates and empowers the LGBTQIA+ community in Higher Education. With our own Becks Butler as MC and an exceptional panel of speakers offering a diverse range of perspectives, the event promises to be a thought-provoking and enlightening discussion on the importance of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion within Higher Educational institutions.
Click here to register for the event today.
Like a beautiful Rainbow, change, at first, can appear fragile and hard to see. But when it comes, it bursts into light and dazzles everything around it. Ten years ago, Ireland had one such dazzling moment. In 2015, we led the world as the first ever country to introduce Marriage Equality by popular vote, and we enacted ground-breaking legislation with the Gender Recognition and Children and Family Relationships Acts.
On the 10th Anniversary of these momentous times, it is time to take stock and reflect on the journey over the last 10 years for LGBTQIA+ lives. The highs, the lows, the challenges and the achievements. The world today looks more precarious for LGBTQIA+ rights than anyone could have imagined 10 years ago with the reality of hard-won rights being reversed, both in Europe and around the world.
In this context, the role of Higher Education institutions is more important than ever. Through conversation, we aim to explore the transformative power of higher education settings in empowering LGBTQIA+ individuals and fostering inclusive communities. We recognise that an environment, where diversity flourishes, liberates not just some people or some groups but all people and all groups. So, join us as we celebrate the role of higher education settings as nurturing grounds for diversity and queerness to flourish. The spirit of Pride includes everyone!
We extend a warm invitation to staff, learners, and visitors beyond the Griffith community to join us. Light refreshments will be served as we come together to celebrate the inclusive spirit of higher education.
Continue reading to learn more about each of our fantastic panelists:
Eric Warren Cunningham
Eric is a graduate of the LL.B. (Hons) programme at Griffith College Dublin in 2017. He now works in the legal sector in Dublin. Eric has been a passionate advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights, in particular, trans rights. He is also a Youth Leader in Talk About Youth in St Andrew’s Resource Centre.
Pradesh Mahadeshwar
Pradeep Mahadeshwar is a visual artist and LGBTQIA+ activist from India who is now based in Dublin. With a rich background in storytelling, writing, photography, illustrations, and filmmaking, Pradeep’s work delves deeply into the complexities of identity, migration, and the lived experiences of Queer People of Colour in Ireland.
As the founder of Queer Asian Pride Ireland and the Queer Spectrum Film Festival, Pradeep has created platforms that celebrate diversity while addressing the unique challenges faced by the immigrant LGBTQIA+ community in Ireland. Through their surreal and satirical films, Pradeep critiques sexual racism. He explores alternative emotional landscapes, offering profound insights into self-exploration, sexuality, and gender identity within new cultural contexts.
Claire Mooney
Claire Mooney is a graduate of Queens University Belfast, Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin and the University of Auckland, with BSc, B.A. and Postgraduate Diplomas in nursing and Counselling Theory and Practice. She has a particular research interest in mental health and the sociological well-being of older LGBTQIA+ people. In 2014, Claire was the project manager of a research project called "Silver Rainbow" at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. The project developed and distributed educational resources to all nursing homes in New Zealand aimed at enabling compassionate and culturally appropriate care to LGB residents.
Claire is also a contributor and steering group member of the "Pride at Home" project at Dublin City University, which in January 2025 developed and launched a ground-breaking online educational resource aimed at home care providers to give quality culturally appropriate care to older LGBTQIA+ adults.