My Experience at the '2048: The Future Starts Now' event in Belfast
Choosing my speech topic was not a hard task. It was very important for me from the beginning to speak on a subject matter that I am extremely passionate about. I chose to talk about the need for personal finance management education in schools. I believe that the Northern Ireland education system has not done our society justice and this aspect of education has been overlooked. I talked about the detrimental effects caused by a lack of understanding of money management and how it can negatively impact people’s lives. This event provided 12 young women with a platform so we could share our views on how we could better Northern Ireland’s future.
The actual event took place on the 31st of January in the Senate Chamber at Stormont Parliament Buildings, Belfast. All the girls and event organisers arrived an hour prior to the event. This was a great opportunity to familiarise ourselves with the venue and to meet each other in person for the first time! And of course we also had lots of photos taken to spread awareness of the event. During the evening, I was filled with a great sense of pride after listening to all the girls captivating speeches, reminiscing on where we started this journey and, how far each of us had come. After all of us had spoken, we listened to the guest speakers such as the Chairman of SistersIn, Peter Dobbin. It was inspirational to hear his goals and what he has achieved so far through SistersIn.
I have learnt so much from this experience. The main learning objective I took away is the realisation that people aren’t born natural public speakers but rather they are made into one. This, however, was not my initial opinion, so, I would love to share my journey with you on how I got here.
Public speaking is a huge dread for most of us, myself included, so applying for this opportunity was completely out of my comfort zone. It was mainly down to the encouragement from my teachers in school to send in the one-minute application video. I was extremely hesitant thinking that it would be a chore. How I was pleasantly surprised. Every Sunday evening, we had communication and speech coaching form Sinead and Cormac. These two wonderful people are like a breath of fresh air, full of positivity and encouragement right from the beginning. I immediately felt reassured that the task was easy and manageable with the right approach. We were guided step by step on speech planning and how to break down writing effectively into manageable chunks. Being part of a group, we felt we could relate to one another as we shared this journey together and it was helpful to get advice and different viewpoints from the other girls. Another key aspect I took away was from the process, that not only is the skill of speech-making extremely important, but the relationships you gain with the others in the process, is also of huge benefit and an incredible bonus.
Overall, my communication skills have significantly improved not only in public speaking but all-round. Previously, I found it intimidating and nerve inducing when speaking to authoritarian figures. I found it difficult to communicate my point clearly, but now, conveying my point comes more fluently and with greater ease. The ability to communicate effectively is vital in all aspects of life from job interviews to relationships with others and I now have a skill that I can develop and take forward in the future to my betterment.
In addition to all the aforementioned positives, this experience has also opened the door to other incredible new opportunities which would not have been possible before. I have been asked to be a mentor for the upcoming 2048 Events taking place in 2026 and to provide advice and insight for the girls who will take part in the future. I also have been given the opportunity to be a mentor for the speech programme in Barcelona with 4Voices, which I am very excited for.
Further to that, I was put in touch with an international speech coach, Carrie Frais (co-founder of 4Voices), who gave me expert advice on how to improve the delivery of the speech. It was a privilege to get personal one-to-one advice from someone with such knowledge and experience in the field.
Lastly, I got the chance to speak to Anna Norris, a candidate from last year’s event. She gave me great reassurance and tips on how to manage nerves on the day of the speech. It was both helpful and reassuring to hear her perspective as she was once in my shoes.
I cannot encourage young women enough to apply for this extraordinary speech programme. It is such an amazing opportunity that you should grasp a hold of if you have the chance!
Ellen McGhee
Participant, ‘2048: The Future Starts Now’, Belfast 2025
