Ballina native praised for youth-led civic movement
David Newcombe is pictured on his visit to Leinster House with Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary and other Oireachtas members.
Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary has said he was delighted to host Ballina student David Newcombe in Leinster House last week as David outlined his vision for Awaken Ireland, a youth-led civic movement dedicated to encouraging greater political awareness, critical thinking and participation among the 16 to 30 age group.
Awaken Ireland is a non-partisan platform that aims to avoid following party lines or pushing any political agenda and instead focuses on open discussion and a belief that young people need to get involved in politics so they continue to have a say in Ireland’s future.
David Newcombe, a former student of St Muredach’s College who now studies Commerce at the University of Galway, told the last year that the project was born through his passion for politics and his realisation that many of his peers "did not have much understanding of the Irish political system".
The Minister expressed his thanks to Oireachtas colleagues for taking the time to attend and to David for the very informative and impressive presentation.
“David is a credit to his family, town and former secondary school St Muredach's College - well done and best wishes to him and Awaken Ireland in their endeavours which I am happy to support."
Awaken Ireland currently has a presence on Instagram and TikTok but David has big plans for the platform’s future. He plans to build on positive reception from the general public and members of Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann to bring it beyond social media to become a nationwide civic movement that immerses young people into the importance of politics and democracy.
