Moninne Griffith was, until October 2025, the Chief Executive Officer of BeLonGTo Youth Services in Ireland. She has over 20 years of experience in the fields of advocacy, law, and social justice, and is a passionate social activist for LGBTQ+ rights and equality. She has been involved in landmark initiatives such as the Marriage Equality campaign, the Gender Recognition Act Review Group, and the LGBTI+ Youth Strategy oversight committee. She is dedicated to supporting and empowering LGBTQ+ youth, and achieving a world where they are equal, safe, and valued in the diversity of their identities and experiences. In this podcast, Moninne talks about the importance of undertaking research and gathering the necessary data to promote equality and equity and empowering young people and staff to support young people to address homophobic or transphobic bullying.
She says that “the mental health of LGBTQ+ young people is worse than it was 10 years ago with their being five times more likely to attempt suicide than their non-LGBTQ+ schoolmates“. She goes on to talk about the importance of tailoring your leadership to ensure that others can thrive, she loves being able to work with younger emerging leaders, to recognise their skills and encourage them to be brave and take on new challenges. As she says, “when you invest in young people and light a fire they become agents of positive change”.