The Irish Local Development Network (ILDN) of 49 Local Development Companies (LDCs) have announced the appointment of EMPOWER CEO Adeline O’Brien as the Network’s Social Inclusion Committee Chair. ILDN is the national representative body of LDCs who deliver the €40 million Social Inclusion Community Activation Programme (SICAP) across the Country.
Welcoming the appointment, ILDN Chairman Jim Finn said; “Maximising Social Inclusion is central to the work our members do in their Communities. Through programmes such as SICAP, LEADER, Ability and a range of employment support services, the ethos of Local Development Companies is built on the continued pursuit of social inclusion in all our Communities. Our Social Inclusion Committee is an important driver for our work as a Network and I am delighted that our colleague Adeline has taken on the challenge of leading this important Committee as we overcome the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Accepting the role as Chair of the ILDN Social Inclusion Committee, Adeline O’Brien stated; “Equality, Social Justice and Social Inclusion have been the motivating principles of my career to date. I’m really looking forward to working with my colleagues across our Network in ensuring that LDCs are properly resourced to carry out essential social inclusion work in Communities. Investment in SICAP and other Social Inclusion measures will be vital, particularly as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic and face into the inevitable unemployment and social crisis that it will create.”
Commenting on the appointment of O’Brien, ILDN CEO Joe Saunders said; “Adeline has 20 years’ experience in the not-for-profit and social enterprise sectors as an advocate for equality and social justice. Our members have been to the fore in responding to the challenges posed by the pandemic in their Communities through the assistance of SICAP and other programmes. I am extremely confident that under Adeline’s leadership, the ILDN Social Inclusion Committee and its members will prove to be critical to ensuring that Social Inclusion is prioritised in Communities as we face into the COVID-19 recovery.”
