GCE Spring Lecture with Dr Jennifer Okeke
Date: 30th April 2026
Time: 1pm (Refreshments from 12:45)
Duration: 1 hour
Place: Ozanam House, Dublin 1, D01T6W6
Every year, LYCS holds lectures with leaders in the areas of Global Citizenship Education, community development and solidarity. This Spring, we are delighted to welcome Dr. Jennifer Okeke to speak to us on the topics of Race and Racism, and the ways in which community organisations can respond to ensure a more safe and equal world.
Dr. Jennifer Okeke is the Chairperson of the National Women’s Council (NWC), a research consultant, internationally recognised speaker, and recipient of the Ambassador of Peace award. Her academic and professional work spans several interconnected areas, including gender-based violence, trafficking in human beings, migration, race and racism, human rights, and issues of peace and security. She is widely regarded as a subject-matter expert and continues to contribute to national and international policy and advocacy efforts aimed at advancing gender equality. Dr. Okeke regularly participates in international forums and speaking engagements, including contributions at the United Nations in New York. Her leadership experience extends across both national and international platforms.
She has previously served as Chair of a migrant women’s organisation in Ireland and as a board member of the European Network of Migrant Women in Brussels. She currently represents Ireland at the European Women’s Lobby, where she contributes to European-level advocacy on gender equality and women’s rights.
In addition to her policy and advocacy work, Dr. Okeke is an established trainer who has designed and delivered capacity-building programmes for diverse stakeholders at both national and international levels.
Dr. Okeke is a sociologist whose academic work reflects a sustained engagement with issues of inequality and social justice. She has lectured on human rights, race, and ethnicity at Maynooth University and Dublin City University. Her doctoral research examined the experiences of Black African women trafficked into and through Ireland for the purpose of sexual exploitation. This research contributes important empirical and theoretical insights to scholarship on migration, gender, and intersectional inequality, while also informing policy discussions and service responses relating to trafficking and exploitation.
This talk is open to all, but may be most relevant for community workers and service workers working in community outreach and global citizenship education. Please join us for what is sure to be a highly engaging conversation.
