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Lauren Foley, BCL 2016 (photo: Stavros Tzovaras)
UCC Law graduate Lauren Foley is a consultant, feminist, YouTuber, writer, speaker and aspiring lightworker. In her own words, Lauren "probably dabbles in too many things for her own good but also wouldn’t have it any other way right now. She loves Grey’s Anatomy, spaghetti carbonara and cats and her perfect night would involve a good helping of all three.” She chats to us about her student days, gender equality and doing good.
Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation?
I did the three-year Law degree and graduated in 2016. Some of my favourite and most interesting modules were European law, family law, sports law, employment law, constitutional law, law of evidence and criminal law. I also did Italian in my first year so that was a lovely addition to my year. For anyone who’s feeling a bit insecure about doing the three-year Law degree where there seems to be a little snobbery involved, I’d like to say that it really doesn’t make a whole lot of difference what degree you have. What matters is what you do with it. I forewent an Erasmus or placement year and then did a master’s in the Netherlands in a subject I was able to choose myself - the combination of those two together has been great for me personally.
Can you describe your job?
I just recently started as a consultant with a social impact consultancy in Brussels called Organisational Development Support or ODS. It’s super early days but essentially, I apply a range of skills to a variety of different projects that come in. For one project, I’m creating a series of instructional videos for a network organisation. For another project, I’m working to make Brussels a safer city for women through social media, workshops and creating a tool that local authorities can use when designing urban spaces. I also do some freelance writing work for a women’s health organisation called See Her Thrive. I also have my own YouTube channel and blog where I create videos and write on everything feminism related. All in all, I’m basically scared and clueless all the time but learning lots and lots every day!
How did you become interested in the whole area of gender equality?
Honestly, I think it was a big mix of things. I think it was having a working mother growing up and seeing my dad cook the food in our house; things I feel weren’t the norm, even for my generation. I think it was being confused as to why I couldn’t go to the boys school at nine years old and wondering why my doctor whispered when asking me about my period at age 17. Then, all of a sudden, in my second year at UCC, something clicked and I just said “wow, I’m actually a raging feminist”. That September, I went to a Feminist Society meeting. I became a lot more conscious of gender issues and a lot more intentional and outspoken with my feminism. I realised how much misogyny I had internalised and put on my friends but also how privileged I was compared to a lot of other people. I believe becoming conscious of these issues has made me a nicer, more decent person and for that, I will always be grateful and I will try to keep putting that energy back out into the world.
What do you enjoy most about your work?
At ODS, the biggest thing I would have to say is my colleagues. They’ve gone out of their way to make me feel welcome and part of the team right from the get go. It’s lovely being part of a team where everyone’s extremely emotionally intelligent and when they say they care, they actually mean it. It’s a really healthy environment and that’s not something to take for granted, especially when a lot of work environments are not like that. It’s also lovely to feel like I’m doing some good, or at least trying to do some good, in the world. It’s also great to realise you can in fact, do good, and also make a living at the same time - who knew! At See Her Thrive, besides learning about the myriad of issues women face with their health, the thing I like most is how valued I feel. Clare Knox, the founder, is a wonderful example of women helping other women. She has taught me to know my worth and I don’t think she knows how much that means to me.
How did your time at UCC help you in your career?
Studying Law at UCC was the start of a long list of events that have all connected to get me to where I am now and to where I will be in the future. My lecturers and classmates in Law were wonderful. My time at UCC was instrumental in showing me what I wanted to do, but also what I didn’t want to do, and that’s as beneficial, if not more. I’m genuinely super proud to say I went to UCC and I literally take any opportunity to walk around campus, even now!
Best memories of UCC?
Genuinely, so many. I look back on that time a little with rose-coloured glasses and conveniently forget the many nights stressed to the gills in the fishbowl. But that aside, I loved all of our Law balls and dinners, being on college societies, feeling part of a team and attending Law Society events. I loved just roaming around the lovely campus and eating the €1 packs of jellies from the Student Centre. I was really lucky in the summer of my second year to be selected by the Law Department to intern in LA, so that was amazing. I loved attending all the brilliant talks put on every week. I loved attending all my friends’ graduations in Devere Hall and getting way too emotional about the whole thing. Not necessarily a UCC memory, but I particularly loved Rag Week 2015 because I escaped campus and went to Italy for the week, my least favourite time of the year - very different feelings to the rest of my peers I’m sure!
Were you involved in any clubs or societies?
Yes, and they were some of my best times in UCC. I remember going to talks in first year and seeing the committees at the front of the hall and thinking they were so cool and that I’d never have the confidence to be on one. I went along to one Philosoph debate practice night and never went back, I was so scared! In my final year, I was secretary of the Feminist Society. I ran in second year and didn’t get it and ran again the next year and got it. I was also the Conference Director of the Law Society in my final year, again after a first unsuccessful run the year before. I also dabbled in the Suas Society and the FLAC (Free Legal Advice Centres) Society and wrote a few pieces for the UCC Express. I learned an outrageous amount from all of these experiences and genuinely count them as equally important as all of my internships and paid work experience. They exposed me to people I wouldn’t have met otherwise and who have all contributed tremendously to my growth as a person, whether they know it or not.