A certain amount of FO-“MO” (pardon the pun) came with this year’s season of sporadic facial hair growth. We all knew there’d be no photos taken of dodgy-tache grins on the dancefloor, no bearded guys in your 11am tutorial who, you swear, you’d never seen before, and no careful conversations with college acquaintances about how their new look isn’t “growing on you” quite as they might imagine. However, I’m not sure anyone expected the college community to latch onto this year’s Movember campaign with such commitment, and truly run with it – for 7,700km collectively.
If anyone had anticipated it though, it would have been the dedicated team of Trinity Movember Ambassadors, who hit the ground running back in August of this year. Kieran Morris, Brian Harnett, Declan Kinahan, Sean Cheetham, Billy Behan, Lily Wayne, Ben Cummins, Rory McMahon and Mafalda Reis were part of the team that has achieved huge success in the last month.
386 Trinity students, alongside 37 affiliated clubs and societies, took part in this year’s campaign, raising €75,000 for a range of men’s health organisations. This is a substantial surge in fundraising from the €12,000 that was raised in Trinity last year. In fact, this previous record was surpassed by November 1st, 2020.
It became evident to us pretty early on that we had the scope to do something big
It’s important to note however, that last year there were only approximately five Movember student ambassadors dotted around Ireland, Kieran Morris tells The University Times in an email. “With 50+ this year, coupled with the resources on how to run a successful campaign, it became evident to us pretty early on that we had the scope to do something big.”
Morris admits that initially the team were “sceptical of what a campaign in lockdown would look like”, as in-person events are usually a large focus of Movember’s annual fundraising drive. Once they committed to a completely digital campaign however, “it was the College community that took this whole campaign to another level”, he says.
The Instagram page, @MovemberTCD, run by Declan Kinahan, had “an incredible community feel”, Morris notes. “Every day we would be tagged in 10+ stories of people swimming/running/showcasing moustache progression to the page… which was so nice to see during a time where students are actively having to keep their bubble small.”
Morris praises “all 386 Trinity MoBros and MoSisters who walked 10km or ran 300km, donated €5 or raised €500, bought a mask or checked in on a mate – these results are thanks to you”. He gives a special mention to Dublin University Football Club (DUFC) “for raising a ridiculous €13,000”, Trinity Sailing “for braving the Irish Sea for 31 days, wind and hail”, and DU Croquet Club “for proving that the mullet/moustache combo deserves a place in the 21st century”. He also acknowledges the support of the Provost, Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union, Irish Student Consulting Group’s 17 student consultants and student ambassadors nationwide.
“This year, thanks to students around Ireland, €288,000 will be invested in 1250 men’s health projects here in Ireland and abroad to sustain the fight against prostate cancer, testicular cancer and suicide prevention.” This will go far to bolster Movember’s mission to change the face of men’s health – mental health and suicide prevention, testicular cancer and prostate cancer.
It was the College community that took this whole campaign to another level
The Movember campaign is motivated by three key issues. The first of these is the fact that suicide is the biggest killer of men under the age of 45 in Ireland. Those taking part in Movember strive “for a world where everyone is encouraged to talk openly about their mental health, where asking for help and showing vulnerability signals strength and those encouraging others to ‘man up’ are recognised as part of the problem”, Morris tells me.
Secondly, the campaign aims to raise awareness about testicular cancer, the most common cancer in young men. “Early detection is paramount”, Morris says. “Movember encourages all men to ‘check their balls’ once per month for lumps, and to meet with your doctor if you find anything abnormal.”
Finally, Movember is also concerned with knowledge surrounding prostate cancer. “Across Ireland, there are more than 30,500 men living with and beyond prostate cancer”, Morris explains. “Movember are at the forefront of scientific research for prostate cancer by funding non-profit research efforts and treatment plans.”
While these are the foundational cornerstones of the movement, Morris recognises that “Movember has a different meaning to everyone who takes part, and that’s what makes it so special”. With the whirlwind month that lies behind his team, and by extension the entire college community, Morris hopes that this “increased awareness has furthered the effort of breaking down the stigma surrounding men’s mental health both on third-level campuses and beyond”.
If you’re still a student next year and are interested in being a 2021 Trinity Movember Ambassador, or want to help organise the Irish Student Campaign as a whole, feel free to register your interest with [email protected].
