Purple, Together: MU Pride Society’s Trans Conference and Workshops

Purple Training is MU Pride Society’s annual, three-day event hosted in TSI on Maynooth campus, taking place from 27-29 March 2026! First established in 2016, this year marks the event’s 10th anniversary! You may be wondering, why the colour purple? Purple Training invokes AMLÉ’s Pink Training event, which is Europe’s largest queer conference and student training event, held annually in Galway. While AMLE’s Pink Training receives funding from multiple sources, Purple Training is funded entirely by Maynooth’s Pride Society, with ticket sales going directly into the event itself.

The event is not exclusive to Maynooth students, but rather the opposite. Anyone and everyone is welcome! Of the 100 attendees participating this year, there were students from Dublin, Wexford, and even Galway. One of Pride Society’s aims with Purple Training is to keep the event as affordable as possible, with tickets costing as low as €7 for general admission and €40 for two-night accommodation. The society try to get a new rotation of speakers each year, with the exception of a core few. As President Kayla Curran Mahon explains, “This year would have a celebration of all ones before, in the end, we ended up with more new speakers than we’ve had in quite a few years!”

In particular, the event focuses on trans rights and the issues faced by trans people in their day-to-day lives. Transgender healthcare in Ireland is one of the worse in the EU, with the National Gender Clinic estimating its wait time to be approximately four and a half years, in practice however, this is not the case as wait time can exceed ten years. The National Gender Clinic has also faced heavy criticism, with patients reporting they felt uncomfortable and interrogated during appointments. Furthermore, the clinic also doesn’t take any patients under the age of 18, leaving many young people at a disadvantage. As of December 2025, the National Gender Clinic announced its closure of the already extensive waitlist to new referrals, leaving thousands without access to trans healthcare.

This emphasise the utmost importance of events like Purple Training, in the current climate, as they provide a safe space for individuals to be themselves and meet others in the queer community.  When asked about what inclusivity and visibility mean to them, attendees stated feeling included and not judged based on their appearance or who they love. According to participants, Purple Training provides not only a safe space, but also a sense of belonging, helping to maintain community connections.  

The talks over the weekend covered a variety of themes and issues, from mental health to a talk on BDSM and kink! One standout workshop for me was led by Steph Collins, namely the ‘Queer Spaces’ talk, which explored the idea of a queer space and asked the question: “what is queerness? what makes a space queer?” The workshop was interactive, providing the perfect chance for people to bond with others in group discussions and share their own perspectives and experiences.

A major talk of the event was ‘Inner Voice Inner Journey’, which focused on mental health and queer identity. The talk combined insights from the organisation’s work with the founder’s personal experiences as a queer college student navigating therapy in Ireland, and invited attendees to share their own encounters with mental health services. Other speeches included Aoife Murry’ seminar on BDSM, which featured an open discussion about the stigma and misconceptions, with practical insights drawn from her own experiences. The last event on Saturday featured Damien Walsh of Independent Movement Ireland, who spoke on disability rights in Ireland in a presentation titled, “To Boldly Go Where Everyone Else Had Gone Before; Disability Rights in Ireland”. More information on the speakers can be found here. 

The event also featured a queer artist exhibition, “Artist Alley”, where artists could exhibit but also sell their artwork! Another initiative called the “Open Closet,” which provided access for clothes to be tried on and even taken home.

Overall, events like Purple Training are very important, as they provide a safe space for queer people to be openly themselves, speak to other queer individuals, and voice queer issues!