The YWCA Ireland Board of Directors is passionate about furthering the vision and mission of the Young Women’s Christian Association in Ireland.

Emma Bowie - President & Chair

Emma has been a member of the Board of YWCA Ireland since October 2022. She holds an LL.B. from Trinity College Dublin, an MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Oxford, and formerly worked as a judicial assistant to the Supreme Court of Ireland. She is currently undertaking a PhD at the Centre for Criminology in Oxford, where she is researching the drivers of pre-trial detention for justice-affected women, with a view to making a meaningful contribution to Irish criminal justice policy. Emma is passionate about seeing gender justice realised in Ireland. She served as a volunteer youth ambassador for the development and humanitarian organisation Plan International Ireland from 2021 to 2024, contributing to national advocacy campaigns tackling gender-based violence, period injustice, and young women’s exclusion from political spaces.

From her early twenties, Emma has been a member of the teaching team at Trinity Church Dublin and has held various leadership positions within student and youth ministries in Ireland. She is a former president of the Trinity College Dublin Christian Union, a regular volunteer with Scripture Union Ireland, and loves to help direct Bible camps for 16 – 18 year olds every summer. In 2024, she completed Kyria’s inaugural Collab programme, a dedicated leadership training programme for exceptional young female leaders aged 18 – 25 from various denominations and spheres of influence across the UK and Ireland.

Emma is excited by YWCA Ireland’s vision to empower women across the nation to lead and effect change through Christ. She is passionate about encouraging and equipping young women to use and develop their God-given gifts to lead with purpose and work towards a more just, equitable, and resilient Irish society. She also believes the church has a critical role to play in speaking out against violence and injustices against women and girls.

Emma Arlow - Treasurer

Emma acts as Treasurer for YWCA, and brings over 15 years of experience in managing financial matters from her role as Tax Director in a large accounting firm.  Emma is passionate about YWCA's focus on empowering women and girls through leadership development and advocacy, and firmly believes that the positive impact of female empowerment can be felt across all sectors of society. In her role with YWCA Ireland, Emma hopes to contribute her experience in strategy, governance, project management and programme development. She is particularly focussed on the role played by mentoring initiatives that help young women see themselves as future leaders in their chosen fields. 

 As a mum of two young girls, Emma is passionate about creating a world where women have equal access to opportunity, mentorship and leadership roles, and where faith and feminism can work hand in hand. She is motivated by the work carried out by YWCA and by the idea that her daughters and many other young women can grow up in a world where leadership looks like them and she is proud to support an organisation working to make that a reality. 

CLARE O’KENNEDY

Bio to come.

Shalom Daniel-Ochonma (in process of confirmation)

Shalom is a recent Economics and Social Justice graduate from University College Dublin. Her academic training combined rigorous economic analysis with a grounding in social justice, an intersection that continues to shape her personal convictions and commitment to the YWCA movement.

Shalom first joined YWCA Dublin as a Resident Assistant in 2023, where she helped foster a positive and inclusive living environment. Women’s rights sit at the centre of Shalom’s personal convictions. She believes deeply that equitable access to opportunity, education, and financial literacy is essential to closing the gaps that hold young women back.

 Her Christian faith is what fuels her empathy, kindness, and sense of responsibility toward others, and what compels her to act rather than simply observe injustice. She sees her board service with YWCA Ireland as a direct expression of this faith in practice, an organisation whose Christian roots translate compassion into concrete programs that build young women’s confidence and capacity to lead. For Shalom, faith and advocacy are inseparable; one gives shape and urgency to the other. Shalom has represented YWCA Ireland at National Women’s Council events and the European YWCA General Assembly in 2026.