Speaking Experience
Patricia is a gifted key note speaker with a strong record of delivering lecturers, motivational speeches and political addresses.
Her love of public speaking can be traced back to primary school, where at the age of 10 she was selected by her class teacher to participate in a council run public speaking competition on the importance of road safety. Having won first place in her local council area Patricia then competed at regional level where she placed second in the Northern Ireland wide public speaking competition.
After graduating from her Law degree, Patricia found herself once again engaged in public speaking, this time as an educator in deprived communities and to audiences made up of children excluded from school. It was during this period Patricia received the harshest yet most helpful feedback of her career. Community activists, young people and their educators consistently reminded her of the importance of knowing the audience, demonstrating an ethic of care and working from a philosophy of communitarianism.
As a professional speaker, Patricia attributes her ability to communicate, connect with, and inspire audiences, to the she lessons learned while working in school exclusion centers across some of the most deprived sections of Northern Irish society. As an academic, Patricia has utilized this feedback to design and deliver impactful conferences, lectures and seminars focused on bridging the divide between academia and real life. As a public facing elected representative, Patricia keeps these work experiences at the forefront of her mind, and consistently speaks out on behalf of those who are otherwise voiceless.
Patricia has extensive media experience from appearing on local talk shows, news media; podcasts for the BBC; live and pre-recorded interviews as well as live political broadcasts. She has delivered speeches at high-profile media events; issued press releases; and operated multiple social media channels to enhance her political profile and promote party messaging. She has co-created promotional video materials, scripted informational output, and developed a strong sense of media awareness.
Patricia's international speaking experiences include panel debates at the Council of Europe, World Democracy Forum, a key note speech at the The New York Ireland Fund and live addresses to USA Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Patricia's approach focuses on combining her lived experiences of politics, academia, engagement with marginalized communities and peer reviewed research to deliver practical solutions for change through engaging, relevant and illuminating content. Her delivery style is best described as gritty, magnanimous and dramatic.
