Louth teen wins best innovation at national youth awards

A young innovator from County Louth took home the Best Innovation award among Ireland’s top student entrepreneurs who took part in the Foróige NFTE Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2025, held on 14 May in Croke Park, Dublin. The event featured 24 youth-led businesses and over 120 young people, all of whom completed the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) programme.

Carla Mc Donnell, a student at St Louis Secondary School, Dundalk, represented Louth and won in the Best Innovation category with Vax Chill - a compact, practical cooling solution for animal vaccines. Inspired by her experience on the family farm, the product helps farmers prevent costly waste and ensure safe storage of veterinary supplies.

“I can’t believe I won - It’s a small product but it solves a big problem for farmers like my own family,” said Carla. “NFTE gave me a way to turn a simple idea into something that could actually help people in real life.”

The NFTE Awards highlight not only business acumen but also purpose and creativity, with finalists competing in Best Business, Best Innovation, and Best Social Enterprise.

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Odhrán O’Mahony, Chairperson of Foróige, commented “Year after year, NFTE proves just how powerful youth potential really is. The creativity, courage and commitment we’ve seen today is inspiring. Programmes like this don’t just teach business skills - they help young people see themselves differently. They leave believing they have what it takes to shape their own future, and that belief is something they’ll carry with them for life.”

Over 6,100 young people from 24 counties took part in this year’s NFTE programme, supported by 260+ trained educators, youth workers and volunteers.