The first Miss & Mrs Cross Continent event in Dublin showed how a pageant can combine cultural diversity, leadership and practical community education.
Held at the Church of Scientology & Community Centre in Dublin, the gathering featured 24 contestants from seven different nations and an audience of about 450 people.
Organised by Miss & Mrs Cross drug prevention Continent Events Ltd. and sponsored by Broccoli Care Ltd., the programme was developed in collaboration with The Truth About Drugs Ireland.
Before taking part in the stage programme, contestants and visitors toured a Truth About Drugs exhibition and learned about the effects of commonly abused substances. Several contestants completed online drug-education courses before the event, with some finishing all fourteen modules.
Cllr. Francis Timmons, Mayor of South Dublin, spoke during the programme about the importance of bringing communities together through education.
Cultural performances added to the programme, including Irish dance, Indian classical dance and traditional Indonesian presentations.
Niveditha Vudayagiri, a software engineer with a master’s degree in artificial intelligence, was crowned Miss Cross Continent 2026. The first runner-up title went to Fortunate Lindokuhle Masina, followed by Yuki Yuliatin as second runner-up.
By combining cultural expression with drug education, the programme gave the traditional pageant format a wider social purpose. The complete story can be read in this report about the multicultural pageant combining cultural celebration with drug education.