The IBD Village Pledge
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) affects more than 50,000 people in Ireland, but its impact reaches far beyond the person diagnosed. Living with Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis takes a village of understanding, support, flexibility, and compassion.
This World IBD Day 2026, Crohn’s & Colitis Ireland invites you to take the IBD Village Pledge - a commitment to stand with people living with IBD today, and every day.
Why This Pledge Matters
Living with IBD is more than a diagnosis - it is a lifelong, invisible, and often unpredictable condition. People living with IBD may face pain, fatigue, urgent needs, hospitalisations, surgery, stomas, mental health challenges, and stigma - often while appearing “fine” on the outside.
Support from the people around them whether at home, at work, in school, in healthcare settings, and in the community, can make a profound difference.
That’s where the IBD Village comes in.
This pledge is about:
- Understanding, not assumptions
- Inclusion, not barriers
- Compassion, not judgement
- Belonging, not isolation
What Is the IBD Village?
The IBD Village is everyone who helps make life with IBD a little easier, whether knowingly or unknowingly.
It includes:
- Family members and friends
- Employers, managers, and colleagues
- Teachers, lecturers, and education staff
- Healthcare professionals and support workers
- Retail staff, hospitality, and the general public
- Anyone willing to listen, learn, and support
You don’t need to have IBD to be part of the village. You just need to care.
What is the IBD Pledge?
- I pledge to be part of the IBD Village.
- I commit to learning more about Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis and the realities of living with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
- I recognise that IBD is often invisible, lifelong, and unpredictable, and that everyone’s experience is different.
- I will show understanding, empathy, and flexibility when someone living with IBD needs support, privacy, rest, or reasonable adjustments.
- I acknowledge the Crohn’s & Colitis Ireland 'No Wait Card' and respect its purpose as a support tool for people living with IBD who may need urgent access to toilet facilities. Where possible and appropriate, I will respond with understanding and compassion when the 'No Wait Card' is presented.
- I will help challenge stigma, avoid judgement, and contribute to spaces - at work, in education, in healthcare, and in the community - where people living with IBD feel believed, respected, and included.
- I recognise that living with IBD takes a village - and I choose to be part of it.
What Happens After You Pledge?
What your pledge does:
- Shows people living with IBD that they are not alone
- Helps raise awareness and challenge stigma
- Builds a visible national “IBD Village” of support
- Strengthens advocacy for better services, understanding, and inclusion
- Keeps World IBD Day impact going all year long
Share your pledge on social media!
World IBD Day Connection
The IBD Village Pledge launches as part of Crohn’s & Colitis Ireland’s World IBD Day 2026 campaign:
“It Takes a Village to Live with IBD”
While World IBD Day shines a spotlight once a year, this pledge continues every day, because support for people with IBD should never be limited to a single date.
Be part of the village: Whether you live with IBD or stand beside someone who does, your understanding matters. Your flexibility matters. Your compassion matters.