Green Foundation Ireland
OUR MOST RECENT EVENT:
TALK
“DO HEALTHY EARTHWORMS = HEALTHY SOILS?”
Thurs 10 Nov 2022 – 19:30 to 20:30 (Irish time)
BY ZOOM: Log-on details will be issued nearer the time to those who register.
Earthworms are widely regarded as being beneficial to soils and are often used as indicators of soil health. However, as Darwin first observed, sometimes you can dig up soil from two different parts of the same field and, for no apparent reason, find completely different numbers of earthworms.
In this talk Mark Hodson discusses the various benefits that earthworms bring to soils but also some of the reasons why we need to be cautious about how we interpret the presence of earthworms.
OUR GUEST SPEAKER: Mark Hodson, Professor at the Department of Environment and Geography in the University of York.
You can check out more details, including how to book, here
Photo by: MARTIN NOLAN,
Director of Green Foundation Ireland
UPDATES:
CITIZENS’ ASSEMBLY ON BIODIVERSITY LOSS
Submission by Green Foundation Ireland
In September 2022 Green Foundation Ireland made a submission to the Citizens’ Assembly on the topic “How the State can improve its response to the issue of biodiversity loss”.
The Citizens’ Assembly is a body comprising the Chairperson and 99 citizens, randomly selected to be broadly representative of the Irish electorate, established to consider some of the most important issues facing Ireland’s future.
We would like to thank COLIN STAFFORD-JOHNSON and FIONN KEELEY for allowing us to use their videos as part of our submission.
You can read our submission here
5 in FIVE
Trinity College Botany Department and Trinity College Botanic Garden
‘5 in Five’ is a new video showcase of Ireland’s native plants and wild places delivered in 5 minute episodes by Trinity College Botany Department and Trinity College Botanic Garden. The idea was hatched by Head of Department Professor JENNIFER McELWAIN while out walking within her 5km radius of home during the COVID lockdown. The aim is to present 5 plant species in five minutes in an engaging way that showcases Ireland’s plant diversity in their native habitats, whether a shingle beach, mountain bog or old city wall.
Most of us suffer from a condition called ‘plant blindness’. We simply do not see the immense diversity of plant life that is on our doorstep. Instead we are evolutionarily primed to see animals, as they may be a threat to our survival or a high protein meal. Plants, in all their extraordinary diversity, tend to meld into the greenness of the background. ‘5 in Five’ will call on the internationally recognised expertise of lecturers, professors and students in Trinity’s Botany Department and Botanic Garden to produce a regular episode of new plants and habitats from across Ireland. Ultimately they would love to cover the entire native flora of Ireland!
You can find out more about ‘5 in Five’, including the videos, here
PINE MARTEN PROJECT
Pine Marten Boxes presented to Minister of State Pippa Hackett
On 18 June 2022, as part of Green Foundation Ireland’s Pine Marten Project, our Chairperson DONNA MULLEN presented pine marten boxes to Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Senator PIPPA HACKETT and to local farmer JOE ROCHE. Both were delighted to receive them and the Minister gave special thanks to GFI in her speech. Minister Hackett was attending an Open Day hosted by the Ballymoney Community Group in County Wexford.
WHAT WE DO
Green Foundation Ireland hosts seminars, workshops and conferences to demonstrate how practical action can create systems change in both education for sustainability, and work towards a green economy and society. We work on local and Island of Ireland projects and with partners in Scotland, England and Wales, and the European mainland.
RESOURCES FOR ECOLOGICAL EDUCATION
In association with Green European Foundation, GFI publishes eco literature, both online and hardcopy, and circulates the European Green Journal. The Eco Eye programmes, hosted by GFI’s Director and former Chair Duncan Stewart, are available courtesy of Duncan. All of the above can be found in the Resources Section of our website.
Would you like to receive info and news about our future events and activities?
VALUES AND VISION
GFI has a vision of ecology that values the life of all creatures on our planetary home and is embodied in practical action for a sustainable life for all.
We encourage participation by people and communities in finding practical local responses to intractable problems.
We tell stories of resilience and change in the face of adversity, based on good science and community action.
MEMBERSHIPS and AFFILIATIONS
GFI is a member of the Irish Environmental Network – www.ien.ie
GFI is a member of the Environmental Pillar – www.environmentalpillar.ie
GFI is affiliated to the Green European Foundation – www.gef.eu
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
GFI thanks the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications for the funding it receives through the Irish Environmental Network.
GFI also acknowledges the support of the European Parliament through funding for projects agreed with Green European Foundation.
