West Kerry farmers to mark end of year-long sustainability project with public event
Series of short films about climate action project to be premiered at closing ceremony
The organisers of a year-long climate action project, which involved ten farming families from the Dingle Peninsula and explored ways in which farmers in the area can diversify and make their farming practices more sustainable, have today (25.11.22) announced details of a public event to mark the conclusion of the initiative.
The event, which will take place on Thursday, 8th December 2022 at the Blasket Centre in Dún Chaoin, will see the premiere of a series of short films that recount the experiences and thoughts of the participating farmers.
Jointly organised by Dingle Hub, the Green Arts Initiative in Ireland and the SFI Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine (MaREI), the project, entitled ‘Corca Dhuibhne Inbhuanaithe – A Creative Imagining’, commenced in December 2021 and received funding under the inaugural Creative Climate Action fund, an initiative from the Creative Ireland programme and the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications.
Commenting on the project, project manager Catríona Fallon said: “At the outset of the project, we selected a group of farmers and an ‘embedded’ project artist to explore and identify climate action solutions that work for the local farming community and wider society. Everyone who joined the project stayed engaged and it has been so rewarding to see the connections forged between the participants during the year. Building capacity to diversify, adapt and cope with climate change is crucial, and the better we are at working together, the better equipped we are for challenges that lie ahead.”
Lisa Fingleton, an artist, writer and organic farmer, who has addressed environmental issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss and food security in her creative practice for many years, was selected as the project’s embedded artist. She has worked closely with the farming families over the past 12 months and describes her role as that of as a “creative spark”, who helped generate new ways of thinking, fresh perspectives and new approaches.
“Working closely with the famers on the Dingle Peninsula over the last year and visiting each farm several times has been a real privilege. It has given me a unique opportunity to understand their deep connection with the land and their growing concerns about climate change. Together, we creatively explored their experiences and their ideas for the future on taking climate action and protecting biodiversity. It was great to see the wider farming families becoming involved, including children and partners. The project has created bonds of friendship between the families and real momentum for action,” she said.
The participants visited several innovative farms, renewable energy facilities and other sustainability-focused initiatives as part of the project. Destinations included the Burren Programme in Co Clare; Green Gas, an anaerobic digestion facility in Co Limerick; the locally-led agri-environmental MacGillycuddy Reeks European Innovation Partnership Project on the Iveragh Peninsula; and the Kerry Woollen Mills in Listry, where a recently installed micro-hydro scheme provides renewable energy to run the woollen mills, reducing the carbon footprint of the enterprise.
Speaking about her participation in the project, Niamh Foley, a beef farmer from Blennerville on the Dingle Peninsula, said: “The project has been absolutely fantastic. One of the main benefits has been the sharing of information – the sharing of knowledge has been huge. We went on many great visits to innovative farms and green initiatives that I would never have visited otherwise, because I thought I couldn’t apply their practices to my farm. Next month, I’m going planting about 500 native trees just to thicken up our hedges. It’s given me drive to make changes that I thought were never possible on my own farm.”
John Joe Fitzgerald, a hill sheep farmer from Baile an Lochaigh on the Dingle Peninsula, added: “We went to many different farms and saw a lot of different things – it’s been a real learning curve for us. It has been interesting to see what other people are doing and to learn from them. Our group has been great, too. We’re all different types of farmers and we’re having really useful conversations that are helping us all to get a new sense of direction.”
The project’s closing event and film premiere will take place at 7.30pm on Thursday, 8th December 2022 at the Blasket Centre in Dún Chaoin in Co Kerry. The event is free to attend and all are welcome, however, places are limited, and advance registration is essential via: bit.ly/3V5QFXU (Eventbrite).
The short films, which will be premiered at the closing event, were directed by Lisa Fingleton, filmed by Chris Garrett, and edited by Clint Fitzgerald.
For more information, visit: dinglepeninsula2030.com/projects/creativeclimateactionproject.
ENDS
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