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New Climate and Engagement Campaign launched – a first of its kind globally

Posted by on March 28, 2024 · Leave a Comment 

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan today (Thursday, 28 March) launched Climate Actions Work – a new, first of its kind national engagement and communications campaign to support and encourage action on climate and community resilience over the coming year.

The new engagement campaign will focus on hearing from, and working with, local communities – talking directly to people to help combat climate change. This campaign will focus on local people and places, encouraging and supporting climate actions that are designed and developed by communities themselves.

Over the coming year, it will work with groups up and down the country to amplify the huge amount of climate action that is already taking place, to provide support to groups where needed, and to encourage more people to get involved in taking climate actions together.

At the same time, the Government will continue to concentrate on the large, systemic climate actions that will make it easier for people and communities to make more sustainable choices where they are living.

To support community groups particularly, the Government will also make flexible micro-funding totalling €1 million available over 2024 and 2025 to help with smaller administrative and communications costs – the practical things that too often inhibit people and groups from taking action.

In addition, the Government will work with a range of climate communications experts to develop special training, toolkits and advice for groups, including business and professional groups, who want to do more to make their place better and more climate resilient. Over the coming weeks, a creative advertising and social media campaign will also be rolled out to support the engagement campaign and to tell people how they can get involved in their locations.

The launch was hosted by Dublin 8 resident, environmental volunteer, writer and comedian Colm O’Regan, whose recent book “Climate Worrier – a hypocrite’s guide to saving the planet” grapples with many of the difficulties and paradoxes that people encounter when it comes to climate action, in a humorous and honest way.

The launch took place in Dublin 8 because it is a microcosm of the wealth of climate action already taking place right across the country – in urban and rural communities. There will be a full programme of activity throughout the year, including launches and events that will focus on what’s happening in rural Ireland.

Speaking at the launch of the campaign, Minister Ryan said:

“We know that Irish people care about climate change, that they are concerned about its effects on their lives, but importantly that they believe that climate actions work – that this can make our country more resilient, help create new green jobs and opportunities and improve our quality of life. As a Government we must listen and act, so that we are supporting people to take climate action that works best for them and their community, from the ground up.

“This campaign, which will take place over the coming year, will build on the momentum that is already happening right across Ireland, from bog restoration in Roscommon, to community energy in Cabra. Every place and every person matters when it comes to climate. The Government, working with local authorities and community groups, has put in place structures and resources to support this work. In addition, a new flexible fund will help those organisations – who often rely on volunteerism – with the smaller costs associated with their invaluable work. We want to celebrate what’s already happening, share learnings across communities and encourage new people to get involved in making their town, their suburb, their townland a better place to live now and into the future.”

This campaign will also be underpinned by structures, resources and funding already in place to support local climate action:

  • Each local authority has developed a Climate Action Plan, identifying local climate mitigation and adaptation measures that are planned and underway
  • There is a Climate Action Officer and Climate Action Coordinator in place in every local authority, to facilitate and support local initiatives
  • The Community Climate Action Programme is making €27 million available to support the development of low-carbon and climate-resilient communities, with Community Climate Action Officers in place to work with local authorities and community groups
  • The National Dialogue on Climate Action, through its Climate Conversations programme, is identifying barriers to local climate action, and developing tools to evaluate, measure and support climate engagement activities

National Dialogue on Climate Action

The National Dialogue on Climate Action (NDCA) is Ireland’s national programme to engage, enable and empower stakeholders and citizens across society to take climate action. Through the NDCA, over 12,000 people have been involved in the annual ‘Climate Conversations’ and the NDCA has engaged over 1,000 stakeholders through five National Climate Stakeholder Forum events, three National Youth Assemblies on Climate, and active engagement with populations most impacted by the transition to a carbon-neutral future.

Insights from all of these engagements are used to co-create the annual Climate Action Plan, inform communications and strategies across Government, and lay the foundations for a future that is fair, equitable, and accessible to all. In 2024, the NDCA is radically expanding its programme to support communities and groups across Ireland to scale the work they are doing and support those who are not yet engaged.

Dublin 8 Climate Action Initiatives

Dublin 8 was chosen as the location for today’s event to highlight the climate action taking place at a community level. The organisations taking part in today’s event are:

Other organisations active in Dublin 8 Climate Action include:

Local Authority Climate Action Plans

Local authorities are key drivers in advancing climate policy at the local level. Ireland’s Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act (2021) requires each local authority to prepare a Local Authority Climate Action Plan (LACAP) to meet national climate targets and develop resilience to the impacts of climate change. The local authority climate action plans will help local authorities to address, in an integrated way, the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change adaptation and will strengthen the alignment between national climate policy and the delivery of effective local climate action.

Community Climate Action Programme

The Community Climate Action Programme (CCAP) is a €24 million fund from the Climate Action Fund (CAF) to build low-carbon communities across the country. A further €3 million has been allocated from the Shared Island Programme to enable groups to carry out cross-border and all-island climate action projects in partnership with communities/organisations in Northern Ireland.

Projects selected for funding under the programmes will have to contribute to national climate and energy targets across the following five themes: community energy; travel; food and waste; shopping and recycling; and local climate and environmental action. The programme will enable these groups to take direct climate action through varied levels of funding to support a variety of projects, from small to larger projects, worth up to €100,000 over an 18-month period.

Climate Action Plan

The implementation of the Climate Action Plan will create jobs, new economic opportunities and it will protect people and the planet. Climate Action Plan 2024 was approved by Government in late 2023, subject to Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Appropriate Assessment (AA). It is currently out for public consultation. Visit www.gov.ie/climateaction for more information.

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