We celebrated Heritage Week 2017 with two fun-filled events for families from all over. All 51 participants explored the Irish heritage at the North Bull Island Nature Reserve and…
Minister Heather Humphreys named Matt Farrell from Co. Longford as Ireland’s Heritage Hero. Presenting the Heritage Awards, Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heather Humphreys TD, said…
EXPLORING BIODIVERSITY & OUR NATURAL HERITAGE Our NATIONAL HERITAGE WEEK workshop looked to the importance of biodiversity conservation and the protection of our natural heritage. Creating sustainable communities is…
Awards Throughout the Years Global Action Plan’s work has been granted dozens of awards throughout the years. These awards range from the local, national, to even international level. Needless to…
1 February is St. Brigid’s Day, or Lá Fhéile Bríde. In the Celtic tradition, the day marks the beginning of ‘Imbolc’, the ancient festival of Spring, celebrating new beginnings and…
Global Action Plan is delighted to be working in partnership with the Irish Architecture Foundation on the ‘Reimagine’ project, which is funded by the Creative Climate Action Fund. This project…
GAP were shortlisted in the Green Awards 2017 as Green NGO of the Year! The Green Awards are the long-standing benchmark for excellence for those demonstrating best green practice in Ireland, and…
All Global Action Plan’s programmes and activities are undertaken in partnership with others. We take a partner-led approach to delivering high-impact, creative programmes to communities across the country. Join the…
Global Action Plan Events
On this page, we list some of our public events.
Most of our activities are only open to participants from the organisations and groups we partner with, and those events are therefore not listed here.
All events included on this page are free of charge and open to members of the public, but most of them require advance registration.
Community Climate Action Training for Rural Dublin
From 13 September until the end of November, GAP will be delivering a series of community climate action training events for rural communities in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin.
Find out more, and register for the events near you via https://globalactionplan.ie/blogs/gap-climate-action-training-for-rural-dublin/
Craft Workshops in the GLAS garden, Ballymun
Participation is free, but registration is essential.
Please email us via [email protected]
Free online teacher training course
Our Global Citizenship and Climate Action course supports Irish secondary teachers to incorporate GCE and climate within their teaching.
Past Events
4 week gardening course
Join our upcoming gardening course with horticulturalist Sharon Harvey, in the GLAS community garden in Ballymun.
- 15 August, 1h30 pm – 3h30pm
Rain water harvesting; Choosing plants to suit their water requirements; Making a small water feature in a container; How to build a bog garden. - 22 August, 1h30 pm – 3h30pm
Get to know Ireland’s butterflies and bees and how to create habitats for them in your garden. - 29 August, 1h30 pm – 3h30pm
Gardening for birds; How to encourage birds to your garden; Build a birdhouse to take home. - 5 September, 1h30 pm – 3h30pm
Flower arranging; Growing a cutting garden; Making an arrangement to take home.
To register, contact Leon Kelly at 085 805 0849 or [email protected]
This workshop is for people living in the Dublin Northwest area.
Introduction to Composting
Join us in the GLAS @ TU Dublin community garden, for a hands-on workshop, exploring the basic principles of composting, how to set up a compost system, and how to address problems that arise along the way.
Register via Eventbrite
17 May: GLAS @ TU Dublin opening ceremony
TU Dublin, Fingal County Council and Global Action Plan have teamed up to provide a centre for learning and social inclusion for the communities of Blanchardstown, Corduff, Tyrrelstown, Deanstown, Ballentree and Mulhuddart.
Located on the campus of TU Dublin Blanchardstown, the new community garden will provide a gardening space and a meeting point for people of all ages and abilities.
After weeks of site preparation, the GLAS @ TU Dublin community garden is now ready to welcome volunteers and visitors from local schools, community groups and other interested parties.
To celebrate that, we are hosting an opening ceremony on 17 May.
Book your place here
5 May: Behaviour Change versus Systems Change
As part of the Climate Heroes challenge, GAP Ireland will be hosting two online workshops. These workshops will dive deeper into the data generated by the challenge and understand the impact we are having with this climate action at home and abroad.
These workshops are a great chance to meet other, like-minded individuals from community groups across the country – Network, tell your success stories of climate action, and learn how others are making an impact!
We’ll try to scratch the surface of climate change and see things from a different angle, and discuss it with others trying to make a difference.
Workshop 2 – Behaviour change vs system change
Friday 5th May, 12:30 – 2 pm, online
Registration link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAoc-Cqrj4uE9c8IxAbnxa_SjGK91W7bYb4
28 April: Climate action for climate justice
As part of the Climate Heroes challenge, GAP Ireland will be hosting two online workshops. These workshops will dive deeper into the data generated by the challenge and understand the impact we are having with this climate action at home and abroad.
These workshops are a great chance to meet other, like-minded individuals from community groups across the country – Network, tell your success stories of climate action, and learn how others are making an impact!
We’ll try to scratch the surface of climate change and see things from a different angle, and discuss it with others trying to make a difference.
Workshop 1 – Climate action for climate justice
Friday 28th April, 12:30 – 2 pm, online
Registration link: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEvcu-vrzIvH9Gf72Uwn7mVdszj8lgQWEPI
Kilkenny Earth Day and "Climate Heroes" launch, 22 April
Mulhuddart Green Festival, 21 April
Discover how community gardens can support our wellness, biodiversity and food security.
There will be engaging activities, interesting discussions and a tour of the space. Come explore, learn, and get involved in this new space!
Register via https://dublinlearningcity.ie/event/class-training-or-workshop-community-gardens-for-sustainable-living/
You are invited to a public, evening briefing for the Climate Heroes community challenge.
Find out how your community group can join this fun championship, which allows you to compete against teams from other community groups from all over Ireland.
Join our free online info sessions on
what the challenge is and how you can take part:
22 March, lunchtime (1 pm): https://bit.ly/ClimateHeroes-lunch-briefing
22 March, evening (7 pm): https://bit.ly/Climate-Heroes-evening-briefing
Climate change, inequality, ecological collapse – can’t we do things differently? This workshop examines the role that our economic model has played in the climate and biodiversity crisis. It takes a GCE approach, examining societal parameters at a global level, within the context of a globalised economy. We will investigate how a preoccupation with economic growth and metrics such as GDP (Gross Domestic Product) amongst the world’s most powerful countries has impacted upon environmental and human well-being. We will critically explore the concept of Degrowth, an economic philosophy that is quickly gaining main-stream attention, and how this model could afford humanity a different approach to the future.
We will examine what a 21st century economy could look like, and how this can be imagined and applied by students within and outside the classroom. The content and activities included in this workshop are particularly useful for teachers of subjects that include a research component, and more generally, for teachers of Economics, Business, C.S.P.E, Geography, Politics and Society, and Climate Action and Sustainability (to be rolled-out in 2024).
Register on Eventbrite.
This event is kindly funded by Worldwise Global Schools.
Greenwashing
A workshop for post-primary teachers.
Online, 24 January.
Are your students doing the greenwashing project in 2023 Leaving Cert Politics & Society?
Our first Critical Themes workshop of 2023 dives into the topic with activities and ideas for action.
Supported by WorldWise Global Schools.
Support your students to take climate action, by building your skills in global citizenship education!
Climate change and sustainable development are central topics in CSPE, geography, the sciences and more.
Our Global Citizenship and Climate Action course supports Irish secondary teachers, helping them incorporate GCE and climate cjamge into their teaching.
Over four sessions we will assist you and your students to build the knowledge, values, attitudes and skills to take meaningful, informed action on climate.
The course will be hosted through an online classroom, with small, weekly homework tasks, resources, and tips to enhance your GCE practice. This course relates to all subjects in post-primary education, especially geography, CSPE and politics and society.
Climate & Nature Summit
7 – 11 November
Global Action Plan has teamed up with the Irish Schools Sustainability Network to bring you the Climate and Nature Summit 2022 – a week-long series of events that aim to help students and teachers explore themes related to the climate crisis.
The Climate & Nature Summit is timed to coincide with the COP-27 Climate Conference in Sharm El-Sheikh.
Register here: https://www.issn.ie/register-2022
Climate Justice – A short course for adult educators
Florence, Italy.
Tuesday 29 Nov 2022 – Friday 2 Dec 2022
Join European adult educators on a short 4 day course to explore and embed the concepts of Climate Justice into adult education programmes.
Ghostly Garden, 31 October
The GLAS garden in Ballymun has turned spooky!
Come and join us for stories, pumpkin carving and a best costume / best carved pumpkin contest!
SDGs & Community Gardens, 21 September
The Sustainable Development Goals are a map for a cleaner, fairer, and more sustainable world. These 17 interlinked goals challenge us to understand the world around us differently, and to take action on the issues that matter in our community.
During European Sustainable Development Week, GAP will host a workshop in the GLAS garden. We will introduce the goals and the targets that make them up, and then explore how local initiatives like community gardens are a great way to work towards the SDGs at a local level.
If you are new to a community garden or if you’ve visited before, if you are young or old, with friends or with family, come down to our garden to explore and learn!
GAP at the Ploughing Championships
Next week, GAP will be at the Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska as part of our collaboration with the Irish Architecture Foundation on the Reimagine Workers’ Villages project.
The Ploughing runs from Tuesday 20th September to Thursday 22nd September.
The IAF will be hosting an exhibition celebrating the legacy of former Bord na Móna villages designed by architect Frank Gibney at the Dolmen Hub, Block 3, Row 39, Stand 609 across the whole event.
On Tuesday afternoon, GAP will be hosting some interactive sessions probing the lessons we can learn from Frank Gibney’s designs to help us move towards a healthier, more sustainable future for our towns and villages.
We will make connections between Gibney’s vision and the Global Goals for Sustainable Development (SDGs), in particular SDG11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. Drop by to learn more about the Workers’ Villages communities and to share your ideas about how your community could become more sustainable.
The Reimagine team will also feature in two talks in the Government Village on Wednesday 21 September at the Creative Ireland Stage (12.30 – 13.00) and Government of Ireland Stage (17.00 – 17.45).
These conversations will explore the communities’ experiences of the project so far and provide an opportunity to discuss plans and hopes for the future. We will also discuss what a Just Transition means for these communities now and in the future.
Stay up to date with the Workers’ Villages project by joining our dedicated Facebook group here.
Workers’ Villages is supported by Creative Ireland’s Creative Climate Action Fund.
Come visit us at the Phoenix Park Biodiversity Festival, 9-11 September.
Global Action Plan will be there on Saturday 10th & Sunday 11th, between 12pm – 4pm, in Ashtown Demesne.
For information about the festival, go to https://phoenixpark.ie/event/biodiversity-festival-and-honey-show
Heritage Week 2022
National Heritage Week 2022 takes place from Saturday 13 August to Sunday 21 August. The aim of the Week is to bring together communities, families, organisations, cultural institutions, academics and enthusiasts, to build awareness about the value of heritage and support its conservation.
Among the more than 1,300 events planned around the country are events that Global Action Plan is associated with, as we believe that our past can give us inspiration as we seek to create a more resilient future.
This ethos informs the Reimagine Workers’ Villages project, which is run by the Irish Architecture Foundation in partnership with GAP. Two of the villages in the programme will be hosting events to celebrate the rich and important heritage of their local areas:
- FRI 19th AUG, CLOONTUSKERT – Street Feast and Heritage Explorers Day
Register here.
- MON 15th AUG, KILCORMAC – Capturing Our Story, Oral History recordings launch.
Register here.
There are many other Heritage Week events that focus on the importance of our bogs. See for example:
- Saturday 20th August from 12-2.30pm – Cloonlarge Bog Walk and Moth ID, Kilteevan, Co. Roscommon
- Saturday 20th August from 11.45-2pm – Shanakyle Bog Walk and Talk, Shanakyle Bog, Co. Clare
- Sunday 14th August from 11-45-3pm – Coolronan Bog Walk and Talk, Ballivor, Co. Westmeath
- Sunday 21st August from 2-4pm – Maam Valley Bog Walk and Talk with Caroline Reynolds, Maam Valley, Co. Galway
- Sunday 14th & Friday 19th August from 10.30-12.30pm – Guided Biodiversity Walk at Abbeyleix Bog, Abbeyleix, Co. Laois
- Sunday 14th August from 6.30-7.30pm – Lemanaghan Monastic Site Heritage Tour, Lemanaghan, Co. Offaly
- Saturday 20th August from 6-8pm – Photography at Killaun Bog with Tina Claffey, Killaun Bog, Co. Offaly
- Sunday 14th August from 2-4.30pm – Explore Cloncrow Raised Bog with Ecologist George Smith and Experience the rich Built and Cultural Heritage of Tyrrellspass Village, Co. Westmeath
A list of all events can be found here https://www.heritageweek.ie/event-listings
Reimagine: Communities in Transition
10 June, 3 pm – 4:30 pm, online.
Watch the event video here
Global Action Plan and the Irish Architecture Foundation are organising an online panel discussion, as part of the New European Bauhaus Festival 2022.
The Festival’s main themes are beauty, sustainability and inclusiveness, and it features debates, artistic performances and exhibitions. The Festival runs from 9-12 June and aims to build bridges between the worlds of research, science and technology, education, civil engagement, art, culture and architecture.
The “Communities in Transition” panel discussion aims to spark discourse and inspire action to support communities at the heart of climate action policies.
In this event, we are exploring innovative post-industrial projects which place sustainability, culture, heritage, and aesthetics at their heart, as a way of reimagining a new future for these places. The Zollverein Foundation will present “the most beautiful coal-mine in the world”, a major industrial complex in Germany that is now a World Heritage Site. We will also get to hear from members of Ireland’s peatlands communities, who will share their journey so far and their aspirations for the future.
Through hearing from these examples, we wish to provide space to consider how our peatlands communities in transition can benefit and even thrive.
This event is hosted by the Irish Architecture Foundation, our partner organisation in the “Workers’ Villages” programme. Workers’ Villages is supported by Creative Ireland’s Creative Climate Action Fund.
The session will be facilitated by Hans Zomer, CEO of Global Action Plan.
Biodiversity Week 2022 Events
Biodiversity Week takes place this year from 13th – 22nd May. There are events planned all over the country, and we are proud to be hosting some of them.
We are running online and in-person events this year, which you can book here. There really is something for everyone:
- “Get To Know Your Weeds”, Poppintree Park, 14 May.
- “Urban Bio Blitz”, Poppintree Park, 14 May.
- Webinar: “Human Nature – Nature Human”, online, 16 May.
- Community workshop “Our Biodiversity”, online, 19 May.
Community workshop – Our Biodiversity
Free online workshop
19 May, 7 pm
Our community workshops are open to anyone who volunteers in Ireland. Each month, we’ll focus on a sustainability theme and build your group’s capacity to act on it! This month: life on land.
Using a development education approach, this workshop will critically consider biodiversity in the time of the climate emergency. We’ll explore the root causes of the threats to biodiversity in Ireland, and share some ways that your community group is making a difference.
ACT Open Workshop – Climate and Health
A workshop for adult educators,
community facilitators, and lifelong learners.
7 April, 7pm-8pm (online event)
The Covid-19 pandemic has revealed how unequal global health systems are. For example, high income countries have vaccinated 2 out of 3 people in their population, while low-income countries have vaccinated 1 in 7.
Unequal health outcomes are also directly connected to the environment in which we live. 3.8 million people worldwide die each year from household air pollution from cooking stoves, which also contribute to climate change. 1,300 people in Ireland die every year in Ireland from poor-quality air.
On World Health Day, 7 April, Global Action Plan will be holding a webinar to identify the connections between health, climate change, and equality. Using activities from our Action for Community Transformation toolkit, we will explore how health impacts our lives and our world, and what we can do about it.
If you are involved in adult education, if your community group is working on issues connected with health, or if you’re just interested in the topic, this workshop is for you!
Click here to register
for this free workshop
This event is funded by Irish Aid.
Better Ballymun Day 2022: Making Trade Fair
As part of its contributions to ‘Better Ballymun Day’ 2022, Global Action Plan will host a series of public talks on fair global trade.
‘Better Ballymun’ is an idea developed by the students of Trinity Comprehensive, a secondary school at the heart of the community in Ballymun.
GAP was asked to ensure the initiatives developed for the Day include a consideration of the town’s global linkages. We will be hosting six expert talks on different aspects of the global trade system, with a particular focus on food and fairtrade initiatives.
The six talks will take place at 15 minutes past the hour, every hour, from 10h15 to 14h15, in the Axis Theatre in Ballymun.
Community workshop – Responsible consumption and production
Our community workshops are open to anyone who volunteers in Ireland.
Each month, we will focus on a sustainability theme and build your group’s capacity to act on it! This month: Consumption and production.
The seminar will take place online, on 17 February. Find out more, or register, by clicking here.
This workshop is being organised in the context of our “Action for Community Transformation” programme, which is funded by Irish Aid.
Action on Greenwashing
Zero-carbon coffee. Climate-positive burgers. Zero-emission cars.
The language of sustainability is increasingly being used to befuddle climate-conscious consumers, and promote products.
This workshop, part of our “Critical Themes” series, will offer a range of activities to help teachers develop students’ critical media literacy, so they can sort Fact from Fiction, and take action on Greenwashing.
This workshop will take place on 9 February 2022, 7-9 pm, online.
The workshop is made possible through the support of WorldWise Global Schools.
Demystifying Carbon
As part of our partnership with Intel, Global Action Plan will deliver a webinar titled, “Demystifying Carbon,” to Intel staff, in the morning of 2 February.
Climate science can be intimidating and inaccessible for many. We hear about the impacts of climate change in the news, and we know that there’s a relationship between greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. But there can often be an absence of clarity on what role CO2 play in climate change, how excess CO2 in the atmosphere is linked to climate change, what is the meaning of net-zero and, most pressingly – how best to address climate change.
As part of the webinar, “Demystifying Carbon,” Irene Sullivan, Education Officer at Global Action Plan, will walk participants through what carbon is, how certain economic and social activities generate CO2 and other greenhouse gases, and how this has resulted in the climate crisis.
We will look at CO2 output through history, noting how it has increased with consumption and economic expansion. We’ll get familiar with some climate facts, and assess where we are now regarding national and international climate targets, and the status of the climate crisis. To conclude, we’ll take a look at what lies ahead, and what meaningful change can look like – for individuals and systems alike. The webinar will end with a Q&A session in which we’ll discuss carbon and the climate crisis in an engaging, meaningful way.
Through participation in the webinar, we at Global Action Plan hope that participants will leave with a broader, more in-depth understanding of what carbon means for the world.
Let’s Talk Science – #BallymunScienceFestival with The Rediscovery Centre
The Rediscovery Centre & Global Action Plan are coming together again for our annual interactive Let’s Talk Science Festival in Ballymun!
This year, Let’s Talk Science will help you explore the fun world of Science and Climate Action. This exciting free festival is a unique opportunity for all the family to have fun and explore science, technology, engineering and maths.
Let’s Talk Science is open to people of all ages – come along to discover and learn about the life in our oceans and on land, renewable energies and your food. Find out the science behind climate change and what you can do to help! We will have:
• Interactive exhibitions and demonstrations
• Messy hands-on experiments
• Intriguing discoveries
• Games and fun
The Lets Talk Science Festival is funded by Science Foundation Ireland.
Tesco Bag Pack in Santry 1st & 2nd November
Global Action Plan, in partnership with Youth Foundation of Ireland, is hitting the tills of Tesco in Santry on the 1st and 2nd of November to pack bags in aid of climate action. We will be helping each and every person passing through with their bags, having chats about sustainability and climate action and hopefully raising some money on the way too to support our outreach programmes around Dublin.
We are looking for volunteers to join the Global Action Plan team on both days, so if you are free, please get in contact on 01-8832185 or by email [email protected].
We would love to have you join our team for the day!
UN Poverty DAY 17th October 2019
Join us for ‘Project Poverty’ – an art exhibition showcasing wonderful creations hand-made using reclaimed waste materials!
According to the United Nations this year marks the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) on 20 November 1989. This landmark human rights treaty sets out the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of every child, regardless of their race, religion or abilities.
Come along and take a look at artistic expression of what poverty is and the forms it can emerge as as depicted by youth from Ballymun and the surrounding areas!
For more information contact: [email protected]
Global Citizenship Education 2019 – training for school leaders and teachers
Come and join us for our first training which will bring together school leaders (principals, coordinators) and teachers to work together on GCE!
Our free training will focus on the implementation of GCE in the school and classroom, while bringing alive the concepts of development education and the Global Goals!
Participants will leave with our updated toolkit and accompanying resources to bring GCE back to your students.
RSVP your school representatives here: https://tinyurl.com/yy6w59mq
For more information contact: [email protected]
Storytelling for families at GLAS Community Garden
Come and join us for an afternoon of stories, songs and games in GLAS Community Garden in the heart of Ballymun for National Heritage Week.
In the refuge and peace of the Community Garden, be transported into a time of old, of mystical and myth, by a professional storyteller, whom will guide children and adults through stories of our past, present, and future and bring Irish folklore to life. Throughout the garden, we will also create spaces to explore pastimes and games from our previous generations throughout the garden.
Check out our event on Facebook to find out more!
The Power of Growing our Own : 8th June 2019
We are very excited to present to you own upcoming workshop co-funded by Bridge 47 and The European Union; The Power of Growing our Own’.
This 1 day workshop will take place in the Axis Theatre and the Global Action Plan’s very own garden (GLÁS Community Garden) in Ballymun on Saturday, the 8th of June 2019.
We are bringing together 5 community garden groups. The purpose of this workshop is to up-skill these gardeners in techniques for organic and sustainable food production while promoting the UN Global Goals.
The first half of the day will be run by Aine (Program Officer) in the Axis Theatre. This part of the day will concentrate on The UN Sustainable Development Goals ( Global Goals). The UN Sustainable Development Goals ( Global Goals) have given us a set of universal activities and a framework within which to build a better and more equal society for all. In this workshop we will explore:
- What the goals are;
- The importance of community gardens for sustainable cities with reference to the goals;
- How we can create a sustainable community garden and raise awareness of global issues at the local level with the goals.
The second half of the day will be led by expert gardener Sharon. Sharon will directly up skill participants in gardening techniques and cover the following:
- Composting;
- Know your Soil: how to recognize the type of soil you have and how to improve it;
- How to test your soils PH;
- Soil fertility and fertilizer use;
- Wise watering: Rainwater harvesting etc;
- Planting for pollinators and habitats;
- Fruit and vegetable growing.
Biodiversity Summer Camps kicked off this July with glorious garden tours filled with tree identifying, myth telling, polytunnel exploring and learning about how we influence biodiversity in our surrounding environments both positively and…