GAP is inviting community Groups around Ireland to take part in a nationwide climate competition
Thursday 18 January marks the birthday of A.A. Milne, the author who, a century ago this year, introduced the world to Winnie the Pooh, a honey-loving bear whose innocence, kindness and honesty have captivated millions.
At Global Action Plan Ireland, we thought it would be good to celebrate the day by launching our groundbreaking ‘Climate Heroes’ challenge.
The ‘Climate Heroes’ challenge reflects Pooh’s timeless reminder that “you’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.”
While these words may have originated in the Hundred Acre Wood, they resonate far beyond the pages of a children’s book, especially for those committed to battling climate chaos. Winnie the Pooh, with his simple and optimistic approach to life, inspires the notion that anyone, regardless of background or abilities, can play a role in caring for the natural world.
By shifting the narrative away from the challenges and costs of the net-zero transition, this bear of very big heart encourages us to take whatever steps we can towards a future that promotes better, fairer, and more liveable societies.
To support this change, Global Action Plan Ireland is inviting community groups all over Ireland to take part in an innovative and exciting climate competition.
Funded by Irish Aid at the Department of Foreign Affairs, the ‘Climate Heroes’ competition will see local groups across the country compete to reduce their carbon footprints.
The team-based climate competition will begin on 15th April and last until 26th April.
We are inviting local community groups to take part in the Climate Heroes challenge. Participants will take as many climate-positive actions as they can, and our online app will translate activities logged into CO2 emissions saved. The team that saves the greatest amount of greenhouse gas emissions are the winners of this exciting competition.
The Climate Heroes Challenge provides a unique combination of encouragement, education and real life climate impact, offering participants a menu of 40 climate smart activities, based on the four main areas of individual greenhouse gas emissions: Transport, Food, Consumption and Energy.
The Challenge will be preceded by workshops that help community groups grow the scope of their focus and help link local issues to global problems – and solutions.
The Climate Heroes challenge is a friendly competition, but it is also a serious tool for climate education.
It’s a powerful way to explore how people can respond to climate change, as consumers and active global citizens. Participants will discover practical ways to reduce their CO₂ emissions and make climate action part of their everyday lives.
In our workshops, we see that people are often overwhelmed by the interlinked dimensions of sustainability – for example, when something makes environmental sense, but is financially unsustainable. The Climate Heroes competition supports small actions that can have a positive benefit, and opens a discussion about bigger actions we can take to help build safer, healthier and more sustainable communities.
Climate change is the greatest challenge of our time and if we are to address it effectively we will need to make changes at all levels of society. It’s not an either-or situation.
Climate Heroes encourages everyone to step up, get together, and work together.
In the immortal words of Winnie-the-Pooh: “You can’t just sit in your corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.”
The Climate Heroes Challenge is open to community groups and local initiatives in all 32 counties of Ireland. There is no charge for participation.