On the eve of the UN Summit on climate change in Paris (COP21), hundreds of thousands of people marched to demand action on climate change in cities across the globe. Among the estimated crowd of 5,000 in Dublin, was a number of people who made the journey on a bus organised by Transition Monaghan, despite adverse weather conditions.
Climate campaigners from Monaghan pictured outside the Custom House at the start of last Sunday’s Climate March in Dublin.
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Conan Connolly of Transition Monaghan is on a mission to find the tastiest potatoes in South Monaghan and encourage more people to grow their own. He is looking for potato growers to join in a new type of potato growing and tasting competition. Here he fills us on the details of ‘An Spud Off Mór’
What is it? It’s a competition to find the best potato in South Monaghan. The idea of the growing and tasting competition started in Co Kerry and we thought it would be great to try it out in Co Monaghan.
Why have it? Firstly its to celebrate the humble spud, its importance to our diet and in our history.
Continue readingMembers of the public were being invited to an event entitled ‘Your Cost Efficient Home’ which was held in the Market House, Monaghan on Saturday, 25 April 2015. The focus was on how to reduce your energy, water and waste bills. There were two key note presentations by experts in the area of low energy in the home – Michael Hanratty of Energy Action and Frank Cooney of Cooney Architects. The presentations were followed by workshops on Heating / Insulation, Electricity, Composting and Water and were ran by Jennifer McAree, Ollan Herr, Michael Connolly and Barry Mc Carron respectively.
Continue readingThe beautiful Ballybay Wetlands Centre provided a very suitable location for a weekend of discussions and workshops on living sustainably. The sun shone on the drumlins surrounding the Dromore River, and the birds gently tweeted as Marella Fyffe, from Omagh Co. Tyrone, led Transition Monaghan’s weekend workshop on Sustainable Living Skills / Permaculture.
On Thursday 6 November 2013, Monaghan Ecological Group hosted a free film screening of “Chasing Ice” in the Market House, Monaghan, at 7:30pm.
Chasing Ice is a compelling film which charts the work of photographer James Balog, who began tracking changes in Arctic Ice in 2005, by placing a number of cameras at different locations across the arctic. Through photographs and videos, Balog built up spectacular time lapse images and videos of changes to arctic sea ice, including the capturing of dramatic ice cavings, when large chunks of ice break off into the sea. The result is indisputable evidence of the dramatic pace of arcitc ice melt in recent years. The film provides moving and compelling evidence of man made climate change.
L – R: Liam Murtagh, Monaghan Ecological Group Committee Member, Mícheál Callaghan, co – founder, Davie Philip, Cultivate (Guest Speaker). Photo by Amie Hynes Fitzpatrick.
Over fifty people from across County Monaghan, and further afield, gathered, on Friday 23 August, in Ballybay Wetlands Centre for “Celebrating Transition”, a social & networking evening organised by Monaghan Ecological Group. Attendees, who represented a wide range of organisations, discussed and shared ideas, participated in informative break – out sessions and enjoyed a locally sourced buffet. The goal of the evening was to introduce people to the work and ethos of Monaghan Ecological Group, bring together local organisations and individuals working in the area of local sustainability and create a platform from which to build a strong movement for a positive, resilient future for County Monaghan.
Learning about Wild Food and Medicine in Rossmore Park
Up to 30 people gathered recently in Rossmore Park to hear Felim MacGabhann speak about the wild and edible plants of the park, on a walk organised by Transition Monaghan. The walk was well attended and extremely informative and enjoyable despite the poor weather. TM member Mícheál Callaghan reflects on the walk and related issues. Scroll down to see more pictures from this event.
Felim MacGabhann speaking in Rossmore Park at the recent walk which focused on wild and edible/medicinal plants
Continue readingMembers of Monaghan Ecological Group enjoyed an interesting and inspirational trip to Cloughjordan Eco Village, Tipperary, on Saturday last. Scroll down to see photos of this event.
Cloughjordan,is a village of under 1,000 people located in North Tipperary, near the towns of Roscrea and Nenagh. In the 1990s a group of people from different walks of life, with a concern for environmentally sustainable living, decided to come together to start an intentional community, centered around the values of environmentally and economically sustainable community living and green enterprise. They placed an ad in the Farmers Journal seeking land, and acquired a site of 67 acres of lush farm and woodland in rural Tipperary. Over the years, the project has gone from strength to strength, with 53 residential units, consisting of housing and apartments, currently on site. There is scope for up to 135 units on site.
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