Kerry County Council taking action on climate change

By Alastair Tibbs, The Kerryman

Kerry County Council has become only the second council in Ireland to launch a community-focused climate change workshop.

Kerry’s Community Climate Innovation Programme’ is free of charge and will run over the next three months, teaching communities about the just transition through engaging and collaborative sessions.

As part of Kerry County Council’s (KCC) climate action plan, the authority has partnered with Trinity College Dublin and Munster Technological University (MTU) through their joint national centre, Knowledge Centre for Carbon, Climate and Community Action (IKC3) headquartered at MTU, to deliver the initiative.

The first gathering took place at the Tralee Bay Wetlands Centre on Wednesday where participants took part in an interactive session exploring pathways for a just transition.

Alex Grassick, senior executive officer at KCC said: “Through the national dialogue ‘Climate Conversations’ and our own consultation as part of KCC’s Climate Action Plan, we know the community are willing and able to lead the way on climate action. With the right support, they can deliver real solutions—and this course gives them the platform to do just that."

The programme has already been piloted at Laois County Council and now Kerry joins Meath, Waterford, South Dublin and Wicklow councils in expanding the scheme.

Funding for the initiative comes from the Higher Education Authority, with the national pilot designed to foster collective learning between local authorities.

Focused on communities, it is hoped the initiative will encourage local innovation and creativity in tackling the threat of climate change.

Helena McMahon Director of the IKC3 Project at MTU added: "This is the second rollout of our Community Climate Innovation Programme, following a successful pilot with Laois County Council in 2023. The energy and leadership shown by those in our own communities is remarkable.

“Kerry has an incredible strong foundation of community-led climate action. We are excited to learn from participants here as we work together to co-design effective responses to the climate challenge."