Minister Ryan launches funding support for community climate engagement

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan has announced a new funding campaign called ‘Climate Actions Work’. This small-scale fund is designed to provide flexible support for community groups who want to spread the word in their area about climate actions they are taking or want to take.  

The fund will start with a sum of € 1 million to be distributed to groups throughout the rest of this year and into the next and will be administered by Community Foundation Ireland. The fund is intended to financially support community groups which are often volunteer run and to support vital activities which might not otherwise be funded for example event organisation, developing leaflets and information material, climate advocacy, social media campaigns and working with other groups to take on bigger projects.  

In conjunction with this fund a training programme and toolkit will be made available to participating community groups to enable them to effectively develop and deliver their projects.  

The fund will be available for applications under 3 strands – Community Awareness, Community Engagement and Community Activation. Applications opened on the 2nd of September and will close on the 4th of October.  

More information on applications and eligibility is available here 

Speaking at the launch of the ‘Climate Actions Work’ fund, 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. What’s often difficult is talking about that and spreading the word in a way that will encourage others to get involved. This fund will help communities and organisations come together to discuss how climate change is affecting them and what are the most suitable actions they can take.”