Community Response: Planning For Future Flood Events
On November 14th at the Mall Arts Centre from 6 – 9pm, Youghal’s Blue & Green Network climate action project Pathways: Building Community Climate Resilience hosts its final event – a public meeting at which expert speakers and local community members come together to discuss how a community-based flooding resilience plan can be developed.
There is an open invitation to all walks of people in Youghal and the Network hopes that people will welcome the opportunity to engage in discussions around what is needed to prepare and respond to flood events, which may increase as sea levels rise.
The discussion will be chaired by Aoife Deane of MaREI, UCC and six panellists will give a short presentation. The panellists are Professor Robert Devoy of UCC; Jordan Delmar of Met Eireann, David Moran from the Office of Public Works, Veronica Santorum, lead artist with the Pathways project, Caroline Leahy from Midleton Flood Forum and local Councillor Mary Linehan Foley.
Pathways: Building Community Climate Resilience was funded through the Creative Climate Action Fund 2023, one of 24 Spark projects chosen nationwide to be supported by the Creative Ireland Programme and the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) The project aims to help Youghal adapt to climate change and be more resilient to flooding by using creative practices to open conversations, bring people together and to share learning. The Youghal Blue and Green Community Network is well placed for this work having representation from over 40 community organisations as well as many individual members and over 600 people have engaged in the project since its outset in November 2023. Textile and stencilling workshops, conversation walkshops in coastal locations and installations and actions on Claycastle beach have enabled access for a broad range of ages and backgrounds, bringing community together in an enjoyable, purposeful way.