SUMMER PLANTERS
This week with the promise of brighter days, our workers began preparing the planters for the summer. They have all been washed, sterilized and fitted with new wicks.
CRANFORD PINES
Twelve bags of leaves were removed from under the trees at Cranford Pines this week. These were later taken to the Allotment where they were placed in the Compost Bays.
MAIN STREET
As part of our ongoing Spring Cleaning the beds at the entrance to the Old Square were tidied up. They look so much better now after this work.
BALLINCOLLIG TRAILS
Last Saturday the Two Pats were busy once again. This time they put up the new signs to identify the various walking trails throughout the Regional Park. These will make a difference to thousands of people who use the park.
LITTER PICKS
There was a great turnout for the weekly litter pick last Sunday. Twenty-two Volunteers and 5 Transition Year students gathered for the hour. Because of the numbers we were able to cover a lot of ground.
The Transition Year students worked under Denis’ guidance. Litter was light which was good to see.
Several litter picks were carried out during the week and when the litter collected was added to Sunday’s amount there were 11 bags in total and 1 bag of Glass.
Later, while our hardworking Volunteers enjoyed a well-deserved cuppa at the Plaza, some people thought nothing about throwing litter on Main Street. Such a Shame.
SAVE THE DATE
International Learning City Seminar will be held on Friday, March 31st from 9.15am to 1pm in the Triskel Christchurch, off the Grand Parade.
The event is a great opportunity for Learning Cities from around Europe and the United States to share success stories in an energising format allowing for active exchanges between presenters and attendees.
Learning City Presentations will include inputs from:
UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning
UNESCO Chair for Global Health Education – Clermont – Ferrand, France,
ASEM Asia Europe Lifelong Learning Hub
European partners
Austin, and Lowell USA,
Irish Network of Learning Cities
Cork Lifelong Learning partners
The event will conclude at 1pm with a light lunch, teas and coffees.
Please ensure you REGISTER by Monday 27th March by emailing info@corklearningcity.ie and advise if you have any assistance or special dietary requirements.
This event is just one of over 370 individual events in the Cork Lifelong Learning Festival. People are invited to explore all the online listings, that can be found at https://corklearningfestival.ie/
WEEDS
Thursday our Workers were busy removing weeds from both kerb and road at Coolroe Meadows.
TREE WEEK
Why not join Wild Work and Ballincollig Tidy Towns to celebrate Tree Week!
In this family friendly event we will learn about identifying and ageing trees and all about the secret lives of trees. We would love you to help us map some of the significant trees in Ballincollig.
Taking place in Ballincollig Regional Park, meeting in the Western Can Park.
Spaces limited – please book on Eventbrite: https://ballincollig_tree_week.eventbrite.ie
CHANGING GEARS
Age & Opportunity is delighted to be offering Changing Gears in Cork for free this April and May. Designed to boost wellbeing and resilience, it is a five-session in-person course funded by HSE Ireland that focuses on managing transitions in mid to later life. Changing Gears offers participants (aged 50+) time to:
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Develop skills and techniques to build resilience and confidence in managing life-changes or transitions.
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Reframe transitions in their lives as opportunities with positive options, challenging negative stereotypes about ageing.
The programme allows participants to reflect on challenges they have experienced in the past and life-lessons they have learned. In this way strategies for building resilience and managing change draw on personal experience to create a more positive and fulfilling future. Sessions cover: Life Transitions (Up to Now); Building Resilience (Here and Now); and Mapping the future (Where to from Here).
Venue: The Metropole, Cork Dates: Thurs 13, 20, 27 April and 4, 11 May 2023
Times: 11 am – 1.00 pm
To book a place on this programme, please e-mail Fiona at @. Please note this programme has been funded by the HSE and is free of charge. Participation requires attendance at each of the five sessions (please do not book a place if you cannot attend on these dates). Bookings will be made on a first come first served basis.
DISABILITY PARTICIPATION & AWARENESS FUND
A new €3m Disability Participation and Awareness Fund has been announced by Rethink Ireland in partnership with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, which aims to enhance the lives of people with disabilities.
Rethink Ireland is making an open call for applications to innovative non-profit organisations working to support people with disabilities in communities across Ireland including charities, community groups and social enterprises.
Applications for the 2023 Disability Participation and Awareness Fund will be open until 31 March.
Link
WORKSHOP PROGRAM 2023
The National Biodiversity Data Centre workshop program is open for bookings for 2023. Workshops are a great way of getting “hands on” experience with species identification and monitoring.
Workshops will be led either by an external expert or a Data Centre staff member. Bookings are now being taken for::
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Monitoring and identifying bumblebees for beginners
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Ireland’s Wildlife for beginners
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An introduction to Ireland’s dragonflies and damselflies
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Identifying and monitoring Ireland’s butterflies
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Introduction to Ireland’s grass identification
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An introduction to Ireland’s decomposers: carrion beetles (Silphidae)
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Ireland’s native tree and shrub species
There will be more workshops announced later in the year.
LAUNCH OF THE IRISH STOAT SURVEY
The Irish Stoat Survey invites the public to report sightings of the Irish Stoat throughout Ireland. Any observations of stoats, including live animals or dead specimens such as roadkill are welcome. Despite the fact that the Irish stoat is believed to have been continually present on the island of Ireland for at least 12,500 years, there is little reliable information on its population. They are elusive mammals, who are rarely seen, and who leave few field tracks and signs, such as hair or droppings. They often avoid the standard monitoring methods used for other mammals.
The subspecies of Irish stoat differs from other stoats in the rest of Europe because it does not turn white in winter, and the line dividing the chestnut-coloured upper fur and the creamy-coloured fur on its belly is usually irregular. However, like all stoats, it has a distinctive black tip to its tail, a long sinuous body, short legs and a flattened head. There are no weasels in Ireland, so the stoat fills the niche occupied by both species in other places.
The survey is a collaborative project between Vincent Wildlife Trust, National Biodiversity Data Centre, University of Galway and the Centre for Environmental Data and Recording (Northern Ireland). Financial assistance for this survey was provided by the Irish Environmental Network and National Parks and Wildlife Service.
Records can be entered through Ireland’s Citizen Science Portal, linked here
SUNNINGDALE
Tuesday Adrian and Jimmy continued cleaning the base of the old stone wall at Sunningdale. Their work has certainly made a difference. They estimate it will take another three days to complete.
Earlier in the day they spent time cleaning the flowerbed and entrance to Cleburne Mews. They removed 4 bags of weeds and leaves from the area.
