Over 100 events are set to take place across the country as part of ‘National Biodiversity Week 2022’, which is coordinated by the Irish Environmental Network, funded by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, and supported by the Heritage Council’s network.
The initiative, which takes place from place from Friday 13 May to Sunday 22 May, aims to engage the public in a range of nature-related activities, including whale spotting, bat walks, dawn and dusk choruses, plant identification events, bioblitzes and creating community wildlife gardens. The full programme is available on www.biodiversityweek.ie.
National Biodiversity Week will be launched by Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform, Malcolm Noonan, the Irish Environmental Network’s Chief Operating Officer Justin Byrne, and Heritage Council CEO Virginia Teehan at Enniscoe House on the shores of Lough Conn in Co. Mayo today.
Welcoming the launch, Minister Noonan said:
“National Biodiversity Week is a great opportunity for people of all ages and backgrounds to get out into nature and learn how to make space for it in our own communities. It’s also a fantastic way of meeting new people and engaging with some of the brilliant organisations involved in biodiversity conservation around the country. I’d like to commend the Irish Environmental Network for coordinating such a diverse and interesting programme of events.”
Irish Environmental Network Chief Operating Officer Justin Byrne said:
“After 2 years of a pandemic, we have seen our relationship with nature shift. We have observed first-hand how healing and essential time in nature is to us all. From the beauty of spotting wildflowers on a walk to the joy of observing a bird in your backyard, the diversity of our flora and fauna keeps our eyes, mind and hearts open and full of wonder. This day-to-day observation and experience of nature is humbling and necessary. If walks in nature, listening to birdsong or spotting marine life, is not something you are used to, National Biodiversity Week would be the perfect occasion to start. Building a stronger knowledge of and cultivating an appreciation for our biodiversity is something everyone can benefit from. But it is essential that this pleasure should not be taken for granted. We have a lot to be grateful for within our natural environment and this gratitude should propel action to help preserve and sustain these ecosystems, which sustain our very lives as we know them.”
Virginia Teehan, CEO of the Heritage Council, commented:
“Looking through the events available to the public throughout National Biodiversity Week, I am struck by the ingenuity of organisers, with each event offering something new and exciting for people to enjoy, no matter where they are. I would like to thank the heritage volunteers and professionals who are once again making themselves available to showcase the wonderful biodiversity on offer across the country, and I encourage anybody with an interest in any form of nature to get out and enjoy some events.”
