Welcome to the iCommunity News Quarterly

iCommunity celebrated its first year on Tuesday (6 December) and after another year of deepening global crises, with the impact felt by communities across our shared island, we want to celebrate examples of all-island collaboration that are helping to address some these challenges.

In this, the first issue of our new quarterly newsletter, we share how iCommunity co-created a new vision for how the community and voluntary sector can address the challenges of our time on our shared island.

In this issue:

• We highlight examples of collaboration and ideas from other contributors to iCommunityhub.org
• We signpost funding opportunities
• And give you a few sources of inspiration including a piece by a young writer from Fighting Words NI.

The iCommunity project is supported by the Shared Island Unit in the Department of the Taoiseach, the Department of Foreign Affairs Reconciliation Fund, and the Northern Ireland Executive’s Department for Communities.

You have received this newsletter because you have expressed an interest in the iCommunity project. This is the first issue of iCommunity’s new quarterly newsletter. If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, please use the unsubscribe link at the bottom of this newsletter, or by informing us at icommunitysharedhub@wheel.ie.

Taoiseach Announces Over €50m in New Funding for Shared Island Programmes

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has announced over €50 million to deliver a new suite of Shared Island programmes. He outlined the funding allocations as part of a speech at the 2nd Shared Island Forum at Dublin Castle on Monday (5 December 2022). This brings the total allocated from the fund during the past two years to over €190 million.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney said, “My Department remains strongly supportive of and actively involved in the Shared Island initiative and I particularly welcome the allocation of €2m to support a new Shared Island Civic Society Fund in the Department of Foreign Affairs. This funding scheme will complement the vital work that is already supported through my Department’s Reconciliation Fund to promote North-South cooperation and enhance cross-border civic, economic, cultural, and political links across the island.”

We Celebrate Our First Year with a Success Story

On Monday (5 December), the day before iCommunity’s 1^st birthday, program Director Suzie Cahn took part in a panel discussion at the 2nd Shared Island Forum in Dublin Castle. The theme of the discussion was “the Shared Island initiative in action”, and Suzie outlined the many achievements of the iCommunity project during its first year.

Only a few months ago, on 3 October, the Taoiseach and the former Northern Ireland Minister for Communities within the Northern Ireland Executive, Deirdre Hargey launched iCommunity: A Vision for Addressing Challenges on our Shared Island, a synthesis of many conversations with communities across the island. The vision identifies that civil society stakeholders are keen not only to continue advancing their contribution in both jurisdictions but how they wish to do so on a shared island basis. It sets out what is needed to increase all-island collaboration on shared challenges, including inequality highlighted by the pandemic, climate justice, SDGs and the biodiversity crisis, sustainable rural development, social enterprise, and digital inclusion and remote work.

Watch highlights from the event below.

Across Divides Podcast - Featured Episode

We invited guests from across the island’s regions and jurisdictions to explore the challenges faced by communities. These conversations were rich with perspectives from a diversity of ages and traditions, abilities and genders, and experiences from engaging on issues such as mental health in a post-conflict context, rural isolation across the island, digital poverty, the biodiversity activists, climate change, justice and equality, inclusion, and cross-community work.

iCommunity On Voice of West Cork Podcast 

The Director of the iCommunity Project, Suzie Cahn recently spoke to the Voice of West Cork Podcast about the project’s goals and achievements to date, and she highlighted how civil society organisations can support the project. iCommunity supports community and voluntary sector organisations in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland to showcase, and develop all-island collaborative initiatives.

All Island Resilience Conference

The inaugural All-Island Resilience Conference took place on 9 November. This conference is the first in a series of annual Disaster Risk Reduction Conference series hosted by the Office of Emergency Planning (ROI) and as part of the government’s Shared Island Initiative. This series of conferences will promote dialogue on strategic emergency management and commission research to inform cross-border cooperation on preparedness and resilience. 

A research funding call was announced at the conference on cross-border aspects to emergency planning and cooperation. Details of how to apply for the announced research grants and how much funding is available can be found on the Office of Emergency Planning website, or you can email the Office of Emergency Planning using the following email address: mconference@drr.gov.ie.

Transboundary Action Learning Exchange (TalX)

TalX is an excellent example of shared learning for those acting on climate change adaptation across boundaries. The TalX conference, which took place on 24 November, saw more than 80 people in person and online discussing the benefits of partnership working as part of its work to establish communities of practise from across the five jurisdiction areas of Ireland, Northern Ireland, England Scotland and Wales.  TalX is funded by the Irish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that seeks to develop best practice for processes that empower national, sectoral and local decision-makers on a transboundary scale. The Talx resource page has a series of inspiring case examples of local climate adaptation approaches from a cork coastal community to a Belfast greenway.

Funding Alert: Shared Island Community Climate Action (Strand 1a)

A total of €3 million is being provided by the Republic of Ireland’s Shared Island Fund to support cross-border and all-island community climate action initiatives as an integrated part of the Community Climate Action Programme. Strand 1a enables communities and local authorities to run cross-border projects, working with counterparts in Northern Ireland. Strand 1a projects will address the same five themes as Strand 1 and must have a clear North/South basis, with a cross-border partnership approach and impact.

Funding Alert: Co-op Foundation: Carbon Innovation Fund (All-island)

Launched in 2021, the scheme runs for three years. Their Carbon Innovation Fund will support projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and could be related to one of the following: Farming and food production practices, Initiatives around regenerative agriculture/agro-ecology, Community supported agriculture initiatives, Supporting diversity, resilience and learning amongst key players in the food & farming sector, and Behaviour change (among consumers or producers). 
Closing for applications at 12pm (midday) on Friday 10 December, the fund welcomes applications from around the world.

Funding Alert: Rural Action Awards

Rural Action Awards are aimed at rural community-based organisations in Northern Ireland or the border region of Ireland £1000 or €1000 towards one volunteer-led community action project. The scheme is designed to support up to 12 volunteer-led community action projects up to March 2023. The scheme is open to constituted rural community-based organisations including charities, not for profit community groups, sporting and cultural organisations, heritage groups, Parent Teacher Associations, youth groups/clubs, and social enterprises. Applications must be submitted by 20th of each month to be considered for funding and applications will remain valid for 3 months up to the final allocation in March 2023.

Opinion: Why True Engagement is Vital for Success

Emma Shaw is a community activist, researcher and blogger who has said, “I can think of nothing better than being the conduit for giving voice to Loyalist women”. Her research focuses on underachievement in education, especially among low-income students. She was a guest on Across Divides and we approached her to tell us more about her research interest and why true engagement is needed for communities to thrive.

She writes that “The legacies of this place we call home are complex and woven into the fabric of our identity. Each village, town and city have their own history and at times competing narratives, especially around history and politics but it is those very same communities that want to thrive and see the next generations benefit from peace. It is these community members who are best placed to know and understand what the needs of their community are…”

Poetry: Fighting Words NI

Two talented young poets Fighting Words NI’s Write Club, recited from their work at the launch of iCommunity’s vision on 3 October in Dublin. Here is a contribution from Kaila Patterson (pictured above on the left with Hilary Copeland Director of Fighting Words NI and Taoiseach  Micheál Martin TD). 

Can We Say We Tried
By Kaila Patterson

We can say we tried,
To end this global feud,
Our own planet died,
Earth won’t be renewed.

The ignite of blazing fire,
Splitting the evergreen,
Burning hope started to tire,
When our fight went unseen,
The world crumbled beneath,
While we stomped on ground,
Yelling through gritted teeth,
Still, not a sound.

We called on the politicians,
The directors of the sphere,
They nod to our mission,
Yet they can’t see our fear,
A question struck my thought,
I lowered my cardboard poster,
Was there worth in what I sought?

When the end was coming closer,
As the globe dissolved,
We witnessed the fall,
Rising waves, sun evolved,
The leaders did nothing at all,
There wasn’t a Planet Two,
When our world was set ablaze,
There was no campaign to do,
When we ran-out of days,
Tell history we are accountable,
For how our planet died,
When the end was stoppable,
We can’t say we tried.

Fighting Words NI collaborate on an all-island basis and have a North South Youth Advisory Panel called Guthanna Óga -  Young Voices whose Manifesto is called Fight for the Write!

'We will Empower Young Writers on the Island of Ireland and Nurture their Creative Self-Expression, especially as they grow up with decreasing opportunities to do creative things. We will Connect up young writers and provide a Supportive, Positive Atmosphere that Protects Creative Headspace, where everyone can be Different, can be Themselves; where success is not academic or economic, but on their Own Individual Terms; where creative writing is not just a dream or a fantasy but an Enriching, Empowering and Important Path through Life.'

If you'd like to get in touch with the iCommunity team with any queries, suggestions or ideas, we'd love to hear from you. 

Please email Ciara Lowe for more: ciaralowe@wheel.ie.