Welcome to An Charraig, Arranmore’s latest newsletter. Failte Romhat go dti an Charraig The newsletter is to promote the island activities with a focus on its survival and Future Job Opportunities. The newsletter will promote community events, stories and an update for islanders at home and abroad so that we can remain attached wherever we are. We hope it will be a one stop shop for people interested in Arran, its way of life and promoting its future. The newsletter will include stories from abroad that may help the promotion of Arran and its longevity. It will link in with out, and out with in. Contact sgallagher@syspro.ie or 00353 85 8555792 or fb Shirley atsyspro. Issued on a quarterly basis and at present it is self funded by Shirley Gallagher, Editor, Adrian Begley, WebMaster

1. Welcome to An Charraig, Arranmore’s latest newsletter.
Failte Romhat go dti an Charraig
The newsletter is to promote the island activities with a focus on its survival and Future Job Opportunities. The newsletter
will promote community events, stories and an update for islanders at home and abroad so that we can remain attached wherever we are. We hope it will be a one stop shop for people interested in Arran, its way of life and promoting its future.
The newsletter will include stories from abroad that may help the promotion of Arran and its longevity. It
will link in with out, and out with in. Contact sgallagher@syspro.ie or 00353 85 8555792 or fb Shirley atsyspro. Articles not credited are written by Shirley Gallagher
Issued on a quarterly basis and at present it is self funded by
Shirley Gallagher, Editor, Adrian Begley, WebMaster
Inside this Issue
3
Public Health
Crisis
CoderDojo
4
Better
Energy
1
Communities
KickTrike
5
Gaeltacht Act
6
Foreshore plan7
ning
Island Council
7
Clonmany see
8
Red
Island Songbird
10
12
12
An Charraig has a Global
Distribu on‐LATEST
IE, UK, USA, ES, Ca, DE,
SE, DK, FR, GR, AU
>2000 views to date
150 ATTEND
PUBLIC
HEALTH
CRISIS
MEETING
SEAI Funding-Better Energy Communities-Coming Soon
SEAI is seeking partnerships, e.g. public and private sectors,
domes c and non‐domes c, commercial and not‐for‐profit,
for the delivery of energy efficiency measures.
€13.5 million is available for pro
jects in March 2014, Projects will
be required to be implemented
and completed by Fri‐
day 31st October 2014.
buíochas speisialta ár gcairde i Inis
Mór chun cuidiú
leis an BEC
PUBLIC INFORMATION MEETING
on Be er Energy Community Scheme
Wednesday 5th March 2014 at 4.00pm
Ionad an Chrois Bhealaigh
REDUCE COST, CARBON & Work with Energy
Group to achieve like Aran Is. €1 million savings
More on page 5
Edition 1
Marta 2014

2. An Charraig
Page 2
Continued from front page
HELP
with
Reducing
Bills
Now
Available
SysPro is submi ng a joint venture with CFFAM
and Energy Wise Consultants on behalf of the
island par cipants.
Energy Wise Consultants are building on their
knowledge from 2013 programme on the Aran
Islands recently broadcasted on Earth Horizons
‘Eco Eye’ with Duncan Stewart. Working with
local consultants to build on known issues
working on building from our strength as a
community.
FUNDING
Funding will be available from SEAI for 30—
100% funding depending on what is being re‐
quested and who for.
For example, for people on fuel allowance,
there is 100% funding available for certain
houses for certain products. For public build‐
ings, matched funding is required, therefore it is
important to reach out to funding bodies to
ensure our energy consump on can be re‐
duced. To ensure grant aid, different types of
buildings and uses will be required.
REQUIREMENTS
People and organisa ons wishing to get involved will
require a minimum of a year’s worth of energy data,
preferably 3 years data. A le er can be wri en to
the electricity supplier, and other suppliers on their
behalf. A er the retrofit of the building, the energy
data will be required for a further 3 years. This will
show us, SEAI and Europe the changes that have tak‐
en place as a result of posi ve ac on towards reduc‐
ing energy costs.
Community type projects which include domes c
upgrades on Energy Poor homes
As the SEAI are seeking innova ve and pioneering
partnerships for delivery between e.g. the public and
private sectors, domes c and non‐domes c sectors,
commercial and not‐for‐profit organisa ons and en‐
ergy suppliers, we believe we have a strong case to
act as a showcase for other communi es.
BEC 2013 PROJECTS
can be downloaded here.
2013 Area Based Programme can be downloaded
here.
WHAT CAN BE GRANT AIDED?
•
To register your interest in The Arainn Mhor Be er Energy Com‐
muni es 2014 Programme
please contact Shirley by or email sgallagher@syspro.ie
or a end the public informa on mee ng at
Insula on
•
Solar Panel
Heat/PhotoVoltaic
Ionad an Chrois Bhealaigh
Friends of the Earth (www.foe.ie) have began a European wide
project examining the challenges in crea ng Community Power.
Find out more at
www.communitypower.eu
•
Transport
•
Heat Pump
•
Wind Turbine
•
Wednesday 5th March 2014 at 4.00pm
Storage
See more at: h p://
www.seai.ie/Grants/Be er_Energy_Communi es/

3. An Charraig
Page 3
Adrian Begley
Reports
Ta si ag teacht
agus
nil si ag imeacht
She is coming
and
she is not going
Ta si ag fanacht!
‘She’s staying!
Island Fights Back As Public Health Nurse Job Saved By Local Action Group
The cartoon from Donegal Democrat was created by islander Chris Ward in the 1980’s regarding the
issue with the delay in the ferry pier, a ferry, ‘the Misneach’ was purchased in 1979. However on
Tuesday 28th January, the HSE has reversed its decision to replace the public health service Nurse
Susan Garvey on the island, a loss of service which was due to come into effect on Friday 31st Jan.
Local TD's Thomas Pringle (Ind) and Pearse Doherty (SF) visited the island on Monday morning the
27th, as well as RTE’s Eileen Magner who interviewed islanders Kathleen Boyle, Margaret Sweeney
and Jerry Early (RTE player Six-One News Mon 27th Jan 2014 at 32.50 minutes). An action group
was set up, chaired by Jerry Early, chairman of Comharchumann Oileán Árainn Mhór, one of the island's co-ops, to highlight concern for the welfare of the islands inhabitants who were strongly opposed to the HSE's initial decision.
Speaking after the Saturday meeting, Jerry Early said that ‘the strength of numbers at this evenings
meeting was a strong indication of the opposition there is of the HSE's plans and the campaign to
fight the loss would be stepped up. Arranmore Island has had this service since 1907 and it has been
and remains vital to the people of the island. We will in no way accept a reduction in this service and
we plan to fight tooth and nail to save our current service. This turnout we have seen shows how important the service is both to young children and the elderly, who will suffer if this plan goes ahead
as will many others including people in our community with physical disabilities and mental health
issues. The island population can swell to over 1500 at certain times of the year and to not have an
adequate healthcare support for the island is simply not acceptable.’
The online campaign of support indicated the community spread far and wide with its facebook page ‘Save Our Public Health Nurse Service’ with 1023 likes within 36 hours of setup.
The Public Health Nurse works mainly with the youth, the elderly and the long term/chronic illnesses
in a specific region. The ageing island’s population is close to 40% in comparison to the national
average of 11.8% and many of the elderly are in frequent contact with the Public Health Nurse.

4. An Charraig
Page 4
Happy Birthday to Coder Dojo Árainn Mhór by Séamus Ó Cnáimhsí
We are always looking for mentors who can spare an hour
or two to help out, there are quite a few island techies
about so call in for a spell, any help would be appreciated.
Also if there are any companies or individuals who would
like to sponsor some equipment such as Raspberry Pi Leap
Mo on or some USB lanyards for the children please get
in touch!
Telephone 07495 20024.
Seamus Bonner/Séamus Ó Cnáimhsí, Bainisteoir Chomhar‐
chumann Forbartha agus Fostaíochta Árainn Mhór,
CoderDojo Árainn Mhór passed its second birthday in
January, being one of the first dojos set up in the
country. The CoderDojo movement has since spread
far and wide and has branches around the world. The
dojo is a free, informal coding club which meets every
Saturday in Ionad an Chrois Bhealaigh from 1pm to
3pm where children aged 7 and upwards learn about
applications, coding, scripting, hardware, software,
interfaces and other fun stuff.
We have around 12-14 regulars and they have been
learning Scratch, HTML, Python, Raspberry Pi, UNIX
terminal commands and working with hardware. If you
would like to give it a try come along at 1pm on a Saturday.
Support Initiative by writing
letter of support
LATEST ON BROADBAND
Séamus Ó Cnáimhsí, Bain‐
isteoir Chomharchumann
Forbartha agus Fostaíochta
Árainn Mhór, Seamus Bon‐
ner, CFFAM supports high
speed RuralBroadband as a
result of losing 5 residents
due to the lack of adequate
facili es on the island. He
recently recorded an inter‐
view for ENGAGE‐Interreg
on the need for high speed
broadband for rural areas
& specifically islands,
h p://www.engage‐
interreg.eu
Clip h p://youtu.be/
neWlMu15taQ
The public authori es par‐
cipa ng in the project
developed a declara on to
affirm commitment to es‐
tablishing a digital infra‐
structure in Rural Eu‐
rope that meets the
ambi ons and needs of
its ci zens, businesses,
and public authori es.
If you share our vision
for the digital future of
all of European Union,
we invite you to give us
your support.
Sign up online ‐ EN‐
GAGE Manifesto
Bhí Seamus ag labhairt faoi go
bhfuil easpa seirbhís leathan
bhanda sásúil ag cur isteach go
mór ar dheiseanna fostaíochta
ar an Oileán.
RnG Link h p://www.rte.ie/radio/u ls/
radioplayer/rteradioweb.html#!
type=radio&rii=17%3A20514215%
3A1748%3A28%2D01%2D2014%3A

5. An Charraig
Page 5
Island gets a KickStart
By Shirley Gallagher
The German Constin patented KickTrike
was taken on a tour of Ireland in January. It travelled
accompanied by Mr Axel
Pohle from Cork to Dublin
Airport and onto Howth.
In Howth Yacht Club it
was the highlight of the
conference, entitled
‘Ammunition for Success’, which was hosted by
Tangible Ireland on
Thursday 9 th January
2014.
There were 13
speakers on a broad range
of topics including Nigerian
oil, Historical Irish Gun
running and the energy
project, ‘An Island Initiat i v e ’ .
Dr Gallagher explained
SMILEGOV, an Intelligent
Energy Europe funded
project.
SMILEGOV is
working together with
many islands including
Arranmore Island (Oilean
Arainn Mhor) to enable
islands to reach the European Union’s 20:20 vision. 20:20 means reducing
carbon emissions, increasing renewable energies by
20% by the year
2020. SMILEGOV is an
acronym for Smarter Multi Level Governance and
brings all stakeholders
around the table to envisage
the 20:20 objective, politicians at local, regional,
national and European level, investors, inventors and
communities.
This provides a scale not seen before on islands ranging
from Malta, Sicily and of
course
Arranmore.
Dr Shirley Gallagher presented the Island Initiative
big picture vision and was
followed by an exciting
enterprise using a battery
pack system called
GreenPack and electric
vehicles. Mr Axel Pohle, a
German designer, presented
the Kicktrike, highlighting the
ease of use by demonstrating
its capability. Many were
most impressed at the ease of
use as well as GreenPack
battery replacement and the
clean lines and robust feel of
the
KickTrike.
cle. There were many questions; the most frequent was
‘how much is it?’ followed
by ‘how far can it go?’,
‘how long does the battery
last?’ ‘Where can I get
one?’ The term ‘boys and
their toys’ was used freq u e n t l y !
There was time to check out
the view at Howth summit
before travelling cross country to Ardee, Co Louth before
arriving in Burtonport, Co
Donegal. There was a contingent (20 delegates) of Donegal County Council, the local
authority waiting and many
test-drove the KickTrike prior
to taking the ferry onto the
island. Island leaders were
waiting to trial the electric
vehicle with many being dubious about its ability to manage the hills. Arranmore has
a number of hills which are
not high but have steep gradients ranging from 4065%. Whilst they proved
challenging and needed some
assistance from Axel, the
KickTrike is after all a scooter, it was capable of both hills
tested including the school
and Jimmy Wards. In total,
30 islanders tried the KickTrike for ease of use. There
was excitement in the meeting
which increased significantly
when handling the vehi-
The prototype is well made,
sturdy and strong, the large
standing board allows the
user to use it like a snow
board and yet it is safe and
comfortable to use on
roads. During the test drive
it sustained 30kph from the
top of the school brae (hill)
until the base of Jimmy
Wards; this confirms the
manufacturers guide in the
brochure. Island cars generally drive at this pace as the
roads are narrow and there
are many children, cyclists
and walkers on the
road. Many were surprised
that the KickTrike could be
compacted so that it can fit
into most cars.
The
demonstration concluded
with many disappointed with
not having seen it.
The feasibility of building
KickTrikes in Ireland is
being examined and targeted. The return trip to Cork
brought the KickTrike to a
final demonstration for a
Procurement Manager of a large
multinational company based in
Galway. Investors are required
for the next stage in the KickTrike’s life and it is envisaged
that ß testing a bank of KickTrikes on the island of Arranmore will provide a platform
for other islands to follow suit
providing a beacon for the rest of
the world in our push towards a
lean, green economy.
Check out Group
SUSTAINABLE islands on
facebook/Linkedin
FUNDING TO KICKST
ART
THE KICKTRIKE FU
ND WAS
REFUSED BY DONE
GAL
COUNTY COUNCIL RE
PRESENTATIVES WHEN
DEVELOPMENT FUND INIT
IATIVE
APPLICATION WAS
TURNED
DOWN ON 3RD MARC
H 2014.

6. Page 6
An Charraig
Acht na Gaeltachta 2012 by Nóirín Uí Mhaoldomhnaigh
Shínigh an tUachtarán Acht na Gael‐
an teanga atá in údáid sa phobal. Go
tachta 2012 ar an 25 Iúil 2012. Faoi
d seo bhí stádas Gaeltachta
Acht na Gaeltachta 2012, beidh leas‐
bunaithe ar ceantair nó teorainn
uithe a ndéanamh ar an mhiniú a bhe‐
faoi leith. Beidh an phleanáil teanga
as ann feasta don Ghaeltacht agus
ag leibhéal an phobail lárnach má tá
beidh leasuithe a gcur i bhfeidhm i
ceantair atá aitheantas Gaeltachta
dtaca le struchtúr agus feidhmeanna
acu faoi láthair ag iarraidh an stádas
Údarás na Gaeltachta. Beidh an Ghael‐
Gaeltachta atá acu a chosaint. Beidh
tacht bunaithe ar chritéir theageolaío‐
ar an phobal plean teanga a ullmhú
cha seachas ar limistéir thíreolaíocha
agus é a chur faoi bhráid an Aire. Má
mar a bhí go d seo. Cialaíonn seo go
ghlactar leis an phlean, beidh dul
mbeidh stádas Gaeltachta bunaithe ar
chun cinn an pobail i dtaca leis na
spriocanna teanga a bheas ann a
mheas ag an Aire Tugann Acht na
Gaeltachta 2012 feidhm reachtúil
don Údarás I dtaca le cur i bhfeidhm
na Straitéise 20 Bliain don Ghaeilge
2010‐2030 sa Ghaeltacht. Go d seo,
tá sé curtha in iúl ag beagnach leath
den phobal ar an oileán gur mhian
leo bheith páirteach sa phróiseas
pleanála teanga.
The Gaeltacht Act 2012 by Nóirín Uí Mhaoldomhnaigh
The Gaeltacht Act 2012 was
mi ed to the Minister for approval.
signed by the President on 25 July 2012.
Following the acceptance by the
In accordance with the Gaeltacht Act
Minister of the plan the progress of
2012, the future boundaries of the Gael‐
the community in rela on to lan‐
tacht will no longer be determined by
guage goals will be assessed. Údarás
geographical areas, but by the language
na Gaeltachta, is the statutory agen‐
of use of the community. Amendments
cy for the implementa on of the 20
will also be made in terms of the struc‐
Year Strategy for the Irish language
ture and func ons of Údarás na Gael‐
in the Gaeltacht 2010‐2030 . To
tachta. In the future , language planning
date, almost half of island residents
at community level will be vital in areas
have expressed an interest in par c‐
where the community wish to retain the
ipa ng in the language planning
current Gaeltacht status of the island.
process.
www.sustainableislands.eu
An Intelligent Energy Europe Ini ‐
a ve
GET IN CONTACT
According to the Gaeltacht Act, a lan‐
AND WATCH THIS
guage plan must be prepared and sub‐
SPACE
Services provided by this new
island based business includes
both commercial and domes c
cleaning and power washing
Please call Thomas
M: 0878608776.

7. Page 7
An Charraig
SuperTrawler-Coming to a Coastline near YOU!
The Lithuanian vessel, the Margaris (KL‐855) entered Irish waters approx. 60 nau cal
miles (nm) south of Cork. She is heading WSW to area outside the Irish 200nm limit
where Norwegian fleet are currently ac ve in the Blue Whi ng fishery. Lithuania
have a quota for 120 tonnes Mackerel in this area (ICES V, VII, VIIa,b,d,e) along with
a quota swap giving them 5000 tonnes of Blue Whi ng in ICES XI‐XIV. . Contacts The
Skipper for News and Updates
Foreshore Development Planning Permission - by Nóirín Uí Mhaoldomhnaigh
DCC Planning file no 13/51531
a place
A Natura Impact Statement is now required by Donegal Co Co to as‐
sess the impact the proposed development of the shorefront at Lea‐
bgarrow
may
have
on
the
area.
Any proposal that may impact on a Special Protec on Area (SPA) or
Special Area of Conserva on (SAC) must be subject to a screening
process to see whether an Appropriate Assessment is required.
If an impact on an SPA or SAC cannot be ruled out at screening stage
then an Appropriate Assessment must be carried out. These assess‐
ments are wri en up and provided to a planning authority as a Natu‐
ra Impact Statement.
we can
ISLAND COUNCIL
It is proposed that the
economic, cultural and rec-
on Muntir na Tire council
reational based on participa-
concept
(www.muintir.ie).
together
To unite Irish communities in a spirit of community
service, neighbourliness and self reliance in working for
the common good.
To promote the welfare of the Irish people through an
organisation that is non party political and non sectional.
To foster a sense of responsibility to the needs and problems of the local community and to devise programmes
of action and development particularly those based on co
promote the welfare of their
up in 1937, it was designed
play
tion of people themselves to
This movement that was set
work and
Objectives of Council
1.
of rural Ireland in social,
island council will be based
live,
own community.
2.
3.
to raise the standard of living
SAVE THE DATE
James O'Neill, Muin r
na Tire and John Walsh,
Chairman of Irish Islands
Federa on/Comhdháil
Oileáin na hÉireann from
Bere Island are coming to
the island to share their
knowledge and experience
of crea ng community coun‐
cils. This is a result of SMILE‐
GOV ini a ve, that Arainn is
considering se ng up an
29th MARCH 2014
Island Council based on
Muin r
It is believed it will unite the
community in a spirit of
community service, neigh‐
bourliness and self reliance
in working for the common
good. It will promote wel‐
fare through an organisa on
that is non party poli cal
and non sec onal. The coun‐
ISLAND COUNCIL DISCUSSION
cil will foster a sense of re‐ Bere Island, who have ran an
sponsibility to the needs and elected island council since
problems of the local com‐ 2004.
munity and to devise pro‐
Further
grammes of ac on and de‐
Infor‐
velopment par cularly those
ma on
based
on
co‐
opera on. Both Munster
men, James and John will
iwww.muintir.ie
answer any queries and ex‐
www.bereisland.net
plore the op ons. John will
share his experience from

8. An Charraig
Page 8
Edward Gallagher worked hard
training for the last number of
months along with his Clon‐
many teammates to achieve a
World class perfomance in in‐
door tugowar.
RED ISLANDER BRINGS
HOME GOLD FOR CLONCongratula ons to Edward Mary Eddie ‘RED’ Gal‐
lagher on winning the World Championship
TugoWar with Clonmany in Castlebar, Co Mayo in
February 2013
Red said ‘it’s nice to come home with this lot!!! had
the me of my life at the world championships, it
will stay with me forever’.
WELCOME PARTY In Killeen's on EASTER Monday
To Edward and Clonmany B Team from 2pm
Clodagh Barry raises funds
riding from Arainn to Malin
BAILE SAOIRE STAFF VACANCY
The vacancy for cleaner/caretaker is be‐
ing re‐adver sed as there were no appli‐
ca ons for the posi on. Hours of work
will include evenings and weekends. Up
to 25 hours per week. Rate of pay: up to
€15.00 per hour for applicant with rele‐

9. Page 9
An Charraig
Photo Restoration
By Moira O’Brien
Photographs often become damaged with age (fading, spots, etc) or with handling (tears, scratches,
stains etc) and most of these problems can be overcome by scanning the photo and digitally reconstructing the image to produce a new enhanced print.
Photograph © 1930 Mickey Chait Ward, na Thuarrai with Nappy Kelly on their engagement day at her house,
Upper Leabgarrow. Patsy and Maureen Mc Glanaghey live there now.
This is a badly damaged photo taken from another photo with tears, creases and general degradation of the surface of the photo.
The most important part of the photo are the faces and that was the hardest part because of the severe damage. The creases and tears are relatively easy to reconstruct though it is time consuming.
The faces however are a problem as there is a lack of information in the photo to determine what
they should look like, so great care has to be taken in redrawing the features. From a photo taken 40
years later I was able to get the shape and main details of the faces.
Moira O’ Brien has been taking photographs for some 45 years having started with a box Brownie
camera in the late 1950's. On the introduction of digital photography, it became a passion. Moira has
been a professional photographer since 2003.
Prices for start from €25 for a simple restoration including the restored print together with an jpeg
electronic copy plus post and packaging.
In order to give an estimate of cost I need to see a copy of the photo from which I can give a guide
price. Please contact for further information by
E: moira@moiraobrien.com M: 087 621 4532
W: www.moiraobrien.com
Facebook page Moirajane
Twitter MOBPhoto

10. An Charraig
Page 10
Island Song Bird, Brighdin Carr with 'Foireann Brí' sings ‘Ar an Oileain’ in National Championadults. Co-operative games and mixing with one
another is first priority, our kids and families tend to
be all about inclusion, acceptance and teamwork.
This means that I've been lucky, getting to work
with amazing talented children, and now lately,
adults too, who not only sound and look good, but
have a great camaraderie - they all look out for one
another, and motivate each other to perform well.
Pan Celtic is a festival between the six celtic nations of Brittany, Manx, Scotland,
Wales, Cornwall and Ireland. The National
competition is in Carlow. Where one song
will be chosen to represent Ireland which
will then compete in the International final
on the Thursday after Holy Week in the
Millennium Forum, Derry.
Brighdin Carr first won the Pan Celtic with
‘Seolfaidh mé abhaile’ in 2006. Interestingly, Frances Boyle (Dungloe) was drafted
in to play the bodhrán, her Mother is from
also from Arran Bina (Charlie Mickey)
Gallagher. Her new song is written about
the island ‘Ar an Oileain’.
In her own words by Brighdin Carr
My dance and drama club, the Blue Ribbon
Arts Club was founded after Nikki died as a
coping mechanism for the kids in the
school, I set it up as an affordable hobby
where kids could explore and find their
niche. Our ethos is 'team' which is why
'Foireann Brí' is suitable for our Pan Celtic
group, which comprises of Blue Ribbon
There was a documentary on BBC World as a result
of winning the competition. We played live on Ardán on RTE in 2006. We have sang and danced our
way from Camp Gleo, Arranmore to Harringay,
London, to Paris Eurodisney and Irish pubs there, to
San Remo Italy in Global Education Festival theatre
show We have danced in Pineapple London, Helix,
Dublin and regularly perform at Junction one, Belfast, but the highlight is always Arranmore in the
Summer. I hadn't been back for 16 years since my
Gran moved to Letterkenny after John's death, but
my son was relentless in his desire to see the place I
was always talking about. He wanted to explore my
cove on Chapel Strand, and see for himself the rock
in the middle of the sea which I called my island, .
Blue Ribbon Arts has produced 6 CDs for charity
and this Christmas, featured on Shaun Doc's Christmas Eve show with my song 'Just Believe'
I was a full time teacher who
took a career break to write the
music programme for national
schools, 'Ready to Rock' , published by CJ Fallon, a kind of
'Music for Dummies' programme
of which I am really proud.
There's lots of local children
singing on the cds involved, a
good mix of Irish and English material, and more
importantly, it was an opportunity to write original
material aimed for children.
Speaking of family, my mum is Kathleen Greene,
daughter of Mickey Greene and Bridget Kelly.
There were eight in her family, Hughie, Patrick,
Mick, Eddie, John, Kathleen, Madge and Annie.

11. An Charraig
Page 11
Donegals Island Fishermen Moving Forward-Le Cheile By Adrian Begley
tainable to safety. The meeting also discussed ways of moving
forward and from that it was decided that the group would
form to become an organisation so that Donegals native islanders and people living on the islands who had an interest in
the fishing industry could join together and work for their
common goal. “Following on from the report we are very positive that the government and the EU have an interest in seeing
our communities survive now” Mr Early said. “The ban on
salmon fishing has had a huge and negative effect on the islands communities and has caused both job losses and the
forced emigration of our youth in search of work who in the
past would have stayed at home and made a living from fishing.
Arranmore fisherman Neily Kavanagh explaining the nature
of
the
islands
waters
to
Ian
MacKinnon
(photo. fieryspirits.com)
A meeting of Donegals island fishermen was held on
Sunday (23rd Feb) on Arranmore Island to discuss sustainability of the industry and ideas for moving forward in the sector. The meeting came in the wake of a
recent report by the Joint Sub-Committee on Fisheries
which looked at promoting sustainable rural coastal
and island communities.
The meeting which seen up to 50 fishermen in attendance from different Donegal islands was called by an
action group made up of people who work in the industry which had formed several years ago following a
ban on salmon fishing that had a detrimental effect on
the coastal communities of Donegal.
Speaking following the
meeting, spokesperson for
the group and Arranmore
Islander Jerry Early said
he was very heartened by
both todays meeting and
the report by the Joint Sub
-Committee on Fisheries.
“Todays turnout at the
meeting just goes to show
the passion with which
the fishing communities
on Donegals islands have
for what is not only their
industry but their way of life. Their support to protect
it and indeed see it grow shows that we can have great
hope for the future and the content of the recent report
by the Joint Sub-Committee also gives us great hope
for the future” Mr Early said.
The meeting, held in Ionad an Chrois Bhealaigh and
which went through the contents of the report seen
much positive interaction from those attending and the
topics discussed ranged from making the industry sus-
“It means a lot to us that the report acknowledges that the decisions made in the past by our governments in relation to fishing have had a detrimental effect on Donegals islands and we
appreciate the fact that the authors of the report seem willing
to help us re-bulid our communities once more.
“The islands fishermen have always known the importance of
how marine protection and sustainability of our industry go
hand in hand and we are glad that the report also acknowledges that our community organising within itself to make that
sustainability happen is the way forward. The report has come
from the continued efforts of those in our community who
have fought long and hard for several years for the government
to recognise us and our requirements for survival. It has been a
long hard road of meetings, both at local, national and European level. It has involved many people, not just the fishermen,
but supporters within our communities and everyone from
those who made space available to us to have meetings and
those who simply showed up to make tea and show support.
But despite many knock backs and dark days everyone stuck
with it and we now see a light at the end of the tunnel.”
Concluding, speaking of the new organisation called 'Donegal
Islands Marine Resource Organisation' (DIMRO) Mr Early
said “DIMRO, the organisation of Donegals island fishermen
we have formed, will continue on now to build our industry
back up and continue to fight for the rights of our fishermen,
their families and communities and we hope that other fishing
communities will follow suit and if so we really look forward
to engaging with them also and building an even bigger support base for the fishing industry and ensuring the sustainability of that industry and our marine resources.”

12. An Charraig
Page 12
SMILEGOV UPDATE BY SHIRLEY GALLGHER
The island of Arranmore in Co
Donegal has a programme of
measures to ensure that it can
become independent of imported
energy, create and safeguard jobs
on the island and keep money in
the island economy.
The IEE funded project Smarter Multi Level Governance (SMILEGOV) is examining the major barriers to creating a low carbon society on islands. It is
bringing together the various stakeholders and the
multilevels of governance required to achieve the
EU target of 20% reduction in Carbon and 20% increase in renewable energies by the year 2020, ie
less than 6 years from now. The crux of the project
is to engage all stakeholders including islanders to
agree to the Pact of Islands. The pact asks for commitment to examine and agree an island energy action plan within 12 months of signing the document.
The project will showcase 50 projects during its
lifetime; we want to be one of those 50.
after the local elections in May.
We have a strategy to work with the media, including hopefully a year long fly on the wall documentary with TV3, close
contact
with
Irish
Radio
International
(www.irishradiointernational.com) and Rosses Radio http://
www.rossesradio.com/ and our blogspot An Charraig ) as well
as our facebook groups Sustainable Islands and Linkedin
Sustainable Islands as well as Twitter @shirleyatsyspro. The
hashtag is #cyclisle. There will be a series of academic papers
based on the journey culminating in a book. An international
TEDx conference with a theme of Sustainable Islands will take
place during Earagil Arts Festival in 2015 (www.ted.com).
There have been several presentations by Shirley Gallagher, on
the topic of island regeneration in the last year including the
following
Information Gathering. Dr Shirley Gallagher has
recently attended the Power Summit, CEF hosted
Energy Seminar, Erasmus+ European Educational
Funding, Education and the inspiring talk by
Alastair McIntosh "Spiritual Resilience and Community Empowerment". Where he spoke on climate
change being a major threat to planetary wellbeing
and how best to strengthen our natural and human
ecologies to be able to bounce back from unexpected knocks. Alastair McIntosh weaved his story
based on his work in Scotland with both rural land
reform and urban regeneration, forming the Isle of
Eigg Trust and GalGael in Govan, Glasgow.
We have engaged with Enterprise Ireland, Donegal
County Council, Leargas, Templederry Community
Wind Farm, Friends of the Earth, FEASTA, Environmental Pillar, SECAD, Muintir na Tire, our parish priest Fr Pat Ward and various islanders around
the world and a number of private companies to
drive the programme to the next phase.
The format of the local authorities is changing along
with the format of funding for LEADER and social
inclusion projects. These multi million funds will
now be managed by the Local Community Development Committee (LCDC). It is expected that the
LCDC will consist of 15 people, 8 will be from the
environmental, community and voluntary sector, 2
will be elected county councillor representatives.
These will be responsible for the management of
funds on a county level and will come into being
Place
March 2013
Mullingar
April 2013
Points of Interests
Date
Mullingar
September
2013
National
Parliament,
Aland
Arranmore
Island, Co
Donegal
London
November
2013
November
2013
December
2013
January
2014
Cork
Howth
In Conjunction
with
Bioregions
in IrelandWCD
Bioregions
in IrelandWCD
IEESMILEGOV
IEESMILEGOV
Tangible
Ireland
TEDx Cork
Women
Tangible
Ireland
Title
An Island Perspective
An Island Perspective for
Stakeholders
Future Job opportunities in
Arainn mhor
Future Job opportunities in
Arainn mhor
Fishing for a Future
Freedom from Conformity
Promo Video
http://youtu.be/
nmRJPSnrdPE
Arainn Mhor, An Island
Initiative
The Irish and in particular the Islands have a story telling tradition, we are using our natural talents and working with others
to gain a solution to the uncertainty that awaits the world.
We have arranged a meeting with respect to applying for SEAI
Better Energy Communities (BEC) fund for Wednesday 5th
March 2014 at 4pm at Ionad an Chrois Bhealaigh. We hope to
incorporate public bodies including the local authority, the
cooperatives, HSE, schools and the church along with fuel
poor and private homes in the application. We are considering
an application across the parish and have invited mainlanders
to the meeting as well in what we hope is a joint venture. We
are interested in employing locals should we receive grant aid.
This journey has been made easier as a result of information
gathered from Inis Mor-maith leat. www.sustainableislands.eu