A code red for humanity. This was the warning sounded by The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s damming report on the extent and widespread effect climate change is currently having on the world. A call for the sustained reduction in carbon emissions, the blame for the ever worsening situation is placed firmly at the feet of “human activity”. The report contains the starkest warnings yet … Continue reading Hot Under The Collar – The Economics of Climate Change in Ireland

As the seventh largest producer of waste in the European Union, Ireland’s current system of privatised waste management appears to be failing as reports of littering and illegal dumping continue to rise. The Covid-19 pandemic has seen a greater emphasis placed on the outdoors and with it, a debate as to how Ireland is managing its waste services. With more people spending time in their … Continue reading Runt of the Litter – Is Ireland’s Waste Management Strategy Working?

Colombia has entered its fourth week of violent unrest as riot police continued a brutal crackdown on nationwide protests against poverty and inequality exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. What were initially triggered by a controversial tax increase aimed at funding a health system struggling to deal with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, protesters are now calling for greater social reforms including greater social protection for low … Continue reading Video Report – Colombia Enters Its Fourth Week Of Protest As UN Condemns Use Of Excessive Force By Police

They say home is where the heart is but what do you say to someone who has lost sense of what home means to them? Emigration and the idea of home are very much prominent fixtures in the Irish psyche and since Famine times, Ireland has been a country from which people left. As the Irish diaspora spread out across the globe, with it a … Continue reading The Odyssey Podcast – After Years Living Abroad, Is Returning Home Harder Than Leaving?

The Covid-19 pandemic has seen a greater emphasis placed on the outdoors and with it, a debate as to how Ireland is managing its waste services. With more people spending time in their local parks as well as forests and mountain areas, incidences and issues surrounding littering and illegal dumping have returned to the national debate. With the government’s push for an outdoor summer and … Continue reading Pick of the Litter – Which of Dublin’s Four Councils Has Issued The Most Litter Fines Since 2019?

Why does someone learn a new language? Ask any Irish person and they will probably tell you it is to help with their yearly trip to Italy after one too many confused and awkward interactions with a waiter, maybe it is for love having swiped left on all the English speakers in Dublin, or maybe it is to finally understand those reggaetón lyrics they keep … Continue reading Unlocked Doors –How Learning A Language Can Be More Than Just A Skill

From facetime and Zoom calls, to audio messages and letters, this past year has seen many of us adopt new and novel ways of staying in touch with those we care about. Whether it be 5km or 5,000km, many of us have found ourselves in the type of long distance relationships people saw in films or TV series giving us a new found appreciation for … Continue reading Absence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder – How To Have A Long Distance Relationship With Your Pet

The 22nd of April marks world Earth Day, an annual event to demonstrate support for the natural environment and its protection. As the world continues to push back against the surging waves of Covid-19, the issue of the environment and our contribution to any increasingly changing climate is brought into sharper focus. A call to action may be coming from an unlikely place. Perhaps one … Continue reading L’enfant Sauvage – Can Music Save The Amazon?

Speaking on the power of photography, Gordon Parks, who often used his photography to highlight the reality of life for African-American communities living in 20th century America, described photography as his means to “transcend the limitations of my own experience by sharing, as deeply as possible, the problems of those I photograph.” Parks saw this as his “weapon” and while other may use their weapon … Continue reading The Camera as an Aid to Social Change – Four Photos That Changed The World

For many, Sunday mornings consist of long lie ins, warm coffee and an opportunity to savour those last few hours of rest and relaxation before the start of another week of early mornings and busy lives. For one group of dedicated volunteers however, Sunday mornings are about bright early rises, wellies and gloves, and wading knee deep into cold water to drag out the leftovers … Continue reading Hell or High Water – My Morning With Dodder Action Group As They Continue Their Fight Against Littering and Illegal Dumping