Learning about the ‘Co’ in Ecovillage!

As part of the Challenging the Crisis campaign the Young Global Advocates (YGAs) normally meet up every few weeks for day-long meetings but with the campaign now well underway and the end date for the project drawing closer we felt we needed a longer, more intense meeting to go through our ideas and plans. We decided to go for an overnight trip to  Cloughjordan Ecovillage  where we would also have the opportunity to see Social & Solidarity Economy in action. Over the course of the weekend we did much of what we normally do at our meetings but more of it! We also focused on how to best communicate the message of the campaign as we have felt that it can be hard to make Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) as a concept clear and concise.

On top of that we got a chance to learn about Cloughjordan Ecovillage from Davie Philips of Cultivate, who talked us through how the village came into being and how it functions day-to-day. We found it very interesting to experience an actual living, breathing social and solidarity organisation. As a group, we benefitted from the experience and found it uplifting to see that the concept we have talked so much about in the last year is actually, not only feasible, but existing and functioning successfully. It made it clear to us that our campaign supports what SSE organisations need in terms of awareness-raising and informing people about their existence, so they can flourish and also lead to further growth of SSEs. We don’t need to invent them, we need to promote them so they can grow. Also in the spirit of SSE we did some weeding for the community, which was a nice change of scene from the meeting room. We also got a chance to present to the people living in the village, outlining our campaign for them. Their response was very supportive.

We also got some good news at the weekend. We learned that the Challenging the Crisis project has received funding from Action/2015 (www.action2015.org) to hold public engagement events, across the 6 Project countries, to promote our campaign and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our campaign is most closely linked to goal 8 which is: Promote strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all. We see SSE as a way this goal can be achieved because if our economy is run through co-ops, mutual associations etc, this means that the work people have will be more within their control and reliable because the aim of SSE companies isn’t solely profit, it is sustainability and the betterment of society.

We'd like to say a big thank you to the residents who accommodated our stay and everyone at  Cultivate and the Resiliance Centre for facilitating our meeting and visit. 

About the author:

Méabh Hennelly has been a member of the YGA’s since March 2014. She has also been involved with  Amnesty International Ireland  and  ROSA. She just finished her leaving cert at Newpark Comprehensive School, Blackrock, and hopes to study Politics, Sociology and Philosophy.

May 2, 2025
Dates: Thursday 10 July,10.00am-6.00pm and Friday 11 July, 10.00am-3.00pm Location: An Tairseach, Wicklow IDEA is thrilled to open applications for our second iteration of the IDEA's Lab. In this first of its kind residential Lab, we will create space where members can bring their ideas for projects and try out new planning and design methods. Participants will have the opportunity to work on an idea from scratch to (almost) finish with the support of expert trainers and learn through group exchange in a welcoming and inspiring setting. Participants will come out of the training with: An early project design proofed, tested and built through group feedback, iteration, trialling and support. New approaches in designing innovative projects they can apply to their workplace Headspace and time to work on the design of an innovative project A chance to actively learn through group exchange and strengthen the sense of an innovative community of practice in Ireland How? Please email anya@ideaonline.ie to request an application form. Requesting an application form does not commit you to applying. The deadline for returning application form (including organisational sign off letter) is Friday 23 May, midnight . You will find further details in the application form. Participants must register as a team of 2min.- 4 max. Participants without a team member will be asked to pair up with other individual participants or find a partner outside their organisation. Cost : This training is funded by Irish Aid at the Department of Foreign Affairs and offered at a reduced rate. This training is only available to IDEA members. Non-IDEA members can participant as part of an IDEA member team. Fees for members of IDEA is €50  Irish Aid is the Government’s overseas development programme which supports partners working in some of the world’s poorest countries. Irish Aid also supports global citizenship education in Ireland to encourage learning and public engagement with global issues the ideas, opinions and comments expressed in this training are entirely the responsibility of its author(s) and do not necessarily represent or reflect DFA policy. Timeline: Applications open: 07 May Applications close: 23 May, midnight Preparatory session with trainer (30min, online): Mid June Lab arrival: Where possible we advise arrival on Wednesday 09 July in the evening. Accommodation and food will be provided from 09 July, 5.00pm - 11 July, 3.00pm Lab: 10 July,10.00am-6.00pm. 11 July, 10.00am-3.00pm Please don’t hesitate to get in touch at anya@ideaonline.ie if any of the above pose a barrier to your participation, or if you have any other questions.
April 29, 2025
Wednesday 18 June, 10.00am - 4.00pm Wynn’s Hotel, Abbey Street Lower, Dublin 1
April 7, 2025
Last week, IDEA hosted the second webinar from our 2025 series, ‘Exploring Contemporary Crises and Issues through Global Citizenship Education, ' focusing on Palestine. If you missed out, you can watch the full video below!