March 22, 2024 View all news We’re undoubtedly at a critical juncture for climate action in Ireland, especially with the upcoming local, European and general elections. In getting organised and pulling out all the stops for this, we are having an Earth Day conference in the Royal College of Physicians, Dublin from 9am to 4pm, on 22nd April. The conference will focus on the theme 'Ireland 2030: Faster and Fairer Climate Action'. Our Earth Day conference will have the following key sessions: How Politics Can Rise To The Climate Challenge; Speaking Up For Faster And Fairer Climate Action; and Our Energy Future. We're also offering an exciting lineup of speakers: Hannah Daly, Professor in Sustainable Energy and Energy Systems Modelling at University College Cork; Kevin Cunnigham, lecturer in Politics at TU Dublin, and MD and Founder at Ireland Thinks; as well as Eamon Ryan, Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications.If you haven't already registered for the conference there is still time to do so!Register for the conference This interactive conference will bring together critical voices from across politics, academia, stakeholders, campaigners, and affected communities to explore how we can collectively rise to the challenge of cutting our climate pollution fast enough to stay within the legally-binding pollution limits adopted on a cross-party basis by the Dáil and fairly enough to “leave no one behind.”Hannah Daly will be kicking off the conference with a speech. Hannah's research and lectures focus on modelling and developing sustainable pathways for the energy system, encompassing energy access, climate change and air pollution. She engages extensively with policymakers, civil society and academia on those topics. Her speech will be focused on Ireland's decarbonisation challenge and what the Government must do to live within the climate carbon budget. Kevin Cunnigham will be addressing everyone next. He will be presenting new polling on public attitudes to climate and voting intentions, and this will be particularly significant due to the local, European and general elections happening all within the next year. We will thereafter host a political panel looking at How Politics Can Rise To The Climate Challenge. All the parties who voted for the climate law and carbon budgets will be represented on this panel. Our second panel will explore the topic of Speaking Up For Faster And Fairer Climate Action, where we'll be joined by leading voices from community and civil society groups engaged in climate action. This panel will include representatives from across sections in society calling for climate action— including older people, women, farming and groups that have been systemically marginalised.Eamon Ryan will be addressing the crowd next. We will conclude with our final panel on Our Energy Future, our collaborative project run with Renewable Grid Initiative and EirGrid to engage communities and groups around the country on Ireland’s energy transition. This will be delivered by Jerry Mac Evilly, our Head of Policy Change.Please note that lunch will be provided on the day. Taking part in this conference is a wonderful opportunity to hear from this wide range of speakers and panellists on pertinent topics. Not only that, but you will also get to meet like-minded people and identify opportunities to work together on climate action. April 22nd is also a special day for Friends of the Earth as it’s our birthday— and our 50th birthday at that! We really hope you can join us for this conference on what promises to be a very meaningful and special day.