Friends of the Earth Staff Team

Oisín Coghlan has been the chief executive of Friends of the Earth since 2005.

Oisín co-founded the Stop Climate Chaos coalition in 2007 and led the 8 year campaign for a climate change law which culminated in the passing of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act in December 2015.

Oisín was one of the co-founders of the Environmental Pillar in 2009, the advocacy coalition of national environmental NGOs in Ireland, and was recently re-elected to the Pillar's steering committee.

Before joining Friends of the Earth, Oisín worked for 10 years in the areas of overseas aid and human rights. He was the founding coordinator of the Latin America Solidary Centre in 1996, moved to Belize as a community organizer among immigrant banana workers and went on to become the Fresh Fruit Manager for Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International in Bonn. Oisín returned to Ireland in 2002 to become head of policy for Christian Aid, working on trade justice, aid policy and Israel/Palestine.

Oisín's primary degree was Sociology and Political Science in Trinity College Dublin and he has a Masters in International Relations from Dublin City University.

My mission at Friends of the Earth is to support best practice in governance and management. Aside from managing admin and finance with transparency and accuracy to remain compliant at all times, I look for, and create, ways to make the team's work easier so that they can focus on what they do best.

That's what I'm passionate about: helping others do what they do best, and their hardwork and success are what inspires me. What better place to witness the passion, the struggle, the hope, the persistence and the achievement than being at the core of the action?

My role at Friends of the Earth is to engage our supporters in the work that we do and to find ways to give back to those who keep us going.

I’m passionate about community, and that’s what I get when I come to work at work at Friends of the Earth. I want our wider network of supporters to know that they are important members of our community too. A strong community is essential for building and driving a strong and lasting movement for change.

My role at Friends of the Earth is to keep the administrative wheels turning smoothly between the different management circles and campaigns. I keep the tech on spec, the policies polished, and the governance good. 
I am also the person you will meet when you reach out to our CEO, as I assist him with his workload in keeping the whole ship on course. My duties are varied and interesting, and I so much enjoy playing my part in fair and just climate action. 

I love putting our Friends of the Earth community and supporters at the heart of my work! Building and maintaining resilient communities is what makes me tick and I’m always looking for opportunities to share and make those connections. Friends of the Earth is a vibrant community of people and it is my job to make sure our supporters are engaged, sustained and appreciated.

‘Without community, there is no liberation’ - Audre Lorde

My work at Friends of the Earth involves climate policy research and analysis in support of faster and fairer climate action, as well as coordinating the policy and advocacy work of the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition. I have a background in renewable energy planning and climate science, and my PhD focused on the role and function of citizen and community engagement in wind energy development.  I believe that citizens and communities, especially those that are vulnerable, should be supported to take action so that they are at the heart of the energy transition. Over the past years, I’ve been involved in research projects that explored community renewables as a vehicle for rural development, the transition away from fossil gas in the Netherlands, and sustainable food consumption.