Smart sustainability

ABOUT US

Tara and Madeleine met one year ago. They quickly realised they had a common interest in sustainability and set about brain storming ideas on how to help, starting with Kinsale. A focus group was held on Jan 6th 2018 to gauge interest in the issue and gather information on what matters to people. This proved very powerful, igniting an exercised debate around knowledge, confusion and aspirations for a sustainable Ireland, starting with people in their own homes. They concluded that many want to do the right thing to combat climate change, reduce waste and live healthier lives. However, too often people are confused by conflicting messages, complicated information or a sense that the problem is just too big to solve and that the actions of an individual have little impact. Tara and Madeleine believe people have more power than they realise and that doing a little, can help a lot.
The results from the focus group helped narrow the the topic down and Plastic Free Kinsale was born - a community initiative with homes, businesses, schools and clubs as stakeholders. Three simple actions were designed for each group, aimed at reducing plastic use and increasing recycling awareness and know-how. These are the actions we hope to share and engage people on via social media and in person in the town in the coming months.
The aim:
· Reduce our use of unnecessary plastic
· Reduce plastic litter and pollution
· Maximise plastic recycling
· Clean up our coast and our sea
· Have fun doing it through our clubs, schools, businesses and neighbourhoods
You will find the most up to date information on plastic pollution here, as well as tips and hints about how to reduce your plastic footprint and maximise reuse and recycling. The initiativesaim is to help cut through the complicated, confusing information currently out there on recycling. Plastic Free Kinsale gives succinct, useful, savvy help to those wanting to make Kinsale more sustainable.
Post your good news stories on how you, your family, your business or your club are helping to make Kinsale less polluted by plastics. Invite your friends to like this page and share any posts you find useful and interesting. Plastic Free Kinsale encourages and welcomes feedback.

Dr. Tara Shine is an Environmental Scientist, working freelance as an adviser to governments, world leaders and policy makers on climate change, climate justice and sustainable development. Most of Tara’s work is on the global stage so she is really excited about this local project. Not content to work for change from behind a desk or in international conferences, Tara also presents wildlife and environment documentaries and enjoys public speaking.

Madeleine Murray is a Media Strategist, working on creating meaningful content and messaging for businesses developing their social media strategies. She has been part of the business planning stage of various businesses and has advised on business models and strategies to companies. She also ran a food business which was incubated through the Rubicon Centre, CIT for high potential start ups.