In this crucial year for our environment, our economy and our climate, we are announcing our new name - Natural Capital Ireland - and an exciting programme of work for 2021. This group (formerly known as the Irish Forum on Natural Capital) began as an idea in 2013 with four people around a coffee table in Dublin and has since grown to lead the conversation on natural capital in Ireland. In its six years of existence, Natural Capital Ireland has:
launched the concept with the Ireland’s Hidden Wealth conference in 2014;
co-delivered the sold-out National Biodiversity Conference at Dublin Castle in 2019;
built capacity by producing videos, infographics and quick reads;
participated in original research such as the pioneering INCASE project, which is testing natural capital accounting at catchment scale in Ireland for the first time.
Over the past year, we have seen increasing interest in the natural capital approach, with our membership rising to more than 800. We have elected a new Steering Committee, with representatives from across the island of Ireland, and from government departments, NGOs, and semi-state corporations, including Departments of Agriculture and Climate Action, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Business in the Community, the Ulster Wildlife Trust, Northern Ireland Environment Link, Bord na Móna, Coillte, and Irish Water. Meet the new Steering Committee here.
We are also seeking new contractors to aid us in delivering our programme of work for 2021, including the organisation of a Business & Biodiversity seminar and a Data for Nature conference.
We also want to better involve you, our members. This will be a bumper year for climate and biodiversity policy in Ireland, with many flagship plans up for review or publication, including:
The National Development Plan
The National Biodiversity Action Plan
The Sustainable Development Goals National Implementation Plan
The Agri-Food Strategy to 2030
The National Land Use Plan
To help shape and respond to these emerging policies, we want your expertise. That’s why we are establishing thematic Policy Working Groups, to ensure that our policy submissions to government reflect your expertise. These groups will meet once or twice a year, with the primary aim of developing Natural Capital Ireland’s policy on themes such as:
Business and Finance
Biodiversity
The Sustainable Development Goals
Agriculture & Land Use
If you are interested in getting involved, please contact our Executive Coordinator, Orlaith Delargy, at coordinator@naturalcapitalireland.com