Inspirational West Cork environmental campaigners honoured at CEF awards 

BY JACKIE KEOGH

WEST Cork features prominently amongst the winners of Cork Environmental Forum’s (CEF) awards for 2023. The Awards Ceremony took place at Nano Nagle Place on Thursday December 7th.

One of the inspiring people acknowledged for their positive impact on the environment is a young teenager from Kinsale. Lilian Gleave was named the Outstanding Individual category winner for her work in fighting fast fashion through awareness and education.

A student at Kinsale Community College, Lilian has engaged in many positive actions to highlight the harmful impacts of fast fashion. She has also addressed the issue in many practical ways such as teaching mending skills to younger students.

The Community & Voluntary Award winner, this year, is the Carbery Housing Association.

The association has, for many years, worked on providing sustainable living solutions. But it received the award, this year, specifically for its innovative RED WoLF Project, which retrofits houses that have inefficient heating systems.

The retrofit provides tenants with substantial savings, and it also significantly reduces carbon emissions, which contributes to the fight against climate change.

Bandon Environmental Action Group received a commendation for being ‘an exemplary example of a local group taking action to protect and restore biodiversity in collaboration with the wider community’.

The group developed a comprehensive Biodiversity Action Plan for the town that is being overseen and implemented.

Lennon Taylor and the Kinship Project took the Award under the Public Sector, while the Circular Economy category was presented to the Cork Repair Café. My Goodness, vegan food business was named as the deserving winners in the Business & Commercial Category.

Iona Appliances received a commendation under the Business & Commercial Category for their foresight and considerable efforts through repair services to extend the life of white goods.

A lifetime achievement award was also presented to the late Andrew St Ledger. Described as ‘one of greatest advocates and friends of the environment’, he was a sculptor and an educator who campaigned for the restoration of our native and ancient trees.

Andrew together with the CEF’s Ted Cook set up the Woodland League in 1999. Many people continued to be involved in the project but Andrew was at the forefront of their mission to restore the relationship between people and their native woodland.

There was an increase in quality nominations for this year’s awards, and CEF development coordinator Bernie Connolly thanked everyone who took the time and effort to make a nomination.

‘At a time when we are seeing very locally the negative impacts of both climate and biodiversity loss it is so heartening to see so many actions being implemented across such a range of areas contributing positively to combat climate change, to halt biodiversity loss, and build community resilience,’ she said.