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Gaia: Goddess of the Earth

St. Canice’s Cathedral Christmas Tree Festival 2024

Gaia, or Danu in Irish, is the Goddess of the Earth. She is the giver of life and a symbol of the interconnectedness of all life on Earth.

Our Gaia is made mostly from foraged and upcycled materials. The plants and animals which adorn her dress represent nature, and include teasel, ivy, ash, pine, holly, hydrangea, broom, ferns, contorted hazel, Virginia creeper, sedum mushrooms, dogwood, cornus, figwort, artichoke, rubus, black elder, aster, moss and a robin.  

The lights spreading out from Gaia’s feet represent the mycorrhiza or fungi which form huge underground networks between trees. Scientists have discovered that these tiny organisms connect trees and allow them to share water and food, and also to communicate with each other. The trees use them to send distress signals to each other about threats such as drought or disease.

Staff from the Community and Culture Team (Creative Kilkenny) of Kilkenny County Council, in collaboration with colleagues in the Climate Action and Biodiversity Offices, created Gaia for the St. Canice’s Cathedral Christmas Tree Festival 2024. She embodies our concern for the Earth, for biodiversity loss and climate change. She is also a symbol of hope – for what we can achieve if we heed the distress signals and work collectively to halt them.

Gaia: Goddess of the Earth at the St. Canice's Cathedral Christmas Tree Festival 2024


How can you help to address the Climate and Biodiversity crises in County Kilkenny?

If we all work together on climate action we can achieve so much more. Here are some useful ideas from the Kilkenny County Council Climate Action Office on how everyone can get involved.


Helping our Pollinators

There are 100 different types of bee and 180 hoverflies on the island of Ireland. Along with other creatures like moths, they provide important pollination services, helping fertilise many of our flowers, crops, and wild plants. Unfortunately, one third of our wild bee species are in danger of extinction. 

There are simple ways everyone can help, whether you have a business, a farm, a community group, a garden, or a window box. On the  All-Ireland Pollinator Plan website  you will find free resources to help you to support pollinators locally.

Below is a list of some of the plants that we used in our Gaia Christmas Tree, exhibited at the St. Canice’s Cathedral Christmas Festival 2024, along with ways in which they help nature and pollinators.

Holly

Bright red holly berries can be found on female trees. Holly is the only native tree species where male and female flowers are carried on separate plants. The dense prickly, leathery foliage provides good roost sites for birds in winter. Make sure to leave some berries for the birds such as song thrush and mistle thrush.

 

Teasel

This is a great flower in any wildflower garden. The little pools formed at the base of the stem leaves provide a supply of water for insects, the flowers attract pollinators while the seeds are a favorite of Goldfinches.

Pine cones

Pine cones are a wonderful snack for squirrels, as they contain little seeds located just behind the scales of the pine cone. These seeds are what the squirrels are trying to get to, and will tear back the scales to get them

Contorted Hazel

Hazel trees create diverse micro-habitats that support a wide range of plant and animal species

Ash

Ash is the most common tree in Irish hedgerows and is also a traditional woodland species.

Trees play an essential role in tackling climate change. They take up (or 'sequester') and store carbon dioxide (CO2) as they grow.  Birds such as bullfinches feed on ash tree seeds which are clumps of winged keys. It provides a haven for deadwood specialist insects and hole-nesting birds, including owls and woodpeckers.

Virginia Creeper

This robust and swiftly growing climber is loved for its stunning displays of colourful leaves and provides great cover for small birds, small mammals, insects and other pollinators.  It bears inconspicuous green flowers in summer which turn into blue-black berries which attract birds

Ivy

Ivy stems and their dark leaves provide great cover and are used by woodland birds for nesting in Spring and by bats for roosting in the daytime.

In Autumn, when many other plants have fruit, ivy produces its yellow-green flowers which turn black during the winter and are an essential food source for pollinators. There is no need to cut annually, berries grow on older stems so consider cutting back on a rotation basis.

Hydrangea

Hydrangea attracts a variety of pollinators, such as bees and butterflies and provides shelter for a variety of different species, including nesting birds.

Fern

Ferns provide shelter, shade, erosion protection and microhabitats that serve other species.  They also provide places for pollinators to nest or overwinter.

Broom

Broom is a large, deciduous shrub, similar in appearance to gorse, but without the spines.

It produces nectar and pollen in profusion for long and short-tongued bumblebees and honeybees, who favors its orange pollen.

 

 

Cornus Sericea/Dogwood

The nectar and pollen of the flowers in late spring and early summer attract many kinds of insects:  bees, wasps, flies, and butterflies.


Follow us on our journey to implement Kilkenny County Council’s First Climate Action Plan

Kilkenny County Council Climate Action Plan

The Elected Representatives of Kilkenny County Council adopted the Council’s first  Climate Action Plan  in February 2024. The Plan includes 95 actions which the Council will take to reduce energy and greenhouse gas emissions, prepare its’ operations and services for climate change, and support climate action in the county.

Kilkenny County Council must reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 51% and improve its energy efficiency by 50% by 2030, and become a net zero organisation by 2050. 

Join our Kilkenny Going Green network to get updates by emailing us at  climate@kilkennycoco.ie 

Follow us on Instagram @kilkennycoco and Kilkenny County Council on Facebook.  


What to do at Home and in the Community

  • Borrow a FREE  “Home Energy Kit ” from the Library to measure how your home uses energy, see where energy is escaping, and see how you can make savings

Launch of Community Energy Hub at the Mayfair Library - Sept 2024

  • Book a one-to-one FREE Energy Clinic to get expert advice on reducing energy in your home, delivered by South East Energy Agency and Kilkenny Library Service. The next clinics are in Castlecomer Library 22 nd  Nov 11am-1pm; Loughboy Library 10 th  Dec 10.30am-12.30pm.
  • Join a Tidy Towns Group to take climate action
  • Protect and nurture wildlife and nature in your garden and community
  • Apply for the Community Climate Action Fund Grants in 2025.

How Businesses can take part

  • Sign up to the FREE  Green for Business  programme to meet with a green consultant who’ll show you the small changes that can have a big impact on your company

Local Enterprise Office - Energy Efficiency Grant available for businesses


How can Schools and Adult Education contribute?

Green Schools - Climate Action Teacher Resource

  • Visit the SEAI’s  “Sustainable energy for Schools and Teachers” webpage  packed with ideas for early years, primary and post primary
    • Find out how you can reduce energy in school, complete your annual energy reporting and get information on grants available
    • Bring energy and sustainability into the classroom in a fun, interactive way. SEAI offer workshops for both teachers and pupils at primary and post primary level. Online / virtual options available

Inspiring Communities

Find out what communities in County Kilkenny are doing to take climate action. Kilkenny County Council and the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications were delighted to award €511,000 to 22 Kilkenny communities in 2024 to take local climate action.  Find out who they are and what they are doing by clicking  here .

Kilkenny Community Climate Action Grant Groups 2024

If you have a great idea for climate action in your community or to find out about the next round of funding please contact Claire Prendergast, Acting Community Climate Action Officer, on 056-7794112 or email  claire.prendergast@kilkennycoco.ie 


Join the Kilkenny Going Green Network

Kilkenny County Council is Going Green and we’d like you to join us!

  • Sign up to the Kilkenny Going Green network to hear about the latest grants, advice, and supports, and to follow Kilkenny County Council’s climate action journey. Email  climate@kilkennycoco.ie 

Kilkenny Going Green Network

  • If you have any queries, or would like to tell us what you are doing for climate action in Kilkenny please contact the Kilkenny County Council Climate Action Office   climate@kilkennycoco.ie ; Tel: 056-7794342.

Kilkenny Biodiversity Plan - Public Consultation Open

A Draft Biodiversity Action Plan for Kilkenny is open for public consultation until 18 th  Dec. The Biodiversity Office would love to hear your views on it.

Kilkenny's Biodiversity Action Plan 2025-20230 (Draft)

The Plan sets out the policy and legislative context; provides examples of previous biodiversity research completed by Kilkenny County Council; outlines the biodiversity value in Kilkenny and the threats which are of concern. 

The Biodiversity Action Plan provides an opportunity for Kilkenny County Council to examine its own work practices and lead the way by developing demonstration projects on how to design nature inclusive housing estates, manage parks and open space for biodiversity, improve the water  quality  and  improve  habitat  diversity  on  public  grounds.    The  Biodiversity  Action  Plan  will help us to integrate the protection of biodiversity in the Council’s day-to-day operations.

The Plan is now available to view on  https://consult.kilkenny.ie/  or a paper copy can be requested via  biodiversity@kilkennycoco.ie  or by ringing 056-7794920.


Got a creative idea and want to really make a difference for our climate?

Ever dreamt of collaborating with an artist to bring your vision to life? The Creative Ireland grants are here to make it happen!

Mark your calendars: Open calls for grants start on January 6th, 2025. Don’t miss this chance to turn your creativity into reality! 

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Maria Shortall

Special thanks to Majella Keating, Dearbhala Ledwidge and Claire Prendergast

Kilkenny County Council Climate Action Plan

Launch of Community Energy Hub at the Mayfair Library - Sept 2024

Local Enterprise Office - Energy Efficiency Grant available for businesses

Green Schools - Climate Action Teacher Resource

Kilkenny Community Climate Action Grant Groups 2024

Kilkenny Going Green Network

Kilkenny's Biodiversity Action Plan 2025-20230 (Draft)