The Covid crisis has shown that recreational space in rural Cork is scarce and this is especially true for the Cork-Bandon-Skibbereen area. But with quiet roads, more people were out cycling and walking than ever before, showing how eager we are to take up active travel. Let us build the infrastructure to support it. In Ireland, we are already seeing the effects of the next crisis we have to face: The climate crisis needs bold and quick action. This is a unique opportunity to support a shift in transport modes for Cork commuters while also creating recreation space close to the home of thousands of people. With electric bikes becoming more easily available, cycling is quickly gaining attraction as an affordable, accessible and healthy alternative to the commute by car. By providing an infrastructure separate from the N71 we would not only provide a safe route for cyclists. Motorists would profit from this change, too: By reducing the number of cars on the road we would improve traffic flow and move cyclists - often seen as obstacles by motorists - off the road. The more extensive the greenway, the more likely it will also have a positive impact on tourism, with knock-on effects for local businesses. We know how many people use the Waterford greenway and the positive effects it has on the region. By contributing to Irelands cycle network we could even attract international active tourism. As a historic railway, the touristic value of the greenway would be priceless. With many of the structures still intact the former railway would itself be an attraction. We do understand that there have been prior attempts at this undertaking that have been dismissed or delayed due to the costs involved. However we would like Cork County Council to address this with the same urgency, the dedication and the budget they would use for a motor-traffic-centered infrastructure project. This is one of the bold actions required to prepare Cork County for the future. There has also never been more funding made available for active travel than ever before. The investment would benefit a very broad set of people, including motorists. We would like Cork County Council do address this project as a matter of priority.

The insurance industry wreaks havoc on so many aspects of Irish life. Thanks to skyrocketing premiums; people have been put off the road, childcare has become too expensive, and small businesses are struggling to survive. A new law called the ‘Consumer Insurance Contracts Bill’ could help tilt the balance back towards ordinary people. But, even though the law has been passed and signed by the president - the sitting Minister for Finance says he won’t sign it because the insurance companies ‘could quit the market’. It seems the Minister is forgetting just how many drivers, small business owners and childcare centres are urgently at risk of losing everything because of massive insurance bills.

Ireland needs a long-term plan to fix unfairness in how women, girls, and other groups are treated. Countries like the UK, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark, and Canada have special government jobs, called Minister for Women or something similar, to look after these issues. It's time for Ireland to think about having a Minister for Women, just like these other places do. This job should be someone's only job, and they need to have everything they need - like time, power, and resources - to really make a difference. A Minister for Women would work on finding and changing the barriers that make it hard for everyone in Ireland to have the same chances in jobs, school, sports where they live, and other important areas of life. They would make sure no one is left out or treated unfairly because of their gender, if they're married or not, their family situation, how old they are, if they have a disability, who they love, their race, their religion, how much money they have, or if they're part of the Traveller community.

#TheDCYAMustStay It is welcome that in the proposed Programme for Government the DCYA appears to be included. It is imperative that DCYA is retained, and the proper support and budget requirements that would allow the Department to fulfil it's duties and responsibilities to children are provided. Children need a strong voice in government now more than ever. Children are one of the most vulnerable groups in society. There are more than 1.25 million children and young people in Ireland. That represents 25% of our population. Children have suffered hugely during Covid—19. They have experienced worry and loss in many ways: illness/death of loved ones, parental unemployment, school closure, transitions and rites of passage have been abruptly cancelled, interrupted friendships, loss of the freedom to be a child, new stress and worry, and much more. Some of these children will need extra support to help them deal with what they’ve experienced. For some there will be difficulties with addressing the future and adapting to the new and unexpected world that lies ahead. Some will have suffered abuse, neglect, domestic violence and other trauma behind closed doors as their family struggles to survive, and many live without the safe space provided by trusted adults in their extended family, schools, sports clubs, and community services. Prior to the Covid 19 emergency government figures indicated that 11% or 134,000 children and young people lived in consistent poverty, for example not owning a warm winter coat or being able to heat their home adequately. 3,555 children and young people faced day to day difficulties living in homeless accommodation and another 1,674 in direct provision accommodation. Many parents had difficulty accessing readily available and appropriate mental health or disability services for their children and teenagers. Additionally many parents were struggling with the cost of quality child care and afterschool care. These worries and concerns haven’t gone away. We need a minister focused on children and young people at the cabinet table to continue to develop our children’s services and bring children’s voices to discussions and decisions. We are deeply concerned about the possibility that the functions of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (DCYA) may be carved up, subsumed, or amalgamated with other departments in the next government. We are concerned about the possible downgrading of the key role of Minister for Children, and the danger that this will again take us backwards in a history that has not always treated children well. 2011 brought hope for children, with the appointment of the first full ministerial appointment dedicated to the children of Ireland and the establishment of the DCYA. In November 2012, the referendum on the rights of the child resulted in the addition of Article 42A to the Irish Constitution, placing an emphasis in law on the best interests of the child. The establishment of the new Child and Family Agency in 2014 saw the separation of the business of looking after children from the delivery of health services. There was hope that we were awakening from our historical past of disregard for children, their rights, voice and visibility in society and public policy. There was hope that this would be the foundation for ‘brighter and better futures’ for the children of Ireland. We need a Minister for Children who will continue the work to ensure that services supporting children and young people’s well-being, welfare and protection are properly resourced. The DCYA has undertaken so much necessary work since its establishment, work that has positively impacted on children’s lives in this country. There remains so much more to achieve going forward if we are to tackle issues such as child poverty, child and family homelessness, equal access to services, proper health provision, protection and welfare of children, and deliver a fair and equitable Ireland for all our children.

1- Liveaboards create vibrant communities and safe spaces across canals and rivers, enhancing the charm and character of our Waterways for locals and tourists alike. 2- Houseboats are greener, reducing our ecological footprint and use of valuable resources like water, energy, waste, transport among others. Now more than ever, it's time to think about the positive changes we can make to protect our planet. 3- Liveaboards communities and policies have been successfully implemented across several European countries except Ireland currently facing a rising demand for residential and affordable housing. 4- Traditionally, people have been living in boats on Irish waterways and, for just as long, the Waterways authorities have been ignoring the matter. Basically a blind eye was turned to liveaboards 5- There are only 20 residential berths in Grand Canal Dock and a further 8 in Shannon Harbour. There are no residential berths available at any other locations and there are no residential berths available at this time.

The current curriculum is falling short for students. There is little coverage on safe sex for non-heterosexual people, sexual consent for all ages or inclusivity for transgender and non-binary people. The repercussions of a poor sex education is harmful for all students.

What will be the future of our children? By 2030, 1 out of 4 people will live in poor housing conditions. The fast-moving challenge posed by the COVID-19 pandemic adds another urgent reason to ensure that people can shelter at home and protect their health and families. In Europe today, young people cannot afford to rent a flat in many cities; and a growing number of families cannot pay their heating and cooling bills. Globally, more than half of the urban population lives in slums. Proper housing is a matter of life and death in the current pandemic as people are asked to stay at home to protect themselves against the coronavirus. Home has become more important than ever, and the European Union has a role to play. Join Habitat for Humanity and partner organizations all over Europe in calling on the EU to: · Prioritize affordable housing in the next EU budget for 2021-27, particularly for countries in the global South. · Increase funding for access to water and sanitation and for slum upgrading to protect communities against diseases. · Address energy poverty in the European Green Deal with concrete financial measures. Situation Many countries are unprepared and unable to meet the growing housing needs of urban residents. The expected global population increase of 1,18 billion combined with the existing global housing need, means that approximately 2 billion people will be in need of adequate housing in 2030. This creates an unprecedented housing challenge. Without adequate and affordable housing; without land rights, more and more families are at risk of poverty and insecurity. The current coronavirus pandemic has highlighted importance of housing as the means of protection against deadly diseases. A proper home has become the most important remedy. But it is not accessible to all. Habitat for Humanity works for access to decent housing because it is foundational to individuals and families, to the communities in which we live and to the economies in which we all participate.

Add visually to the area . Breath life into the canals . Prevent antisocial behavior in portobello and all along our canals in derelict stretches of water . Asking Waterways Ireland to deliver on their mission statement.

Facebook must do more to stop Donald Trump. His infamous Twitter posts are cross-posted to Facebook and not being moderated or reviewed. [2] Now, he's throwing money behind ads with Nazi symbols targeting our communities -> https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/18/tech/facebook-trump-ads-triangle-takedown/index.html Facebook employees organised a virtual walk out in protest over the lack of moderation on his hateful posts. [3] Calls for advertising boycotts are heating up. [4] It's time Facebook took action, and either kick Trump off Facebook, or moderate his posts and stop taking his money to spread hate. Sources [1] https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/may/28/zuckerberg-facebook-police-online-speech-trump [2] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/03/facebook-oversight-board-wont-review-trumps-shooting-starts-posts.html [3] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/01/facebook-employees-stage-virtual-walkout-over-trump-post-moderation.html [4] https://eu.usatoday.com/story/tech/2020/06/17/facebook-hate-speech-civil-rights-groups-call-advertising-boycott/3207915001/

• Increased frequency of extreme weather events putting lives at risk. • Increased flooding and rising sea levels endangering vulnerable communities. • Impact to food production globally and local impact to farming in Ireland. • Increased frequency of water supply shortages impacting households in Ireland. • WHO reports that the climate crisis poses one of the greatest risks of the 21st century. • As an example, "The Guardian" now consider this issue so important they now publish CO2 levels along with the weather forecast. • Link: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/apr/05/why-the-guardian-is-putting-global-co2-levels-in-the-weather-forecast • The Biodiversity crisis could lead to the extinction of many species, something from which Ireland may never recover.

The Minister for Education has said the money is not available for 97,000 children in Northern Ireland to continue getting free school meals over the summer. Boris Johnson has just U-turned and announced free school meals over the summer for eligible children in England. Scotland and Wales have similar schemes in place. Say no to #holidayhunger

This is the statement made by the family who are asking for our support "We have all been living through our own personal hell. We are relieved that justice has been done and that the crimes committed against us as children are no longer hidden or denied by anybody. No more needs to be said about the hell we have lived through and somehow survived. But more does need to be said about how it was allowed to happen. We are left with many questions, and we need answers. Where were the different parts of the state when we as vulnerable and defenceless children needed protection? How could schools, social workers, medical professionals and all the other people who had a so-called ‘duty of care’ turn their back and look the other way – time after time as the evidence was piling up and hitting them in the face? We were vulnerable Traveller children, forced to live on the edges of Irish society, already looked down, discriminated against and denied our basic human rights. Does this denial of our rights extend also to the right to protection and welfare as children? Would the same state neglect, the same agreement that nobody should say a word, the same ability to turn the blind eye have been evident if this had been a respected settled family in Ireland? God knows we know that what we had to suffer could have happened in any family in Ireland. But we also know that the response of the state would have been different and there is a good chance that much of the suffering could have been spared or avoided. We are asking you not to ask ‘how could this happen in a Traveller family’. Do ask ‘how could this happen in any family? But also ask ‘were we not protected because we were Travellers?" Tipperary Rural Travellers Project publicly state our support for the Reilly family in the wake of the court judgement that found their father guilty of rape and sexual assault of his sister and seven daughters. We cannot even begin to imagine the pain and trauma the family has endured, and we want also to commend the Reilly women in the courage, determination and humanity they have shown under such terrible circumstances. We sincerely hope that their courage can provide some inspiration and encouragement for others who suffer abuse and trauma from such circumstances. https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/sexual-abuse-victims-ask-were-they-less-protected-because-they-were-travellers-1005362.html