Our political discourse and democracy are being manipulated.

Today is Ireland's Overshoot Day - the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate in that year.

If everyone lived like we do in Ireland, we would need three planets to sustain us.

📊 by Footprint Network

I live by Columbia. Tonight I went for a walk & saw 10+ blocks rapidly barricaded, dozens of police vehicles flying by, large groups of NYPD in riot gear gathering.
I study protest in E Europe. What I saw tonight was some of the most wildly disproportionate policing I've seen
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We were delighted to host the 20th Law & Environment Conference last Thursday UCC Ireland

We explored the theme 'Rights, Remedies & Restoration in Environmental & Natural Resources Law'

Thanks to all our speakers, attendees and to our sponsors FuturEnergyIreland RDJ LLP EPA Ireland

Up next we had a fascinating presentation by Alison Hough on Aarhus Rights on the Island of Ireland 🌱including potential avenues for securing these rights!

Thanks to all the speakers and participants who attended our panel & for another brilliant Law and the Environment Conference @EnvEnvironment Owen McIntyre

Looking forward to next year!

Thanks Joe O'Shea and Cork Beo for reporting my sit-down meeting with #UisceÉireann on discoloured water.

Despite fatigue, it's critical to keep reporting incidents. Households are the main source of data on the problem — and data is key to solving it.

corkbeo.ie/news/local-new…

*Spoiler Alert* Next year's exam question will be:
'If a new oil terminal can get permission in the context of a climate emergency and legally binding GHG emission targets, what's the point of the Northern Ireland Planning system?'
3000 words, and please limit your despair
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I cycled the carlingford greenaway yesterday. Unfortunately the entire length had been sprayed with glyphosate on both sides. I support the expansion and extention of cycle infrastructure but we need to be aware that they often go through environmentally sensitive areas.

Fascinating discussions raised by EJNI this afternoon at the Environmental Law Conference UCC about our shared, all island environmental issues.

Adults Are Pretending To Be Ill So They Can Claim Welfare, Kids Are Pretending To Be Ill Even During Vacations Because They Don’t Want To Go To School, And All The Dead People Are Just Pretending To Be Dead Too.

Official: U.K. rejects EU offer of mobility scheme for young people between EU and UK theguardian.com/politics/2024/…

In a classic late Friday afternoon move, the Commission has published a draft directive amending the Nitrates Directive to loosen rules on using fertilising materials made from processed manure. The draft act is open for feedback for 4 weeks. Find it here ec.europa.eu/info/law/bette…

Disproportionate interference with the right to earn a livelihood, and further evidence of the ramping up of attacks on environmental defenders in the UK recently highlighted by the UN Special Rapporteur on Environmental Defenders, in his recent report.

Looking forward to the TUS Sustainability Showcase, and visit of the Czech Environmental Partnership Foundation, Thursday & Friday this week. Technological University of the Shannon TUS Athlone Campus westmeathindependent.ie/2024/04/16/tus…

Guess how much the fine?

Serial water polluter Northern Ireland Water
again convicted of sewage pollution. With such a derisory fine it not only pays to pollute but the court system is literally taking the piss.

Fine for the persistent offender? £250
Feargal Sharkey

daera-ni.gov.uk/news/ni-water-…

This is bad.

Eir’s customer complaint manual:

'Under no circumstances are the complaints number or complaints webpage address to be provided to any customer. An agent found to be doing this will be subject to a disciplinary under call avoidance.'

Irish court fined it €7,500

📨🟢 New letter just published: the EU must stay the course on the #EUGreenDeal implementation!

Eurocities has joined seven other networks of local and regional governments across Europe to form the #LocalAlliance .

Press release → eurocities.eu/latest/local-a… 🇪🇺🍃

‘Ireland has paradoxically the weakest, most underfunded system of local government with the least power and authority of any country in Europe’ Good piece by Paul Gillespie on need for power and ownership to shift to local government and communities.

irishtimes.com/opinion/2024/0…

Just getting around to watching Rising Tides on the RTE player now.

Essential viewing!

Brilliantly presented & narrated by Philip Boucher-Hayes

Terrific script & camera work Earth Horizon Productions Marcus Stewart

I’ll be putting it on the syllabus for my students next week - climate capitalism.