Patrick Kirwan

It’s a gift having them onsite. We are very lucky!

Last year we installed a Barn Owl nesting box on site. This year we were so excited to see the Barn Owls using it. We have two Owlets and the wonderful wildlife ranger and Barn Owl expert Aine Lynch came to ring them & tell my colleagues, friends & family a little bit about them.

We are just starting to develop a strategy for using it across the school and between departments.

Using SDG 16 to frame a lesson around the genocide in Gaza in the new module in the outdoor classroom.

Thanks Jenni, this is super exciting and great to see it coming together.

With the ESD grant we’ve been able to get an ecologist in from LeafIreland.org to give us advice & guidance which has been invaluable. This is going to really transform the students relationship with nature. Sometimes it feels like progress is slow & then it speeds up! 2/2

Lots of exciting projects happening in the school this year. We have a young forest at the one end of the school & we’ve been working on making this accessible. We’re nearly there. Hoping to have the outdoor classroom ready for late April that teachers can book for their classes. 1/

It's stomach-turning to see how the representative of the Ukrainian people, who have suffered 3 years of imperialist war, death, and destruction, is being treated by Trump, Vance, and all their cronies, just because he refuses to grovel before them.

Bastards, the lot of them.

Tilda Swinton yesterday called out greed addicted governments who make nice with planet wreckers and war criminals.

She gave this powerful acceptance speech when she received an honorary Golden Bear award on the first day of the Berlin Film Festival on February 13.

I am excited for you and your family. It’s amazing. We cycled from Bilbao to San Sebastián, Pamplona, Victoria Gasteiz, and up to Santander. All of the bits in between were exquisite but even in the cities you can see they love nature. Mountains higher than our Comeraghs covered in Oak😍

"I felt like I had never experienced nature before."

*So* true: to experience real, extensive nature, you have to leave Ireland.

We are denied one the most basic human needs: deep connection with life on Earth.

I felt that way after coming back from northern Spain. I felt like I had never experienced nature before. At some stage I have to go and visit Costa Rica.

Turmeric and ginger are sprouting at the back of the classroom in heated propagators and we have a tonne of 🌶️ s. Love this time of year.

I’ve been looking out for frogspawn. Delighted to spot my first sighting of it for 2025. Hope we get some in our new pond this year 🤞

Lizzie is incredibly prolific but the standard of her work is always exceptional. I have no idea how she is so wonderfully creative, I'm just grateful for her voice in guiding #EfES 🌱
Looking forward to this 👇🏼

‘Helping him in his darkest moment was also helping me’: David Eccles and Tadhg Kennelly on an act of friendship that spawned a movement Irish pair co-founded WNOW in an effort to tackle loneliness among men

There’s a different way - David Eccles and Tadhg Kennelly on an act of friendship that spawned a movement

www.irishtimes.com/sport/gaelic...

"What shall we do for timber the last of the woods is down

The crown of the forest has withered, And the last of its game is gone"

Kilcash is a gaelic ballad written in the 18th century which laments the decline of gaelic society & the loss of Irelands great woods.

I have never seen a redpoll! You have given me a new appreciation for Great willowherb. Thanks 🤩

Whilst sitting on the couch I spotted these exquisite bull finches in the back garden feeding on dock seeds. If you want to have these visiting your garden embrace a little wildness and let the docks grow. 😍

Congratulations to one of our 6th year students, Niamh Purcell, who published her first book, Being the Solution. Niamh is a fantastic advocate for climate action. Check it out amzn.eu/d/a6HyJQC

I was honoured to receive this award from @britishecolsoc.bsky.social on behalf of all those in @irishschsusty.bsky.social who are coming up with innovative ways to connect our students with the natural world around them.

(most of) the #BES2024 award winners. (and yes, that's Tim Clutton-Brock and Jo Pemberton in there...)

Grateful to the @britishecolsoc.bsky.social and the Marsh Charitable Trust for honouring my research contributions on biodiversity and climate change with this recognition.

‘Climate bomb’ warning over $200bn wave of new gas projects New liquefied natural gas projects could produce 10 gigatonnes of emissions by the end of the decade, close to the annual emissions of all coal plants

Storm Darragh is another signal that we need to meet climate breakdown with an emergency response not profit driven lunacy 👉 www.theguardian.com/environment/...

The chillies have germinated. Great to be on the top floor of the building. Lots of heat! I just need the lamp.

An exciting day! With the ESD fund we’ve been able to get training from LEAF on how to make our woodland accessible to the students & staff. By the end of this academic year our students will feel what it’s like to be in a forest, learning in nature 😍 It’s another step on the journey.

I should have deleted my X account a long time ago but better late than never😁 Looking forward to learning, sharing, and connecting on here.

Ban Pesticide Use in Schools I've just signed this petition calling for dangerous pesticides to be banned in schools. Will you sign too?

We’re trying to ban pesticide use in schools. Please share and sogn this petition 🙏 my.uplift.ie/petitions/pe...

YouTube video by Ministry of Eco Education | sustainable schools Patrick Kirwan - Teaching for Sustainability

I recently spoke to the marvellous @patrickkirwan.bsky.social about the Irish curriculum as part of our @ministryofeco.bsky.social Teaching for Sustainability series!
youtu.be/BrGLIoQVVIw?...

Yes I made it. I just need to delete the ISSN account now.