On 27 November 2025, we were delighted to hear about the Winter Conference being organised by the Irish Environmental Network (IEN), to which all IEN members and Public Participation Network (PPN) members were invited. The conference would be held in the Midlands Park Hotel, Portlaoise, and the intention of IEN was that it would provide an opportunity for national and local groups from across the country to meet, make contacts, learn from speakers on a variety of topics requested throughout the year, and enjoy a festive dinner together.
The invitation stated that a small number of rooms would be made available in
the hotel for the night of Saturday 06 December, for representatives of IEN
member groups who would be travelling to Portlaoise during the previous
evening, and would find it convenient stay overnight. This invitation was most
welcome; and even though it was initially intended that only two people from each group would attend, the invitation was extended to more than two
representatives.
Zero Waste Alliance Ireland members who attended, availed of the offer of an overnight stay in the Midlands Park Hotel, and participated in the conference
were:
Ollan Herr, Vice-Treasurer and expert on wastewater treatment
Janine Boscheinen, currently an intern with ZWAI and a member of Architects for Future
Jack O’Sullivan, Vice-Chairman and a member of the County Westmeath Public Participation Network and Strategic Policy Committee on Environment, and a member of the Castlepollard Town Team
Dalia Smelstoriūtė-O’Sullivan, family member of ZWAI
All of us are extremely grateful to IEN, and especially to Alanagh Tennanty, Office
Coordinator, and to Catherine O’Toole, Development Officer, for the opportunity
to participate in this special event, to meet with other environmental NGO representatives, to renew old friendships, to make new contacts, and to engage
in wide-ranging discussions and conversations.
The Programme:
1. CREATIVE NETWORKING
2. WORKSHOP ON STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
3. 25 YEARS OF THE ABBEYLEIX BOG PROJECT
4. LAOIS PUBLIC PARTICIPATION NETWORK
5. VOLUNTEER IRELAND
More Insights of the programme you can find here.
The conference provided an excellent opportunity to connect, stay up-to-date and gain more motivation; and it was encouraging to learn about so many engaging and active groups and projects in Ireland.
All the tips and tricks we gained there will help us to move forward with our own
goals at Zero Waste Alliance Ireland. Furthermore, we made several more
contacts, and were able to continue building our own ZWAI network.
Until next time!
